Up till now I thought I understood what we learning and I never really consider the whys and what would happen if we didn’t follow through. I know now, boy do I know. I learned the hard way; I designed and am teaching an online course without applying everything I had learned so far. I can use the excuse that I hadn’t yet learned to design the course, but really that’s only part of the problem. I omitted some of the most basic, yet important things necessary for a well run course. You should also know that I work with everyone in the course, which causes other unique problems.
Were to start? Week 1, this week will set the tone for the whole course. This is when the basics are explained to the students, this is when you establish a sense of community. I missed the boat on that one; I thought that since everyone worked together there would already be a sense of community. Wrong, always plan the course with the assumption that the students didn’t even know that the rest of the students in the class existed until they appeared in the class. Make sure that they know what the course is about and what is to be expected. I didn’t because we had an f2f orientation session that I thought would take the place of the online orientation week. Nobody paid attention because at that point they didn’t care. They didn’t care until we actually started the course. Make sure the deadlines are clearly spelled out or they will think they you are arbitrarily picking deadlines each week. Oh, and don’t forget the netiquette like I did. First day I had someone making rude comments to another person.
What else have I learned? We had a discussion about the importance of having everything planned and done before the course started versus having the first several weeks done. Have everything done, don’t try to stay one step ahead. Once the course has started there is no time to stay ahead. There are discussion threads to be monitored, grading to be done, questions to be answered as well as everything else that is going on in your life. Also, make sure everything is consistent from week to week and if something is not working fix it before you offer the course. I know, it sounds wrong waiting to fix things but I know from experience that by changing things as the course is in progress just makes you look like you don’t know what you are doing. They will be wondering why you are teaching the course and whether you are actually qualified. I am speaking from experience so I know. Because I see everyone in the class on a daily basis, they have told us to let them know when we get our act together. There are also comments among themselves (they think we are deaf) that there are other people who could be teaching the course.
This is also key to the success of the course; when you are coming up with directions or explanations write as though you are explaining the slowest learner in the course. What about those who don’t need that much information or detailed of instruction? Be honest when was the last time you heard students say, “I really wish the directions were harder.” They don’t, what we hear is “I don’t understand how to do this, the directions didn’t make sense.” We even hear “I don’t understand what this has to do with what we are learning.” We need to explain why they are going to reading the resources, how they fit the subject. When we give directions on how to do things, (in my course create accounts for different technologies or add components to their blogs) we need to think of everything. I thought giving them the link to the website was enough, for example when they created their blogs I assumed that they would remember their usernames and passwords. But because I didn’t specifically say write this down, they didn’t. I think I have at least one student who has never been able to find their blog again. So, what lesson did I learn: never, ever assume anything, ever.
These are some of the most important lessons I have learned and that I will never forget. I am already starting to revise the course for this summer and I will be applying everything that we are learning. Right now I am just trying to survive the course I am teaching and using it as a learning experience of what not to do.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Beginning of the Third Course
This is the beginning of the third class where we will actually begin the process of designing our online class. I have learned so much in the first 2 classes, learning styles, teaching styles and how to use Wimba to mention a few things. I discovered that you develop close friendships with people in an online class, something that I didn't think possible. How can you become close to people you never see F2F? It was actually quite easy and effortless, did I just get lucky? NO! The course was designed to facilitate student interaction and build a sense of community. What I ultimately learned in the first two classes is that it Online classes just don't happen it's not something you slap together, it has to be planned and well thought out.
My previous teaching experience has been 2 hour workshops that are offered in the Library. It takes some planning and thought, I create handouts and PowerPoint presentation. The most detailed workshop I teach is basic Excel I have been using the same handout since I started. I change the handouts for the other workshops as the technology changes. I am also very good at finding resources, so how will this help me with the process in designing online courses? I am not sure, but what will help is the fact that I have learned to be flexible because the workshops I teach have students of all ages and technical capabilities.
The design process will require more thought and consideration. I will have to consider how much work can be accomplished not only in the span of a week but in an entire trimester. I will need not only resources but assignments and topics for discussion. There is also layout, colors and fonts to be considered.
