Team Facilitation Activity Online courses are becoming more and more popular as time goes on. There are entire degree programs that can be earned online only. Online degrees or courses provide flexibility and enable a person to participate from anywhere at anytime. The online environment is very different from the classroom environment. A lot more participation and determination is required when taking online classes. Facilitating an online class can be difficult. I never knew how difficult it is until participating in this activity. In order to have a successful discussion people must respond. There is so much information that needs to be covered and it is impossible to cover every single detail. I learned the importance of reading the material on my own, instead of relying solely on notes and discussions. Discussions just cover some of the material but there is so much more. I also did additional research in order to gain more insight to the topic. After doing this there was more information that I wanted to share with the class. Participation is not something that can be forced. Students are what drive the class discussions, if no one responds to a post then there is nothing that can be done. No matter how hard you try to lead a discussion if no one is participating, the discussion will not work. I posted the initial discussion post on Saturday to make sure it was available for everyone early Sunday morning. The first person posted Sunday night. I was nervous that no one would respond to my post. Class participation is very important to the online environment. In order to get class participation you must keep everyone engaged. In order to make the class more engaging, I asked a lot of open ended questions. Open ended question... ... middle of paper ... ...I feel that she did not help with her part of the assignment. However, she should get credit for research there for I would give Rosita a C (75) on this assignment. All in all, this assignment made me realize how hard it is to facilitate an online class. Online classes require a lot more from both the professor and students. There is so much material to cover and so little time that it can be hard to fit all of the information in. Class participation is what drives the class in the online environment. If students are not engaged in the class there will be no discussions. The online environment needs class participation and discussion in order to succeed. This assignment also reinforced how hard it is to work in a group. There is no way to make sure that everyone is going to do their part. If someone does not do their part the other members of the group will have to.
Group facilitation is an art of surfacing and stimulating a constructive dialogue within a group of people and providing guidance towards the group’s purpose and goal (Fierro, 2016). My group’s facilitation process took place on Wednesday, November 2, 2016. The topic of the article we discussed was “Cognitive-behavioural and other psychological techniques in the dietetic consultation: Suggestions for practice”. This article focuses on the use of Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy (CBT) by dieticians in helping obese clients achieve their weight loss, physical activity and diet goals. There were 11 participants in attendance, seated in a circular formation.
Learning, like religion, is a social experience.” Currently, I have a class that I am enrolled in, often I find myself asking “Why I am in this class?” I learn nothing from this lady, her notes are continuously blurry, and every single student is unable to read them. She talks in circles and expects everyone to be able to follow. Personally, I wish I would have taken an online course for this particular class. Everything I have learned in this class has been solely self-taught. To be prepared for the class, I pre-read the chapter we will be having a discussion about in addition to study the curriculum, still I cannot keep up or understand what is coming out of her mouth. I also feel that I am not the only one in class that is completely lost, which makes me feel better about the whole situation. Whereas I am also enrolled in another class, which I adore and value every single minute. This particular class requires an hour and forty-five minutes a day for four days a week. To think this class I feared the most when I enrolled at the beginning of school. Surprisingly now, it is by far my favorite! I have learned so much information in such a little span of time. It is truly remarkable, the change of mind I have had towards this subject! Credit is due to my professor, she is outstanding! Then, of course, I have this class! Comp 1, which as you know is online. There has been struggles, as I think I would have learned better with face to face encounters with my peers and involved discussion with other students and a professor, although I think I have managed to keep my head above the water so far. All- together, with only my brief personal experience given, you cannot say online courses are worse than an in class
So it’s 9:00 am and your class has finally ended. As you are on your way out, you glance down at your watch to find out that you have approximately 15 minutes to get to work. As you practically sprint at full speed to your car, you come across a brief thought in your head, “I knew I should have just took that online class”. It is true that online classes do provide flexibility and convenience while traditional classes, typically, do not. And this isn’t the only difference, online and traditional classes are two helpful learning environments that differs in numerous ways.
I will lecture, but student involvement is also very crucial. I want to have cooperative learning activities regularly woven into my classes. These activities will break up the monotony of everyday lectures and giv...
There are also many conveniences and benefits to taking an online class over a traditional, face-to-face class. Many students benefit logistically, financially, and from the course structure itself. Online classes provide the student with more opportunities to be successful in their coursework. Online courses can be completed based on the student's own schedule, provide for faster and less nervous interactions with instructors, and in many cases, are more educationally beneficial setting alternatives to traditional, face-to-face classes. In fact, Sixty-seven percent of academic professionals evaluated online courses as equivalent to as or better than face-to-face courses (Lytle).
