understanding the students need and difficulties is very important. There should be good desire to help them and bring their attention to the course is the prime things for online course.
What I've learned is that we have various types of personalities. It's important to know how to identify and work with those personalities. It's also important to document any conversation I have with the student in case things could escalte for any matter. Having records on file will be a great help for me and my supervisors.
The importance of consistency in communication whether it is online or on-ground. It is important to respond to students within 24 hours and to be careful of what information is shared publically to the course in genral or privately to the online students. Additionally, email in the online LMS becomes the student perferred communication tool.
Working to resolve conflicts is definately a short coming I will address.
Good point- excessive workload is quite common in situations in which learners pursue career education programs while engaged in full-time employment. Some learners may underestimate the time and effort required to complete the online course they have selected.
I learned about the many challenges which can be presented by different types of students. Effective communication can help keep most of the challenges from getting too big.
Monitoring the participation during e-learning may be difficult to manage, so developing relationships will aid in the e-learning process
Noisy and disruptive learners tend to be emboldened by the distance aspect of online education. It's very important to manage these students and the learning environment in general so that everyone stays focused and comfortable.
I learned the importance in teaching students time management.
The best part is the discussion of the differing personalities students bring to class and how to happen.
Reply to Pamela Gabbay's post:These are great tips to keep the flow smooth.
I learned that personal emial should be responded to provately and not in a open forum. Also to avoid promising immediate responses and use discrection . save all documentation
In an online course it is very easy to fall in to the trap of 'meeting students where they are.' I introduce the expectations of the course right away. I usually give an assignment to figure out who my procrastinators, noisy, and quiet people are. I learned this technic from my college English professor. The Professor gave all the students a daunting task to secure their seat in the class. We all were told to complete this assignment and return to class the next with it ready to go. Less than half the class returned. The Professor was able to weed out the procrastinator's. There were still a lot of noisy and quiet people but at least the class moved quickly. I don't go to that extreme and risk losing my population but I do give assignments to see how the students will react.
Monitor student engagement to keep them on track.
Learning that students will bring with them into the e-learning environment behavioral traits inherent to their personality traits. This is helpful because it canhelp instructors learn how to interact with students.
How to manage students and respond accordingly.
This lesson opened my eyes to the frustrations that student can feel related to technical issues. I plan to be more cognizant of technical concerns and share information so students can avoid them.
use the chat feature to counsel students to avoid email overload.
Clear, posted guidelines in the syllabus or policy and procedure manuals can be a reference when problems arise. Early intervention can protect the learning environment from conflict and prevent escalating problems. Having been a victim of a disruptive intimidator in a previous course, early enforcement of guidelines could have saved much pain and frustration.
With online learning there will be a plethera of communication and information going back and forth between myself and my students. A major key to my helping students succeed and stay engaged in their courses is to keep information well organized. This will assist in making prompt and appropriate responses as well as being aware of any ongoing issues. While there are different types of learners in a an online course, it is important to be mindful of the varying needs of the students and as a faculty member utilize the instutional guidelines to administer policies and resolutions.
