According to the module on Managing the E-Learning Environment, I learned that it is truly imperative to know your students so that they can be provided with additional, individualized support and attention, when needed, to assist in their overall success and completion of their online course. In order to get to know my students, I would have them do an introductory assignment and/or project as well as fill out a questionnaire that would include items that would allow them to share their needs and concerns such as their work schedules, family responsibilities, and quality of internet access. I would then monitor the student’s participation in class discussions and work submission and contact the student when the need arises.
With regard to the information shared about conflict and behavioral management, I would state my expectations at the beginning of the course as well as reference pertinent rules and policies of the educational institution and consistently enforce them in order to establish and maintain an academic environment that promotes student engagement, collaboration, and achievement.
I was reminded that different personalities and behaviors in the traditional classroom will also be the personalities in the online classroom. I learned to watch out for those different personalities and how to adjust the learning environment to help each of them.
Students may behave differently with online interaction. A the lack of connection can lead to students being disruptive and appropriate action needs to be taken by the instructor to ensure a peaceful non distracted online experience.
Management of the e-learning environment is fairly similar to that of the regular classroom in that you need to establish documentation and maintain consistency. It is important to focus on communication to assist in working out issues with various types of learners before things get too bad. I plan to try to determine reasons for non-participation and seek ways to eliminate any issues students are having.
I learned that there are a number of different types of students which may be a part of the online enviroment. It is important to be proactive in my approach to working with them. It is also important to be organized and have good record keeping. I learned it is important to have information in a place that is readily available if it was needed.
Many great topics were covered. Minimizing needless work by prioritizing Email responses. We learned of different types of interruptions and/or learmer challenges such as distruptive, intimidation, and procrastinating learner habits We learned skills to overcome these obstacles.
The most effective way method of managing records is to establish a simple record keeping system that can be stored for future retrieval. Build and maintain an organized file system that facilitate easy location such as an dedicated e-mail address.
I think its interesting that they say that online class is similar to in class settings and that there is often conflict. I have taken many online courses and I never got that impression. Also I like the record keeping aspect of this module.
It is important to know your company's code of conduct & include it in the syllabus so it is very clear to the students.
The different learning styles and personalities of the students sound exactly like the students I have in person.
This module helped me to identify the effective strategies to manage course records and the importance of documenting chat discussions. Communication will be the key to establishing a successful course by posting online norms and settling undesirable behaviors and conflicts via norms. Also, the module presented methods to constructively manage behavioral traits of the varied learners in order to maintain a positive and productive learning environment for all learners. The module helped me to recognize how to prevent or minimize student attrition! As an instructor, I must understand the student’s specific challenge; alienation, work load, other competing responsibilities or technical issues in order to implement strategies to resolve the individual challenges and bring them into the learning process.
I teach in a small rural area. Many of our students lack the technical hardware and knowledge to initially succeed in online education. They will need support and encouragement to continue.
Yes, this module is a good reminder that the institution guidelines and policies are being followed as it might be easier to 'slip' or allow a student to go into behaviors that if early intervention is not made, retention may be an issue.
Considering that email is a very popular form of communication between instructors and teachers, it's important to not place yourself under unrealistic deadlines for responding to emails but at minimum response time should be 24 hrs. Instructors can chat with students but determine if the situation is something that can be dealt with in a private. Attrition management can be handled in different ways that is dependent upon why the attrition is occuring.
I appreciated the strategies for dealing with different types of difficult students who may or may not realize their behavior is impacting the general flow and progress of the class for themselves and others. Reviewing the policies of your district and following the guidelines is an important part of handling situations that arise. I would go so far as to add that if you are having specific issues that you cannot seem to get a handle on, it is a good idea to consult an advisor or administrator for advice sooner, rather than later.
By identifying struggling students and offering them clear communications about what the course expectations and time commitments are and how to access assistance in content and technical struggling situations is helpful to increase the likelihood that students will stick with you and you can reduce attrition.
Using online learning in a high school environment can create a variety of challenges. Maintaining a strong expectation policy along with keeping a record of all communication (communication logs) provides an easy way to keep track of the steps that have or haven't been taken so that every attempt has been made through communication, to address issues, be consistent, and for any future issue that could arise regarding instructor communication to the student.
I have noticed that some of my students have conflicting schedules. Several students are now working full-time and are struggling to find the time to do the lessons or to be pteent in a virtual chatroom. I need to communicate with students regulary and work with them at this time to give more opportunities where we can meet. I am thinking about doing an evening online class where those students can be reached.
In an online environment, procrastination can happen more frequently, just for the sheer fact that students are not expected to show up at class at a certain time and they don't necessarily feel the pressure of knowing their instructor and fellow students face to face. I also learned that it's import to know your university's polices around dispute resolution and to document everything.
Record keeping, communication and resolving conflicts are critical to managing a distance learning course and reducing attrition. Effective teachers communicate with students via timely feedback through email, chats (public and private) and also by maintaining records of assignments and communication.
I have experienced the noisy learner, and it can be very disruptive, unfortunately "mute" works even if just for a little while. Work overload is a big concern, instructors can fall into this very easily.
