According to the United States Department of Education, distance learning is defined as "the delivery of instruction over a distance to individuals located in one or more venues." When students trade a campus classroom for an online course, it can be a big change for them. I have had the pleasure of experiencing both traditional on-campus courses and online courses. I would like to discuss my experiences with online courses that I have taken in the past.
During my undergraduate years of college, I had to take Western Civilization one and two. I have always been a student that detests history, so after completing Western Civilization one, I learned that I could take Western Civilization two as a transient student at the local junior college and I thought it would be easier. To my surprise, the course was an online course. Without any experience with online courses, I signed up. The run-down of the class took place using Blackboard. We would participate in online conversations about the week's assignments and class material. The instructor required the purchase of three different books, which were very difficult to manage. As a first time online student I struggled with balancing all the different readings, assignments and discussions. Any questions that we had, were to be sent by email and they were often overlooked. I believe the key to a successful online course is accessibility (Firat, 2016). Students have needs that must be met in order for them to be successful and when the instructor is not accessible, things can go wrong (Simonson, Smaldino & Zvacek, 2015). The instructor for this course provided us with a syllabus that was very general and unclear. I believe that this instructor should have taken advantage of the college's learning management system and notified us about important due dates and deadlines because there was a lot of confusion. The class would have been a little more enjoyable if it would have incorporated a video tools for students to engage in at least on face to face discussion. Online courses most certainly have their drawbacks, especially for first-time online learners, but with the proper guidelines and supports put in place, everyone has the potential to be successful (Firat, 2016).
Finishing that online Western Civilization course had me feeling that the girl in the picture below.
via GIPHY
My experience in my courses at Montevallo have been the best thus far. I will always remember the fun that I had in ED 601. According to Simonson, Smaldino & Zvacek (2015), "interaction in distance education is important." Through the use of Skype, Periscope, and much more, I have made connections with classmates. We have built bonds and everyone is always willing to help each other. I can identify several of the best practices in distance education that (Simonson, Smaldino & Zvacek, 2015) have listed, but the one that stands out to me the most is number 4, course quality. I can leave Univerisity of Montevallo with confidence that I have what it takes to advance in my career.
References
Firat, M. (2016). Measuring the e-Learning Autonomy of Distance Education Students. Open Praxis,8(3). doi:10.5944/openpraxis.8.3.310
Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., (2015) Teaching and Learning at a Distance (6th ed.)/ Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, Inc.
I completely agree with you Keonna. Communication is key in any course. That should not change just because of distance between the teacher and student. Between Facebook, Twitter, Google Chat, email, Skype, and many others, teachers have no excuse not be be in constant communication and respond to issues. I also agree that this has not been a problem with Montevallo courses. Communication and planning is a must for an distance learning course.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you regarding the importance of communication in online courses. While I am eternally grateful to my professors at The University of Montevallo for making themselves available to me via multiple communication methods, I also greatly appreciate the way that they set up their courses in order to facilitate collaboration between students. The Facebook groups and the online chats have made me feel like I am in a learning community with my fellow classmates. This helps me to feel comfortable asking questions of my peers. Additionally, I agree with you that these courses are structured in a way that through collaboration my learning is intensified. Simonson, Smaldino and Zvacek (2015) indicate that “with interaction it was reported that overall the strength of interactive treatments was associated with increased achievement outcomes” (p.67). I do believe that the interaction we have with one another supports our learning and understanding. Blog comments and asking one another questions about the research conducted reinforces what we have already learned and broadens our knowledge via the research and experiences of our classmates.
ReplyDeleteReferences
Simonson, M., Smaldino, S., & Zvacek, S. (2015). Teaching and learning at a distance: Foundations of distance education (6th ed.). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, Inc.