I expect the design process for the online course will be challenging and exciting. The obvious things that I expect to accomplish are: what subject and what I expect them to learn. My overall goal is to learn how to design a course that is easy to navigate, has clear and concise instructions, and engages the students. I want the students to feel a sense of community, feel safe to post their thoughts on the discussion threads, and most importantly I want the students to finish the course with a sense of accomplishment. This will not be easy, but the first 2 courses have given me a good foundation to build upon. But I know that if I keep my goals in mind and not allowed myself to get distracted I can do it.
My previous teaching experience has been 2 hour workshops that are offered in the Library. It takes some planning and thought, I create handouts and PowerPoint presentation. The most detailed workshop I teach is basic Excel I have been using the same handout since I started. I change the handouts for the other workshops as the technology changes. I am also very good at finding resources, so how will this help me with the process in designing online courses? I am not sure, but what will help is the fact that I have learned to be flexible because the workshops I teach have students of all ages and technical capabilities.
The design process will require more thought and consideration. I will have to consider how much work can be accomplished not only in the span of a week but in an entire trimester. I will need not only resources but assignments and topics for discussion. There is also layout, colors and fonts to be considered.
I expect the design process for the online course will be challenging and exciting. The obvious things that I expect to accomplish are: what subject and what I expect them to learn. My overall goal is to learn how to design a course that is easy to navigate, has clear and concise instructions, and engages the students. I want the students to feel a sense of community, feel safe to post their thoughts on the discussion threads, and most importantly I want the students to finish the course with a sense of accomplishment. This will not be easy, but the first 2 courses have given me a good foundation to build upon. But I know that if I keep my goals in mind and not allowed myself to get distracted I can do it.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Reflections on Facilitating
I have had two turns at facilitating. The first time I was flying solo and the second time I had a partner. For my first experience I picked a topic that I thought would be a piece of cake for me, Technology. How difficult could it be, after all I know a lot about technology, right? All I would have to do is impart my wisdom and offer guidance; I would be great, right? Wrong!!! I might know about technology, but I don't know how to be an effective facilitator and that became painfully clear to me once I got started.
For the discussion threads I was supposed to read what everyone was posting, not a problem. After reading the posts I was to make comments, give feedback or ask questions. Big Problem!! I was at a loss, I could no longer think. All of my comments seemed uninspired (lame), feedback - it was as though I didn't know what the word meant, and questions -what a joke. This was meant to stimulate the discussion, encourage deeper thoughts on the topic and I failed. I was afraid of hurting feelings or coming across as confrontational so I just went with "Great job" or "I agree". When I did try to ask a question, it didn't invoke deep thought, it didn't do anything. Instead of taking a risk and trusting that my fellow classmates would understand if my questions or comments seemed abrupt or rude, I played it safe. When I received my feedback, there were no surprises (I knew that I had done poorly).
I thought that I would at least wow them with my presentation in Wimba. I spent all week getting the PowerPoint just right. I had some movement with the text, not too much just the right amount. I added links so that I could demonstrate different websites. I thought I had it all, and then.... You know the saying "The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry"? I had decided to do a dry run about 1 hour before the class started, which turned out to be the best thing I could have done. I came to the realization that links do not work in Wimba, so I had to come up with Plan B. Luckily I had asked Bonnie to stop in while I was doing my dry run and she explained my options and helped me come up with Plan B. I decided that I would go out to my desktop and work from there. I could still use my PowerPoint, back on track, yea! The first part went okay, I was on topic and then.... I went off topic and tried to demonstrate Second Life. Why? It certainly didn't pertain to the topic. At that time I justified it as being the ultimate in technology. I got carried away and spent way too much time.
Did I learn a lesson from all of this? YES!!!
The lesson I learned was this: just because you know a topic, you have no more of an advantage than someone who doesn't. If they know how to ask questions or give better responses that keep the discussions alive, then they are going to be the better facilitator. A good facilitator can learn any topic while a poor facilitator no matter how well they know the subject area is still a poor facilitator. To be a good facilitator I need to master the art of responding to discussion threads. I need to learn how to ask the stimulating questions that require more thought. I also need to learn how to take negative feedback and turn it into feedback that will enrich the students' learning experience by having them look deeper into the topic. For my presentations, I will keep on topic and encourage students' questions and interaction. I will also keep it a reasonable length of time. My going on and on isn't going to impress anyone or necessarily add to the learning experience.
