Ron,
Thank you for sharing your strategies. It is a great idea and allows you to pinpoint issues and provide them with remediation resources.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Melissa,
You are right. I have real concerns when we let students in online courses without unencumbered access to a computer and to the Internet which is worse than not having a book for the course. It becomes the worst kinds of barriers and the instructor really can't do much about it.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Eryn,
Great post, I agree with you knowledge of the LMS is so important I think I take that for granted as my traditional students know the LMS; my traditional students do not. We have to work with them more.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Jerome,
You are really the first that discussed the need for communication skills regarding technology. That is so important to be a part of the community. You don't want them to feel they are always on step behind the discussion.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Joseph,
That is a great strategy Can students revisit any of the basic course/
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Twyla ,
Those skills are so important. Have you thought about recording using screen capture separate sessions that deal with each of these skills so students can revisit the tutorials and ease your workload?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
I think the following are important technical skills for most online students:
-basic computer skills
-how to search the internet
-how to download a document
-how to create a document, save it and upload it or attach it
-check, send, receive email
These are really just the basics, but I find this knowledge gets them going the fastest when starting an online program. Since so much of what they do is via email,discussion boards, creating and submitting assignments and searching for information, these are critical skills they need to be successful from the start.
Stephanie,
Does your institution require students to work through a technology tutorial? How do your remediate students who don't have those skills. The lack of those skills can be such a barrier to online learning.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Stephanie,
Does your institution require students to work through a technology tutorial? How do your remediate students who don't have those skills. The lack of those skills can be such a barrier to online learning.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
The first technical skill I see that is important for the on-line learner is typing. The baby boomer generation may be lacking in this skill and it will make their on-line learning experience much more enjoyable. Not all on-line learners know how to copy; paste and post images in discussion boards and this should be discuss and taught in the beginning of a class.
William,
It is interesting that you say typing. ( I now can guess about how hold you are based on your use if the word! :) ) I have students complain regarding chatting as they cannot jump into the discussion because the can't type well. Who knew!!!
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
For them to know how to navigate week by week and enure they read all the content for each week is critical. I would also have them know how to not just upload an assignment, but to refresh and go back to see that it truly went through. Many times they think it went through, however, to their surprise days later, they received a 0 grade and a note saying, where is your work? What do we think?
Marco,
I do email students to tell them their work is not uploaded and they have a certain time frame to address it. I am beginning to rethink that. I am really finding when I set "hard" dates with assignments students to meet the deadline. It seems when I back off the expectation they do to.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
At first glance, I think the following should be in place before a student tackles an online course:
* using browser software, and searching for information on the web.
* familiarity with the operations of the LMS being used.
* basic document processing skills
* using email effectively.
Dr. Kelly,
The one most important technical skill for my students is that they are able to save a file to a specific format like a PDF or MS Word file. They seem to have an issue with this.
In an online learning environment, it's vital for students to have the following technical skills:
uploading documents
navigating within the course
knowledge in saving files into specific folders for easy retrieval
knowledge of different terms (such as browsers, cookies, etc.)
Many technical issues involve the following technical skills mentioned above. Once these skills are acquired, students can then begin to focus solely on their academics, rather than the nuances of technology.
M. Allen
Tom,
I agree with you. Do you and/or your institution have tutorials that will help students learn the important technical skills?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Phyllis,
They do and it still surprises me. Do you provide tutorials to help students learn?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Mamie,
That is true, how do you get students students to the point they can focus on academics. Do they have to go through an assessment to determine their computer skills?
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
The following technical skills that are required for my classes are:
Accessing the Internet
Emailing
Live Labs within the LMS environment
They must be able to upload their assignments and drop them into the grading que.
Saving a Word File
Learn where to go to find their feedback attachment in their gradebook.
Downloading plugins
How to use Spell checker
I spend one-on-one time with them if the are confused about their technical resources.
Ruby Whitehead
