I have learned to develop the online environment more as a facilitator.
Facilitating a course is most effective by setting up clear expectations for all aspects of the content and assignments. Clearly define all expectations and provide timely responses to help students feel you are engaged, organized, and available. When evaluating the effectiveness of a course, make sure to include student feedback and review of objectives.
Facilitating a safe environment for the student to feel free to engage and participate. Empowering the student with the knowledge thier input is critical and taken serious. It is also important to engage with purpose and be careful of how cimmunication is delivered, keeping in mind that much can be lost by misunderstanding what the student or teacher was trying to communicate.
As instructors we must be sure to give prompt feedback to our students. More students today suffer from anxiety related conditions it seems. Therefore, the reassurance not just of test grades but that they on the right path with their work is important. We must also make sure our instructions and responses are extremely clear so there is no misunderstanding in written word communication.
This topic has been very informative as well as eye-opening to the ever-changing needs of the instructor and student.
I learned how important positive feedback is for students. Being able to interact and letting them know that you are paying attention. Most importantly making sure being able to assess the students as well.
I love the facilatator type of teaching. I strive to facilitate my students. Sometimes it is difficult when it is the first time they have seen a concept. So I like how this module discussed the teacher facilitating the first several weeks until a foundation has been built then letting the students facilitate.
This is great. I'm learning how to keep students engaged more. Many of our classes are small in size by design, so this works to keep even a small group connected with group projects.
Teachers must be a administrator, technology helper, and a social administrator. Teachers must also include both student and teacher feedback.
What have you learned from this module and how do you intend to apply it?
I feel like every CTE class i have ever taken since 1998 has used "Sage on the Stage" vs "Guide on the Side."
It was a good reminder for me to realize that as an educator I have multiple roles that aren't always defined. As an online instructor there are specific roles that i have to know and to be able to perform in order to do my job.
I was reminded of the dangers of misinterpreted feedback I provide to the students, when grading their work, and that students can't read body language and can't read between the lines in my comments. Much of the resident feedback I provide involves working with the students one-on-one, but online assessment must be handled much more carefully.
What I learned is a facilitator helps students learn by guiding them through the contents of the course. The course is usually prescribed by the institute, but it at times can be modified by the facilitator to become more effective. One of the most important aspects of being an organizer is student engagement in an online curriculum. One of the methods I plan to use is online team building. This will create a rapport between students and a level of shared responsibility amongst the learners.
Providing guidelines will help students know what to expect, especially if they are learning online for the first time.
Being involved in message boards on a timely basis is very important. The facilitator must respond to questions and include questions for students so that they make their own discoveries and come up with their own interprestations.
There are nonverbal components if you are conducting classes say on Zoom. But one challenge will be making it a two-way communication where all students respond and also interact with each other. "No one gets left behind."
As facilitators of learning, we need to effectively communicate with students and provide indepth and personalized feedback to encourage active participation and engagement from students.
I've learned how to structure the course and how to evaluate and review it for efficacy.
I learned it's very important that an onlinecourse en online course provides a high level of instantaneous feed back an d iteraction
Use student feed bach,oservations and interactions to ajust to strenghts and weaknesses of the stutents.
I learned the various methods in the facilitation process and how many roles the instructor plays in an online course. I am going to make sure that my syllabus states exactly what my expectations are in the online course in regards to communication and participation.
