In a distance education learning environment, teaching and learning has evolved to a point where both parties involved have a sense of satisfaction as far as what was taught and learned within the course. Before now, both the teacher and student felt more comfortable with face-to-face learning and felt there was more being gained from this type of environment. According to Durrington, Berryhill, &Swafford (2006), the importance of providing a learning environment that is supportive, open and respectful though the use of clear and detailed syllabus, responding to student inquiries in a timely manner and communicating explicitly the tone of responses, will help ensure a successful distance education course. Siemens' (2007), mentioned the importance of social presence, teacher presence and collaborative presence in distance education. These are equally important in ensuring a successful distance education class for all parties involved.
With the abundance of technological tools that are available in today's time, there is no reason the online learning community can't have a sense of "belonging" when it comes to distance education. By referring to the graphic organizer, you will see there are a number of tools available to make the teacher and learner feel like they are part of the learning community.
Durrington, V.A., Berryhill, A., & Swafford, J. (2006). Strategies For Enhancing Student Interactivity In An Online Environment. College Teaching, 54(1), 190-193.
Siemens, G. (2007) "George Siemens-Curatorial Teaching." Retrieved October 18, 2010 from
http://www.archive.org/details/10MinuteLectures-GeorgeSiemens-CuratorialTeaching.
Brandy,
ReplyDeleteI really like the creativity of your graphic organizer. It is festive and lively. Being a math person, the big element that I do not see is the intersection of all three of the big ideas (content, communication, and collaboration). I am sure this wasn't intentional, because it is the intersection of all three of these that makes any educational community work.