I mentioned that I had a second experience, this time with a partner. In some ways it was totally different, but in many ways it was the same. How can that be? Well, we split the discussion threads and I let him do the presentation. (I had already done a presentation and was not required to do a second one unless I wanted too).
This time I my only responsibility was monitoring a discussion thread and assisting my partner with his presentation. Here was my chance, a second discussion thread, my chance at redemption. I had the feedback; I knew what I had done wrong. I would be great this time. Right? Wrong!!! My discussion thread didn't take off and I didn't do my job of stimulating the discussion thread. However, my partner did a fantastic job, his discussion thread rocked (I wanted to be a part of his discussion). I knew what I needed to work on, so what went wrong? I tried; I thought I was asking better questions. But all I did was ask questions that weren't clear and quite simply caused more confusion. I feel short again, I failed becaused I didn't ask for help. (By the way, Rafael's presentation was fantastic.)
So what did I learn from this experience? Well I learned that if I work with a partner, we would both monitor all the discussion threads. I could have used his help and I really wanted to join the discussion. Why didn't I just tell my partner that I needed help and wanted to part of his discussion? I don't know why, it just didn't occur to me at the time. I also would like to do a joint project. I know, I know, it was my choice. But by not embracing the experience of having a partner I cheated myself out of a learning experience. There is no one else to blame but myself. What did I learn from this experience? I learned that I have a lot to learn about facilitating and that I have a hard time asking for help.
So what has this self-realization done for me? It has caused me to question whether I will be able to improve my ability to facilitate discussion threads enough to be a good facilitator. No, I am not going to throw in the towel, but I am going to work very hard at improving my facilitation of discussion threads and asking for help. But when all is said and done, I am going to be realistic. If I don't improve by the end of the next two courses, then perhaps I am more suited for designing the courses (or assisting in the design).
Diane
For the discussion threads I was supposed to read what everyone was posting, not a problem. After reading the posts I was to make comments, give feedback or ask questions. Big Problem!! I was at a loss, I could no longer think. All of my comments seemed uninspired (lame), feedback - it was as though I didn't know what the word meant, and questions -what a joke. This was meant to stimulate the discussion, encourage deeper thoughts on the topic and I failed. I was afraid of hurting feelings or coming across as confrontational so I just went with "Great job" or "I agree". When I did try to ask a question, it didn't invoke deep thought, it didn't do anything. Instead of taking a risk and trusting that my fellow classmates would understand if my questions or comments seemed abrupt or rude, I played it safe. When I received my feedback, there were no surprises (I knew that I had done poorly).
I thought that I would at least wow them with my presentation in Wimba. I spent all week getting the PowerPoint just right. I had some movement with the text, not too much just the right amount. I added links so that I could demonstrate different websites. I thought I had it all, and then.... You know the saying "The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry"? I had decided to do a dry run about 1 hour before the class started, which turned out to be the best thing I could have done. I came to the realization that links do not work in Wimba, so I had to come up with Plan B. Luckily I had asked Bonnie to stop in while I was doing my dry run and she explained my options and helped me come up with Plan B. I decided that I would go out to my desktop and work from there. I could still use my PowerPoint, back on track, yea! The first part went okay, I was on topic and then.... I went off topic and tried to demonstrate Second Life. Why? It certainly didn't pertain to the topic. At that time I justified it as being the ultimate in technology. I got carried away and spent way too much time.
Did I learn a lesson from all of this? YES!!!
The lesson I learned was this: just because you know a topic, you have no more of an advantage than someone who doesn't. If they know how to ask questions or give better responses that keep the discussions alive, then they are going to be the better facilitator. A good facilitator can learn any topic while a poor facilitator no matter how well they know the subject area is still a poor facilitator. To be a good facilitator I need to master the art of responding to discussion threads. I need to learn how to ask the stimulating questions that require more thought. I also need to learn how to take negative feedback and turn it into feedback that will enrich the students' learning experience by having them look deeper into the topic. For my presentations, I will keep on topic and encourage students' questions and interaction. I will also keep it a reasonable length of time. My going on and on isn't going to impress anyone or necessarily add to the learning experience.