The teacher had a whole group discussion on a certain topic an example is about atoms. Students were encouraged to talk about what they know about atoms and what they think they are. They could bounce ideas off each other. Students could debate back and forth, this expands their communication skills as well. The teacher was putting in comments to help guide their discussion. Then the teacher also broke them up into groups, this furthered their conversation. In their groups they could research more about the topic and figure out what the topic was and how it works. I would use this strategy in my classroom, because it gets the students engaged in their learning. It enables them to communicate their understanding and learn from each other not just the teacher.
My principal concern in this reflection will be to discover my shortcomings as a student in this course and to identify ways in which I can remedy those shortcomings in the second half of the semester. My first point is that I find that I participate far less than I would like to in class discussions. I have a very difficult time putting thoughts together in my head and, oftentimes, I find that by the time I manage to gather my ideas together coherently, the discussion has moved on and my point feels out of place or irrelevant. Sometimes, I also feel like my thoughts are elementary when compared to the current level of the discussion and I feel hesitant to interrupt the flow. I definitely feel more comfortable in the more personal, or partner-based discussions that we have during class sometimes because they help relieve the pressure of sharing my rough thoughts with a large amount of people.
In the video titled “Teaching Presence in Online Learning,” the interviewee stated that it is key to utilize the basic forms of communication. Students will feel better informed and connected to the instructor if there is early and constant contact with a personal touch through announcements, emails, timely responses to questions and feedback. One word of caution that was shared was that instructors also need to beware of being too present as to avoid influencing the student’s learnings too much. The point is to have students formulate their own ideas and understanding while also learning from each other. The one concept that I found most significant is that as instructors we need to integrate variety to our virtual learning spaces. In the “Strategies to Promote Communication” reading and the “The Essentials of Supporting an Online Learning Community” YouTube video, we were provided ideas on how we can do this to ensure we break away from leading monotonous online classes. Varied content and assignments in an online platform will help keep students stay
Some students within society need to have online learning to complete college degrees due to their lifestyles. While it is good to have online learning as an option if one chooses, it should not be the only option available to some students. Some may argue that online education is not creating discrimination within the educational environment. Furthermore, some may suggest that online learning is benefiting our students in society. There has been a breakthrough in time and geographical limitations of education via online courses (Ho, 2009).
To build an online course there must be a process; this process needs to incorporate the methods of instructional design and applying these components into an online format. The overall end result is that the student learning outcomes are developed into instructional activities used for learning. Key decisions were made into developing the online design. Part of the process included documentation as to the online design, methods for interactivity, number of contacts with the faculty-member, and methods for online assessment and evaluation. One thing that was important to realize was that developing an online courses was different than developing a traditional face-to-face course. An article written by Nanette Johnson-Curiskis, a faculty member from Minnesota State University has provided some additional cons...
All things considered, there are some values to having a degree obtained strictly online and traditionally,
When students are deciding on where to go to college, they have the option of choosing between online classes and the traditional classroom classes. Today, some students are finding it much easier to maintain a job, family and start a college career, all by taking online classes. Although some students still prefer to stick with the traditional classroom classes, they still have the option to take online classes. Both online and the traditional classes will provide the educational requirements needed to obtain a college degree and opportunities in the work field. Although the online classes offer just as much as the traditional classes, they are completely different when it comes to teaching methods, course material and time.
His final suggestion to teachers is to, “fully reconsider their students’ specific needs and redesign their online courses and learning activities to involve their students.help them benefit from the online learning environment.” Works Cited Chia-Wen, T. (2013).
On-Line Learning originated in the 1800’s for academic possibilities to possibly reach people. When online learning was established it was in the form of conformity courses. With the use of television and radio, distance learning grew from 1920 to 1970. The future is currently unfenced for online education now that technology is less expensive and more cordial than it was some 10 years ago. There are many reason people take online courses. The demand for a job with good benefits is scarce in today’s society. Many organizations do not allow their employees to be excused from work to attend school. It is something the employee must do on his or her own time. It is almost impossible for you to get hired on a job without a degree of some form. Some may have a difficult time being away from their families; therefore online learning would be a great asset for those who would rather spend time with family.
... if a student decides to attend a traditional college or decides to attend online, they are both trying to obtain the same goal; education. Many universities offer online and traditional courses, this gives students the opportunity to experience both and decide for themselves which is better. Although traditional education and online education have their own advantages, traditional education offers better communication, opportunities, and flexibility.