I learned the benefittss of both synchronous and asynchronous learrning iiin the online classroom.
When assigning Discussion Boards,it is good to give prompt feedback to posts,and encourage expanding on the students thoughts
I had not thought about holding synchronous chats with individual students in the class. This would be a great way to really connect with the students on a more personal level.
I have found class sizes of 10-20 stydents are more likely to participate in discussions.
Both synchronous and asynchronous communication is important to the online learning environment. More emphasis is placed on asynchronous learning, because it is used for instruction and peer-to-peer discussions.
I would like to hone the use of asynchronous communication for the library course site by adding discussion sections for the entire student population to convene. Perhaps topics such as gaming, favorite books, favorite movies, most popular memes, etc., can be utilized to generate interest across the wider student population and engage them in friendly discussion.
Structure my comments to promote further discussion among students, which can help keep folks in engaged in online conversations.
I have placed a priority on Synchronous discussion because 3/4 of my classes are intended to be face-to-face teaching versus online. Asynchronous not only feels too distant but the programs at my University are underdeveloped for such purposes. That being said, the suggestions for synchronous discussion (mine being via video) were helpful and clarified a few of the ongoing struggles. particularly relevant being providing material to be discussed well ahead of time so that students can become familiar with the information.
Allowing time for small talk is crucial to providing a good online learning experience. Offering time for small talk at the beginning of class and closing remarks at the end will engage the students in a deeper more meaningful way.
Interaction is likely to be higher when learners are rewarded for their efforts than in situations in which no marks are awarded. Ensure that each learner experiences your presence in his or her learning experience. You should also seek feedback from students on a regular basis. Solicit student feedback about how the course is progressing. Are they getting out of the course what they want? Is the course fulfilling their expectations? Are there some things you are doing that they do not like?
Learning the difference between asynchronous and synchronous discussions. Knowing the different learning styles and how to apply them to students, and how to approuch students who start to fallback.
It was interesting learning the difference between asynchronous and synchronous discussions. This gave me a deeper understanding as to why synchronous discussions should not be utilized for critical course content. The list of learning styles was interesting and how to help the three types of learners that are avoidant, competitive and dependent. It was good to hear how to encourage and identify the shy learner.
I learned about the disadvantages of synchronous online discussions.
I have learned how to keep students engaged in discussions and how to properly provide feedback on those dicussions.How to figure what students are having difficulty in online discussions and how to address it.
Knowing a students learning sltyle or styles can help the instructor when it comes to participation. Strategies such as small group projects can help those learners with low participation.
I have learned from this module that it is important for the instructor to understand the population as well as demographics. Having a small bit of information about your student can serve as the conduit to promote participation among e-learners that may have an avoidant learning style. Moving forward, being cognizant of homeostasis of learner participation within the classroom is a priority.
Learning should be something that should be introduced as synchronous and asynthronous for each learning type. Each and every post should be considered important given the time and response they deserve.
It was interesting to review the different student learning styles. The learning styles are:
1. Avoidance
2. Competitive
3. Dependent
4. Collabrative
5. Participant
6. Independent
Clearly students have many different learning styles
I learned in this module that there is a clear difference between synchronous and asynchronous learning.
Clearly asynchronous learning is the best way for Online instruction
What I learned in this module was about the Bergquist and Phillips (1975) propose that student exhibit various learning styles. 1) Avoidant 2) Competitive 3) Dependent 4) Collaborative 5) Participant and 6) Independent. This information was very useful, because it taught me how to distinguish and be careful with avoidant, competitive and dependent student learning styles.
Engaging learners in the online discussion forum can be time consuming but exciting as an instructor. Reading all the posts, keeping track of student responses and who I have responded to (via excel spreadsheet), making sure their content is appropriate, relevant and applicable to course content, performing my own research about the topic discussed- this can all take time. However, probing students by asking additional questions, application questions, stating what I liked most about their response, etc. engages the students and improves confidence and promotes further discussion. This it the "meat" of the course.
