My Thoughts on Our Class I went back to the first class we had a few months ago to reflect on how this learning opportunity has met the design principles outline by Bates. I strongly feel that this course has addressed and has been based on the following:
My Thoughts on this Week’s Prompts What forms of student/student-instructor interactions have you implemented/do you plan to implement in your course prototype (e.g. LMS forums, chats rooms, Flipgrid, blog comments/pingbacks, hashtags, Google Plus, etc.)? I plan on focusing on four commination tools for interaction for my prototype:
Providing a variety of communication tools can be a bit daunting, but if an instructor understands the potential and the purpose behind each medium it can allow for some great interaction opportunities. This combination can provide the necessary avenues that can meet student a variety communication needs. As mentioned in this week’s readings however, the instructor really has to understand the dynamics and the overall layout of the course. This will help students see the importance of interacting as part of a successful learning experience. What guidelines or assessment practices will you adopt to ensure that interactions are meaningful, supportive, and relevant? Instructors have to model and be present in their course. Creating an environment based on digital citizenship practices and clear guidelines, is crucial to positive interactions. There needs to be a strong presence of formative assessment in the form of timely and effective feedback. The instructor must understand the objective of the course to ensure that the flow of interactions are relevant and lead to meaningful dialogue that promote successfully reaching course objectives. Instructors need to provide an environment where these interactions can be organic, student-led, and feel free rather than forced. My Thoughts On The Textbook Questions
6 Comments
brad
3/18/2019 12:21:53 pm
I like the "common sense dressed up as theory" Ha! Grandpa Claude often said "common sense isn't all that common"... A funny old farmerism. However, I think that the wide range of courses that we all teach make it impossible to create something that will work for all. Common sense will need to come into play when it comes to what works/ doesn't work. Being exposed to all these platforms is perhaps the best way to make an educated decision!
Reply
Amy
3/18/2019 02:11:23 pm
I agree that the interactions between students are crucial and lead to deeper learning and understanding. I think it allows people to hear stories, make connections and help people understand material in another way. It is important that we hit as many learning styles as possible to make sure our students are successful.
Reply
Dean Lefebvre
3/18/2019 11:29:16 pm
Hi Dean and thanks for the in depth post. You make many great points and consider all essential elements for online communication to be supported and evaluated. I like your comment, “The instructor must understand the objective of the course to ensure that the flow of interactions are relevant and lead to meaningful dialogue that promote successfully reaching course objectives”. Instructors do play a vital role guiding the learning and ensuring students are not only respectful but remain on task. This is a lot of work for a teacher but will result in authentic learning and engagement. Good work
Reply
Sapna Bajantri
3/19/2019 11:40:24 am
Great Post Dean and like Amy I agree that the interactions between students are crucial and lead to deeper learning and understanding and Flipgrid would be a right tool for it. flipgrid gives students a platform where they can explain their learning by their voice or video. Students record short, authentic videos of their learning and can also reply to their peer’s videos. It is another way to get students talking with each other in different ways is to have them use video or audio to interact. Once again great post, looking forward to your next one. Good read, looking forward to your next one.
Reply
3/19/2019 05:05:07 pm
Thanks for this post! Although I enjoyed your entire post, I particularly appreciated your first section where you analyzed this course. I have always really enjoyed Alec's classes and felt like I was getting a lot out of not only the course content but the structure of the course as well, but I had never really considered whether or not it was successful to speaking points of online learning and teaching - probably because it worked for me and that's really all I cared about! ;) haha. Upon growing my knowledge about the online learning and teaching world, I think looking critically at all material is a good idea. I liked this different spin from you this week. I also appreciate the creepy screen cap...oddly enough, at that exact second I had stepped away from the computer so it's only my pillow! :D
Reply
3/22/2019 01:42:29 pm
Hello Dean! I enjoyed reading your blog post this week - that 'group shot' of all of us looks pretty cool! I liked your summary of the various tools for interaction that you used in your course. I agree that keeping some sort of 'human element' is key for a successful online course and I enjoy the interactive weekly zoom classes in ECI834. I can see myself using the 'flipgrid' tool for my students in the future.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorDean Vendramin. Educator for over 20 years. Currently Education Leader for Math/Science at Archbishop M.C. O'Neill Catholic High School. Have a passion for all things in education with emphasis on technology integration, assessment, professional development, and 21 Century Education. Posts are articles he has written for the Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation monthly newsletter The Bulletin, Saskatchewan Math Teachers' Society The Variable, blog requests from memberships he is a part of, and his own thoughts. Archives
April 2019
Categories |