Teaching Online
Innovations in ICT and the possibilities opened up by teaching online, are enabling exciting classroom activities to be developed at all levels of children's education (elementary to grade 12). They have also enabled a revolution in the delivery of distance education in universities and colleges.
The ICT revolution and teaching online
With the social appropriation of computers, the creation of the Internet, the advent of Web 2.0, and now the beginnings of the Semantic Web, the range of technologies available to the user is bewildering. Children in the US and Canada are being brought up surrounded by these Internet technologies, and using them is as natural to them as using a spoon. These users are called "Generation Y".
So what happens when these Generation Y children get into school? They probably expect their learning to be delivered using the same technologies that they use everyday. This is one important reason for teachers to learn more about teaching online. But there are other, pedagogical reasons, for learning about it. It is important for teachers to consider all modalities and technologies for learning and use the most appropriate ones for the subject matter and the particular learners. This is especially true in those all-important areas of math (especially middle school math), reading comprehension and writing.
Teaching online in universities and colleges
The new computer and Internet technologies are also revolutionising educational programs at university and college level. In university and college courses, it is now possible for course content, seminars, discussions and other approaches to learning to be delivered electronically.
These information and communication technologies enable distance courses to be delivered using innovative ways to interact with instructors and other students. They have raised the status of distance education and now whole universities have been created that conduct all their education only by teaching online.
Internet technologies for teaching online
The following are just a few of the technologies in use for teaching online:
- Electronic Portfolios (ePortfolios)
- MP3 Players
- Web sites
- Web 2.0 tools
- Discussion and bulletin boards
- Social Media (Blogs, Chats, Wikis, Podcasts, etc)
- Social networking
- Educational animation, simulation, and games
- Learning Management Systems (LMS)
Great Ideas for Teaching Online
By Sophia Peters
Success in a face-to-face environment does not always transfer to the elements needed for success in an online course; however, teaching online can be as rewarding as teaching in person. By including a variety of interactive strategies and maintaining communication, instructors can create a learning environment that encourages students to learn and to explore. The following tips include the key elements for success in teaching and learning in an online course.
Online Learning More Effective
A report released in June 2009 by the U.S. Department of Education, which analyzed 46 studies comparing online learning to face-to-face education, concludes that the former is more effective - at least at university level.
Academics and administrators involved in online education welcomed this report as vindication of what they have known (or believed) for many years. Anaheim University's Chancellor Dr. Garnet Birch said,
"I'm so excited that the Department of Education and the Secretary of Education have confirmed what we have been aware of at Anaheim University for over a decade. If you hire expert professors to teach online and recruit highly qualified students from around the world, you can expect to see results that are not only equal to what you might find in a regional on-campus based program, but superior. America needs a 21st Century approach towards higher education that matches the lifestyles of young homemakers, teachers and business people who are pursuing their education while working and fulfilling their family responsibilities at the same time. We are ecstatic to see that the U.S. Dept. of Education has found that online education is every bit as effective as on-campus education. We have seen first-hand our graduates out-perform their peers in the workplace and this report is in line with what we have experienced."
Download the Department of Education Report "Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practices in Online Learning" here:
http://www.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/tech/evidence-based-practices/finalreport.pdf
About Anaheim University
Anaheim University is a nationally accredited online institution of higher learning headquartered in Anaheim, California. The University offers online Masters and Certificate programs in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), online MBA programs and Online Certificate, Diploma and MBA (Online Green MBA) programs in Sustainable Management.