I mentioned that I had a second experience, this time with a partner. In some ways it was totally different, but in many ways it was the same. How can that be? Well, we split the discussion threads and I let him do the presentation. (I had already done a presentation and was not required to do a second one unless I wanted too).
This time I my only responsibility was monitoring a discussion thread and assisting my partner with his presentation. Here was my chance, a second discussion thread, my chance at redemption. I had the feedback; I knew what I had done wrong. I would be great this time. Right? Wrong!!! My discussion thread didn't take off and I didn't do my job of stimulating the discussion thread. However, my partner did a fantastic job, his discussion thread rocked (I wanted to be a part of his discussion). I knew what I needed to work on, so what went wrong? I tried; I thought I was asking better questions. But all I did was ask questions that weren't clear and quite simply caused more confusion. I feel short again, I failed becaused I didn't ask for help. (By the way, Rafael's presentation was fantastic.)
So what did I learn from this experience? Well I learned that if I work with a partner, we would both monitor all the discussion threads. I could have used his help and I really wanted to join the discussion. Why didn't I just tell my partner that I needed help and wanted to part of his discussion? I don't know why, it just didn't occur to me at the time. I also would like to do a joint project. I know, I know, it was my choice. But by not embracing the experience of having a partner I cheated myself out of a learning experience. There is no one else to blame but myself. What did I learn from this experience? I learned that I have a lot to learn about facilitating and that I have a hard time asking for help.
So what has this self-realization done for me? It has caused me to question whether I will be able to improve my ability to facilitate discussion threads enough to be a good facilitator. No, I am not going to throw in the towel, but I am going to work very hard at improving my facilitation of discussion threads and asking for help. But when all is said and done, I am going to be realistic. If I don't improve by the end of the next two courses, then perhaps I am more suited for designing the courses (or assisting in the design).
Diane
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Facilitator Roles - Reflections
In the second part of the course we have been looking at facilitator roles and I realized how little I knew. When you are the facilitator you have to consider so many different things: time management, planning the course, technology, pedagogy, and creating a social community. All of these are necessary and must all be present and in balance to have a successful class. You can utilize the most cutting edge technology but without proper planning or taking into consideration the needs of the students your course is a failure. And once we have everything in order that is not the end, but the beginning. We will be constantly examining our course to ensure that everything continues to function.
So what is involved in creating our classes, lets start with pedagogy. The definition is: the art, science, or profession of teaching. That sounds simple, but it doesn't explain what is actually involved. It is not simply standing in front of a group of students and lecturing, especially when we are talking about an online course. Pedagogy is actually the accumulation of everything I mentioned earlier.
We need to understand our students and how everything in their lives will affect how they learn. They are coming from different ethic groups and age groups. They are going to have different learning styles and different personalities. Why is this important? If you have someone with a personality that is very "out there or pushy" they might end up intimidating someone who is more reserved. I as a facilitator will need to be aware and be able to offer an outlet for the student with lots to say as well as encourage and make the reserved student feel comfortable. Different ethnic groups and cultures also affect how a student learns. If they have been raised to respect authority figures, they might not feel comfortable questioning the instructor. These are just a few of the things to keep in mind. Is this an impossible task? No, it just means that we must pay attention to our students and keep in mind that they are all individuals with their own unique backgrounds. Just as we are the sum of everything that has happened in our lives, the same applies to our students.
