Tarakeshwar Pilarisetty

Unlike a typical F2F course, an online course should be well-organized, easy to navigate, and the students should be readily able to understand and clearly identify the essentials of the course. It is important for the facilitator to guide students through the content and therefore care should be taken to identify the best delivery method for presenting the online content. Finally, any new teaching innovation must be evaluated for its effectiveness in delivering academic outcomes and benefit.

The focus of any online course should be on the learner and not the technology. As providers of the online learning experience, the emphasis should (ii) involve effective communication, (ii) encourage a learner-centered environment, (iii) organize a problem-based learning, and (iv) provide a meaningful and informative feedback.

Irrespective of the method (synchronous or asynchronous) employed for teaching the course, organization and adequate guidelines are key requisites. For an effective learning experience of the students, consistency in course design, activities, and teaching style are essential.

Instructors must judiciously employ different technology tools based on the learning outcomes of the course. This can be done by understanding both the functions and limitations of different technology tools.

Encouraging students to learn in groups would help cultivate a collaborative environment wherein students would also learn from their peers.

This module made me aware that implementing teaching methods to cater to different learning styles requres more planning but does not adversely affect the teaching time.

We have been exposed to four other kinds of learners: Friendzy twins, Nattie, Rainbow and Rapper. Catering to their characteristic learning styles would make us extremely effective teachers.

Jabber, Touchy, Integer, and Loner, introduce us to different kinds of student learning styles. An effective teacher needs to understand the characteristics of each of them so that s/he can help them learn. 

The guidelines needed to achieve a well designed and well-executed learning environment are described in this module. Furthermore, the module stresses on how planning, goal setting, and achievement of incremental steps enhances student self-confidence. The module also describes proper netiquette in an online course. And it describes the strategies which students need to become more successful in the online environment.

The techinical skills (synchronous communication, asynchronous communication, use of technology, online learning space, social communication) needed to do well in an online course are described in this module.