Whew... what a busy week it has been. Lots of stuff to do for class. And, much like a "real" student... it is getting down to the wire for my posts.
As I've mentioned before I am an online "teacher". I put quotes around it because about 90% of the time I am an online "grader". The company I teach with has a self-contained course where the students do all sorts of activities that include reading, writing, listening and "speaking" which is really just recording themselves reading their written work in some cases.
I bring this up because I really like how this textbook is laid out. It gives REAL classroom examples for a truly facilitated experience which I feel I am lacking, especially since I am teaching a foreign language. Well, any course, really.
I understand that there are different learning styles that we all have、but I feel the work-at-your-pace with minimal feedback, other than a note or an email isn't the best way to teach. This could be partly because I am only a part-time instructor and don't have office hours. I'm not sure, I don't know what the solution is. This comes to mind because the textbook gives many practical examples on integrating technology into an existing classroom.
Although I think learning styles all need to be accounted for and some students are more than capable of working on things on their own and doing well, I do feel that having actual interaction with a teacher is extremely important. Things like the alligator in the sewer project in chapter 4 won't happend in a setting like what I teach in because there isn't a "class" per se. I think that is were some students miss out. I also think it will be all of the students who are not already highly motivated.
Let's be honest here, motivated students will do well in pretty much any setting. It's the other students who might need a little motivation that I feel will miss out. They are the ones I feel need that flexibility and the power of the "teachable moment".
Humans are social creatures by and large and need to be in social environments. Even though we have "social" media, a status update is not the same with direct communication with another person.
Monday, January 30, 2012
Friday, January 13, 2012
21st Century Learning
Well, just minutes before our first class I was at my school board's meeting. They had a presentation on the new 7th grade technology initiative/pilot program.
Although it was interesting, it wasn't an open forum for the general public to comment on. I had a few questions since I now teach online.
One of the great benefits of online teaching is all of the hands on stuff. My local middle school is using Gamestarmechanic.com (I think that was it) to have students write a story and a game that matches up which leeds to a lot of cross editing to make everything work together
The other thing the teachers commented on was their ability to communicate with their students. Two of them commented that even while they were at a conference.
Their presentation brought up a few questions for me.
1) Is there a set expectation for how soon teachers need to get back to students? Do they have weekends off? Is time allotted in their schedule? I know where I work, we have to respond to emails within 24hours. Also, if teachers are being paid to attend a conference or seminar....should the be responding to emails?
2) How long do teachers have to grade papers/assignments/projects? I get 72hours to get my assignments graded.
There are also some other concerns I have about the possible future of online teaching, etc. I see a lot of great possibilities... but I think, depending on the political climate work conditions/pay/etc could vary quite a bit.
I say that because I am more of a facilitator who grades assignments, but the class itself is all inclusive. My students have onsite, local "teachers" that assist in their learning in some cases. I'm not sure of their qualifications... if they are actual teachers or helpers. Other students work through it on their own. So, what I am doing right now is very, very different from the classes we are taking or blended learning.
Well... I think I've rambled on long enough.
It's great to be part of this cohort. I missed this class before and look forward to taking it with all of you.
Although it was interesting, it wasn't an open forum for the general public to comment on. I had a few questions since I now teach online.
One of the great benefits of online teaching is all of the hands on stuff. My local middle school is using Gamestarmechanic.com (I think that was it) to have students write a story and a game that matches up which leeds to a lot of cross editing to make everything work together
The other thing the teachers commented on was their ability to communicate with their students. Two of them commented that even while they were at a conference.
Their presentation brought up a few questions for me.
1) Is there a set expectation for how soon teachers need to get back to students? Do they have weekends off? Is time allotted in their schedule? I know where I work, we have to respond to emails within 24hours. Also, if teachers are being paid to attend a conference or seminar....should the be responding to emails?
2) How long do teachers have to grade papers/assignments/projects? I get 72hours to get my assignments graded.
There are also some other concerns I have about the possible future of online teaching, etc. I see a lot of great possibilities... but I think, depending on the political climate work conditions/pay/etc could vary quite a bit.
I say that because I am more of a facilitator who grades assignments, but the class itself is all inclusive. My students have onsite, local "teachers" that assist in their learning in some cases. I'm not sure of their qualifications... if they are actual teachers or helpers. Other students work through it on their own. So, what I am doing right now is very, very different from the classes we are taking or blended learning.
Well... I think I've rambled on long enough.
It's great to be part of this cohort. I missed this class before and look forward to taking it with all of you.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