This barely scratches the surface when it come to the art of teaching. We also need to consider how we plan to teach, because that too is a part of the art of teaching. Are we going rely on lecture notes? interactive material? lots and lots of reading? We need to figure out our teaching styles first then work to build the course. Right now I prefer the instructor led design, I feel it best suits how I want to teach. I want to include technology and readings on the web to support the topics. I will also encourage feedback and interaction among the students. But this alone will not make my course a success. I need all of the components including: Time management
Time management is a part of the planning stage as well as the maintenance. How much time to allow for assignment? Too little time allowed is a quick way to overwhelm the students. Too much time and your students are bored and not learning. When deciding on how much time to all you need to consider: number of hours in a day. Then split it up: sleep, work, other classes, family, and unexpected. Out of all this, how much can we reasonably expect them to have for our class. Are we asking them to read, post on discussion groups, and do weekly assignment? How much time would we have to spend? Then ask ourselves, are we slow and need time or we don't need much time? Probably somewhere between the two is reasonable. On the topic of time how much time are we going to allow ourselves to grade tests, assignments, respond to emails and spend on the discussion threads? What is reasonable? For this, I will ask advice from those with experience because I would be guessing.
And while we are on the subject of planning I learned that my syllabus has to clearly spell out everything that I expect from my students. I need to tell them what my policies are, what type of turnaround they can expect when they send me an email or turn in an assignment. As important as the syllabus is, I need to make sure I have an icebreaker activity for the 1st week of class. I want the students to get to know each other so that they will be comfortable asking questions, responding to posts and working together if group projects are involved. Why the icebreaker? To start to foster a sense of community. That is as important as everything else mentioned. It will enrich the learning experience for both the instructor as well as the student. The sense of community will allow for better discussion threads as students develop connections with each other.
By now I was thinking that that had to be everything, right? Wrong, now come maintenance and keeping up with technology. Technology is evolving quickly and even if we are using all the latest things out there, we need to know that they exist. How can we do this? By attending conferences, keeping up with research and talking to others in Online Teaching to mention a few ways. Perhaps we will discover things that will help us with maintaining our courses. Perhaps something to help us check links, keep track of bookmarks etc. We also need to keep an eye out for new articles to keep our readings up to date. Have I thought of everything, I doubt it. Do I know everything I need to know? No. Will I ever know everything? I hope not, I don't ever want to lose the excitement of learning something new. I hope to always be learning something new that will help be create an even better course and be a better instructor.
But I do know this, I know more today than when I started and I know I am on the right path to becoming the instructor I want to be.
So what is involved in creating our classes, lets start with pedagogy. The definition is: the art, science, or profession of teaching. That sounds simple, but it doesn't explain what is actually involved. It is not simply standing in front of a group of students and lecturing, especially when we are talking about an online course. Pedagogy is actually the accumulation of everything I mentioned earlier.
We need to understand our students and how everything in their lives will affect how they learn. They are coming from different ethic groups and age groups. They are going to have different learning styles and different personalities. Why is this important? If you have someone with a personality that is very "out there or pushy" they might end up intimidating someone who is more reserved. I as a facilitator will need to be aware and be able to offer an outlet for the student with lots to say as well as encourage and make the reserved student feel comfortable. Different ethnic groups and cultures also affect how a student learns. If they have been raised to respect authority figures, they might not feel comfortable questioning the instructor. These are just a few of the things to keep in mind. Is this an impossible task? No, it just means that we must pay attention to our students and keep in mind that they are all individuals with their own unique backgrounds. Just as we are the sum of everything that has happened in our lives, the same applies to our students.
This barely scratches the surface when it come to the art of teaching. We also need to consider how we plan to teach, because that too is a part of the art of teaching. Are we going rely on lecture notes? interactive material? lots and lots of reading? We need to figure out our teaching styles first then work to build the course. Right now I prefer the instructor led design, I feel it best suits how I want to teach. I want to include technology and readings on the web to support the topics. I will also encourage feedback and interaction among the students. But this alone will not make my course a success. I need all of the components including: Time management
Time management is a part of the planning stage as well as the maintenance. How much time to allow for assignment? Too little time allowed is a quick way to overwhelm the students. Too much time and your students are bored and not learning. When deciding on how much time to all you need to consider: number of hours in a day. Then split it up: sleep, work, other classes, family, and unexpected. Out of all this, how much can we reasonably expect them to have for our class. Are we asking them to read, post on discussion groups, and do weekly assignment? How much time would we have to spend? Then ask ourselves, are we slow and need time or we don't need much time? Probably somewhere between the two is reasonable. On the topic of time how much time are we going to allow ourselves to grade tests, assignments, respond to emails and spend on the discussion threads? What is reasonable? For this, I will ask advice from those with experience because I would be guessing.
