Online Instruction Courses: Facilitator Still Needed!
Recent studies in a University course have highlighted insites that anyone working or studying online should take note of.
I have been involved in designing and developing online courses since the early WebCT days in the late 1990's. Since then I have gained some considerable experience in this area. In terms of facilitation, my experience is more limited because I work in an area where the students are not as familar with online instruction as other higher level study programs and therefore they require further preliminary work and exposure to it before I would attempt to try and operate exclusively using this tool. As it is, I use an online program (Janison) for the competencies I manage in the TAFESA Heavy Vehicles faculty but it is only one tool amongst other methodologies and strategies for training apprentices. The students are becoming more familar with it since its introduction in 2003 but students still perfer to use and train using the online materials in a training environment with lecturers and other students for support. They have access 24/7 from anywhere with an Internet connection but very few have done more than take a cursory look around the materials.
I would have assumed that the Universities would be familar by now with many of the problems associated with external delivery modes and in particular using online courses where the students have very limited real contact with either a lecturer or other students studying the same course. How wrong was this assumption!!!
The current online course is a disaster. After having a face-to-face meeting with the group as an introductory session to the course, little or no contact has followed. The lecturer was assigned to teach in China and has been out of contact for most of the time since. He only made contact the other day to suggest we will not finish if we do not get a move on. Lets look at this for a moment.
To my knowledge, while we are all familar with using computers and various programs for study, none of us are completely competent with using this wiki and its layout. In fact, there have been components of the study course materials that I have only just managed to find after five weeks. No contact has been made directly and only in the last few hours as anyone at all made a comment about the discussions or activity responses I have made. (No comments, advise or encouragement has been made by the lecturer to any of us.)
While I am being critical about this current course of study, I am saddened to discover that this is not an isolated incident. It appears that some teachers (and more than I would have cared for) obviously believe that once the course materials are up, their job is almost over. Link in on occasion as it suits you and add the odd comment to a students assignment if you feel inclined to do so. This is absolutely rediculous!
Successful online learning only occurs when there is constant feedback and support. In fact, my experience has been that if you (as the facilitator of the course) are not spending as much time interacting in all soughts of ways with the learning materials, discussion and in the support and encouragement of online learners, they will quickly lose confidence, interest and enthusiasm for the study and , for many, just give up.
Online facilitation means far more commitment, dedication and energy by the facilitator than managing a real live class has ever done yet so very few teachers, managers and administrators obviously appreciate this. Yet it still gets pushed as the answer to rising operating costs and and easier workloads. Perhaps it is; students get fed up and drop out!
I have been involved in designing and developing online courses since the early WebCT days in the late 1990's. Since then I have gained some considerable experience in this area. In terms of facilitation, my experience is more limited because I work in an area where the students are not as familar with online instruction as other higher level study programs and therefore they require further preliminary work and exposure to it before I would attempt to try and operate exclusively using this tool. As it is, I use an online program (Janison) for the competencies I manage in the TAFESA Heavy Vehicles faculty but it is only one tool amongst other methodologies and strategies for training apprentices. The students are becoming more familar with it since its introduction in 2003 but students still perfer to use and train using the online materials in a training environment with lecturers and other students for support. They have access 24/7 from anywhere with an Internet connection but very few have done more than take a cursory look around the materials.
I would have assumed that the Universities would be familar by now with many of the problems associated with external delivery modes and in particular using online courses where the students have very limited real contact with either a lecturer or other students studying the same course. How wrong was this assumption!!!
The current online course is a disaster. After having a face-to-face meeting with the group as an introductory session to the course, little or no contact has followed. The lecturer was assigned to teach in China and has been out of contact for most of the time since. He only made contact the other day to suggest we will not finish if we do not get a move on. Lets look at this for a moment.
To my knowledge, while we are all familar with using computers and various programs for study, none of us are completely competent with using this wiki and its layout. In fact, there have been components of the study course materials that I have only just managed to find after five weeks. No contact has been made directly and only in the last few hours as anyone at all made a comment about the discussions or activity responses I have made. (No comments, advise or encouragement has been made by the lecturer to any of us.)
While I am being critical about this current course of study, I am saddened to discover that this is not an isolated incident. It appears that some teachers (and more than I would have cared for) obviously believe that once the course materials are up, their job is almost over. Link in on occasion as it suits you and add the odd comment to a students assignment if you feel inclined to do so. This is absolutely rediculous!
Successful online learning only occurs when there is constant feedback and support. In fact, my experience has been that if you (as the facilitator of the course) are not spending as much time interacting in all soughts of ways with the learning materials, discussion and in the support and encouragement of online learners, they will quickly lose confidence, interest and enthusiasm for the study and , for many, just give up.
Online facilitation means far more commitment, dedication and energy by the facilitator than managing a real live class has ever done yet so very few teachers, managers and administrators obviously appreciate this. Yet it still gets pushed as the answer to rising operating costs and and easier workloads. Perhaps it is; students get fed up and drop out!
posted by Tony @ 3:07 AM
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