Setting up an Online Learning Experience

In this weeks blog post I will be discussing the steps associated with setting up an online course and then reflect upon my experience with it. I hope you enjoy and please feel free to comment on my post.

In my opinion technology is the most important part of an online learning community. Not only do you obviously need technology just to be able to participate in the learning but we see it used in our everyday lives and the more we can master the more skilled we are for the working world. Some possible tools you may see used in online learning are discussion forums, blogs, and document writing software. One problem we find is that there are so many different tools that can be or are used in online learning and someone who is new to online learning can have a hard time with it all. The best solution is to learn one at at time and not worry about all the rest that you have to learn. Also some tools are just recommended and not needed for your purposes. If you feel overwhelmed only use exactly what tools you will need to succeed.

As an instructor it is very important to communicate clear expectations to the learners for each course. Not only can the learners not be as successsful as they would like if they don't know what is expected from them but they may not know what to do at all until it is explained well to them. There are a few different things that you may want to do to help with student understanding. One thing is to present a syllabus with grading procedures and expectations, make sure the students know about it and tell them to look at it. You should also give a good description of all assignments, its a good idea to have someone else interperet it before you presnt it to students. Lastly presenting examples of what you are expected is a great help. I know that it always helped me wen I was taking online courses.

There are a few additional considerations I have found to be important to take when teaching an online course. First is the form of and how much communicatin that will happen in the course. Consider the way fellow students can communicate with each other and how they can reach the instructor. Also as an instructor you need to decide how active and available you will be in the course. If the students have a way to get ahold of you when they need but you never respond back to them it doesn't help. Also if you wait a full week to return students graded papers then they won't get the feedback they need in time to complete future assignments.

There are many things that make the successful launch of an online experience significant. Not only does it look good for all future online courses that the learners take but we want any student to enjoy there classes. It is great to be able to help students learn while them also having a good time. I also have to mention that if you are the creator and instructor of the course then it is a big success for you to have done that.

Actually what I learned most about an online learning environment is the same thing that we have been learning althroughout this course so far. That is that creating a sense of community and closeness between the instructor and fellow peers is an extremely important part of the online learning environment. When I think of teaching an online course, which I have never done before, I first think of it just being important that I introduce the learners and not worry about the sense of community the learners feel. I will be sure to change this thought process in the future if I ever teach an online course.

Boettcher, J. V., & Conrad, R. (2010). The online teaching survival guide: Simple and practical pedagogical tips. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Laureate Education. (Producer). (2011). Launching the Online Learning Experience. [Online]. Retrieved from Walden University eCollege.

Online Learning Communities

This weeks blog entry is about online learning communities and how they effect student learning. I hope you all come away from reading my blog having learned something.

Learning communities greatly increase student learning. Part of the reason for this is that communication among peers seems to be improved in online learning environments. They seem to be more supportive and understand more what each other is going through. Also a lot more personal experience and professionalism seem to go into their learning experiences and presentation of information. As we read, Pratt also agrees.
Something else that is a big impact on student learning is the use of new technology and it has slowly become more and more a part of our everyday lives. When learners are part of a learning community they tend to have to use more new tools and technology which makes them more well rounded and prepared for a career.
Anyone that I know who has taken an online program or been part of a learning community have shown satisfaction. It ranges anywhere from the flexibility of the schedule to introduction into new learning tools and processes.

There are a few elements to online community building that are essential if you hope for it to succeed. The three main ones we learned about from Pratt are people, purpose, and process. I will explain why he says this and why I am in perfect agreement. People are an obvious and easy one to explain. Without people not only will you not have a community but you will also not have anyone to learn or teach in the community. Purpose is just as important because we need to have a reason for setting up the community in the first place and we have to know what we want to teach. I would say the process is last on the list but equally as important. For the learning community to actually be successful there has to be a predetermined method for teaching and presenting of learning tools.

As important as how the learning community is taught is maintaining it. If things are not run right then even the most successful communities can fail. A few ways to go about doing that is to ensure the course has a good facilitator. Once the process is thought up for the community then a competent facilitator is needed. Also a sense of belonging must be felt by the students. There must be ample communication between them. Their success is also dependant on the platform they are using to communicate. The learners need to know how to use the technology that is needed to communicate in the online community.
That brings up another point I wanted to mention about the software and tools used in the community. If the learners are unfamiliar with the tools used in the program and the facilitator fails to teach them properly then the program will not be sustained very well.

The relationship between community building and effective online instruction is simple and obvious. Good communication is key to both community building and effective online instruction. Good community building involves everyone in the community putting in an effort to communicate. Starting with introducing yourself to everyone. Also check in occasionally with everyone and strike up conversation. Lastly, coming from the point of a facilitator, be part of the community yourself. Help make the students feel more welcome by introducing yourself and show that you are a regular person just like them.

Palloff, R. & Pratt, K. (2011). Online Learning Communities. Walden Video Library.

Welcome

Hello everyone. My name is Stephan DiFlorio and I live in Maryland but am originally from NY. I was a teacher and have 3 years of experience behind me that will come in handy throughout this course.

I am currently raising a family and working on getting my Master's so I can pursue a job in higher education. I look forward to getting to know some of you better and hopefully we will get the chance to work together or interact on a daily basis.