And while we are on the subject of planning I learned that my syllabus has to clearly spell out everything that I expect from my students. I need to tell them what my policies are, what type of turnaround they can expect when they send me an email or turn in an assignment. As important as the syllabus is, I need to make sure I have an icebreaker activity for the 1st week of class. I want the students to get to know each other so that they will be comfortable asking questions, responding to posts and working together if group projects are involved. Why the icebreaker? To start to foster a sense of community. That is as important as everything else mentioned. It will enrich the learning experience for both the instructor as well as the student. The sense of community will allow for better discussion threads as students develop connections with each other.
By now I was thinking that that had to be everything, right? Wrong, now come maintenance and keeping up with technology. Technology is evolving quickly and even if we are using all the latest things out there, we need to know that they exist. How can we do this? By attending conferences, keeping up with research and talking to others in Online Teaching to mention a few ways. Perhaps we will discover things that will help us with maintaining our courses. Perhaps something to help us check links, keep track of bookmarks etc. We also need to keep an eye out for new articles to keep our readings up to date. Have I thought of everything, I doubt it. Do I know everything I need to know? No. Will I ever know everything? I hope not, I don't ever want to lose the excitement of learning something new. I hope to always be learning something new that will help be create an even better course and be a better instructor.
But I do know this, I know more today than when I started and I know I am on the right path to becoming the instructor I want to be.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Reflection on: Changing Roles and Pedagogy
Roles in education are evolving, we are evolving from the traditional classroom to the online classroom. Educators are learning to adapt to the online classroom. What used to be the norm:
- standing in front of the class and lecturing
- little interaction with the students
- grades based strictly on tests or reports
- using little or no technology
- teaching according their teaching style and not necessarily worrying about the students learning styles
to:
- facilitating a class
- having discussion threads where students posts based on readings
- allowing students to direct where the discussion threads go (facilitator being there to offer input and keep from going off track)
- incorporating technology
- being more aware of students learning styles
Not only are the instructors having to change but so are the students. They must:
- take a more active role in the class
- they must spend more time each week: checking post, weekly reading, assignment
- they must be prepared to discuss their thoughts and have others comment on their thoughts
- they can no longer cram for a quiz or test and then forget everything
And both the facilitator and student need to use technology. For some this means overcoming fears and self doubt. For others this means admitting that they don't know and asking for help.
What does all this mean? It means facilitator must adjust to the different learning styles of his students. And the students must, perhaps for the first time find their learning style and use it in the online course. The facilitator must take past experiences and use them to adjust to the online environment. The facilitator needs to have a good set of resources that he/she can fall back on, whether these are the IT department, mentors, or a list of good websites that he can go to for help or information.
The facilitator must also adjust to learning from the students, who will be offering input. The student must also adapt to working in a group, without ever meeting the other students. They will also have to become more involved, no more sitting in the classroom waiting for the clock to run out. And everyone must adapt to dealing with technology. It is a must in the online setting.
Is it intimidating? Yes, but at the same time it is exciting. This is just a step in the evolution of education. The online facilitator has a chance to interact with and possibly change the lives of students who might not otherwise be able to attend a class. The facilitator who embraces the changes has a chance to interact with such a wonderful and varied group of students. They can literaly be anywhere in the world.
The same goes for the student, just as my instructor is in Califormia and I am in Illinois. Image being in a class where my fellow students are from all over the country or world. Where is the instructor? The possibilities would be endless. Think of the exchange of ideas.
What an exciting time and I am fortunate enough to be a part of it.
Diane
Friday, September 7, 2007
My Expectations and Concerns Regarding My Upcoming Experience as a Facilitator
It is easier for me to voice my concerns, so that is where I will start. I don't have much experience teaching. I have done many workshops, but they were for 2 hours maximum. My class size was usually very small. Many times they were more one on one sessions. I would reuse materials so I have not had a lot of experience preparing for classes.
My workshops are not very structured, I learned early on that I had to be flexible. My groups are always made up students with different technological skills. Will this work for me know? I don't know. I know the group will be understanding and patient, but I am afraid of letting them and myself down.
My expectations, well I expect this experience to be as exciting as it is scary. I will be conquering that little self doubt that is in the back of my mind, the one that questions my ability to be good facilitator. When it is done and I have conquered that self doubt I will have grown in confidence and acquired badly needed experience.
Diane
My workshops are not very structured, I learned early on that I had to be flexible. My groups are always made up students with different technological skills. Will this work for me know? I don't know. I know the group will be understanding and patient, but I am afraid of letting them and myself down.
My expectations, well I expect this experience to be as exciting as it is scary. I will be conquering that little self doubt that is in the back of my mind, the one that questions my ability to be good facilitator. When it is done and I have conquered that self doubt I will have grown in confidence and acquired badly needed experience.
Diane
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Facilitating Learning as Oppposed to Giving the Answers
As I was looking at everything we have learned in this course, I have come to realize that I still have a lot to learn. We learned about the different learning styles and the different teaching strategies. I discovered that I am definitely hands on and more visually oriented. My teaching style is that of a Facilitator, which tends to focus on activities and is student-centered. That was great I would create great learning objects, with detailed instructions. I would help my students discover their true potential.
And then:
It was when we were looking for resources’ available on the web that we could incorporate or modify for use in our subject areas that I realized I would have a problem to overcome. Every time someone would post that they were having trouble finding resources, my initial response was to find the answers for them. Would that be really helpful? Yes, for that moment; but not if they wanted to find more resources in the future. They would have no idea how I found them.
Then I stopped and looked at what I do and have done everyday at work for the last 14 years. I find answers and resources for students. I tell them how to fix things in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc. I don't always have time to show them step by step how to do something. Am I doing them a disservice, probably? The problem is solved for that moment; will they be able to do it on their own, maybe?
What does this have to do with my future with online courses? Would I want to provide all the answers everytime someone had a problem? Yes. Would I create such detailed directions that they wouldn't feel a sense of accomplishment when they finally accomplished the task or mastered the new technology? Definitely. Would this benefit the students? No.
I will have to work on my tendency to overdue my directions and help. Does this mean I won't help, no it just means that I will have be careful not to do the work for them. It means that instead of creating directions a two year old can follow, I will create directions that are specific and to the point. It means that I will give them resources that will enable them to learn and feel the sense of excitement as they discover things. To give them too much help would be robbing them of the journey that we call learning.
When they ask for help, I will give the information that is needed to find the answers. I will not give them the answers no matter how much I want. If they are having a difficult time I will help them through it, but I have to realize that as much as I want to fix everything it isn't possible. To do anything else would be a disservice.
And then:
It was when we were looking for resources’ available on the web that we could incorporate or modify for use in our subject areas that I realized I would have a problem to overcome. Every time someone would post that they were having trouble finding resources, my initial response was to find the answers for them. Would that be really helpful? Yes, for that moment; but not if they wanted to find more resources in the future. They would have no idea how I found them.
Then I stopped and looked at what I do and have done everyday at work for the last 14 years. I find answers and resources for students. I tell them how to fix things in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc. I don't always have time to show them step by step how to do something. Am I doing them a disservice, probably? The problem is solved for that moment; will they be able to do it on their own, maybe?
What does this have to do with my future with online courses? Would I want to provide all the answers everytime someone had a problem? Yes. Would I create such detailed directions that they wouldn't feel a sense of accomplishment when they finally accomplished the task or mastered the new technology? Definitely. Would this benefit the students? No.
I will have to work on my tendency to overdue my directions and help. Does this mean I won't help, no it just means that I will have be careful not to do the work for them. It means that instead of creating directions a two year old can follow, I will create directions that are specific and to the point. It means that I will give them resources that will enable them to learn and feel the sense of excitement as they discover things. To give them too much help would be robbing them of the journey that we call learning.
When they ask for help, I will give the information that is needed to find the answers. I will not give them the answers no matter how much I want. If they are having a difficult time I will help them through it, but I have to realize that as much as I want to fix everything it isn't possible. To do anything else would be a disservice.
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