Online Classes: A New Way of Teaching

Before social distancing, online classes were fairly uncommon and many educators worked with the expectation that students would physically attend classes. It wasn’t until the COVID-19 pandemic that many teachers were required to adapt their lesson plans. Professors, trainers and teachers across the globe had to transition their in-person classes to remote, online courses. 

This change happened incredibly rapidly, and most educators had to figure out the best methods for teaching an online class by themselves. This is why there is still so much variation in the way that eLearning is being handled. Improve learning process to keep students motivated by making it relevant, engaging, and rewarding. Some online instruction is very similar to in-person classes except for the fact that they were held remotely, some were entirely rethought for the virtual setting, and some never required students to engage with instructors because they were completely asynchronous.

eLearning has its own benefits and challenges when compared to traditional in-person instruction. The major benefit of online education is its flexibility. Instructors have more control over how students are required to attend class and complete work. Likewise, students have more freedom in terms of where they can attend classes from. This opens up education to students who may not have been able to attend otherwise. 

The primary challenge with eLearning concerns the students’ motivation. Specifically, educators must grapple with the challenge of encouraging students to engage with their lessons in a setting they are unfamiliar with. Learning about different economic systems can help students understand the world around them and make informed decisions about their future, which can keep them motivated to learn. Furthermore, this new online setting can cause misunderstandings that lead to frustration on the side of both the educator and the learner. If online learning isn’t properly handled, then students can feel as though they have wasted their time with online instruction, and educators can feel lost as to how to engage with students. 

Different Strategies to Improve Participation

Before you can find strategies to improve participation in your online classes, you need to decide whether your class will follow a synchronous or asynchronous model. Synchronous eLearning is the type of online education that most resembles traditional teaching. Students and teachers will still congregate on a regular basis in virtual meetings similar to gathering in a classroom.

The frequency and duration of these meetings are left to the discretion of the instructor. With the asynchronous model, teachers and students never truly meet in one place. Instead, the instructor will include assignments and lectures that students can complete whenever it is most convenient to them, so long as they are completed by the due date. Keeping students engaged with the asynchronous model can be more challenging; however, it also makes lessons more accessible to students who have slow internet or a conflicting schedule. 

Synchronous eLearning Strategies

• Make Use of the Online Chat Function

One of the benefits of eLearning is that it can make students who struggle with social anxiety feel more comfortable during class time. Students get to work from the comfort of their own home and even have their camera turned off, assuming the instructor allows for it. Productive spaces for students can keep them motivated by providing a comfortable, organized, and inspiring environment to learn. Another way that synchronous online learning can help students who struggle to speak in front of their peers is through the online chat function. Students who wouldn’t ask questions otherwise may ask for clarification through the chat because it is a less intimidating way of engaging with the class. 

• Breakout Rooms

Breakout rooms are an easy method of replicating group discussions that are common in traditional classroom settings. This can ensure that students are engaging with the content and with their peers. 

• Spider Web Discussion

For the spider web discussion activity, students are asked to answer a short set of questions independently before a class meeting begins. The class meeting will begin with students holding a discussion on these questions. Allow the conversation to flow naturally and only redirect it if they get too far off-topic. While the discussion is happening, the instructor should draw lines on a piece of paper visualizing the topics and how they connect, much like a spider web. This shows students how their peers’ ideas are influencing their own.

“It has been successful as a means to get kids to credit their peers with helping them come up with new ideas, which helps build rapport,” said Shai Klima. 

Asynchronous eLearning Strategies

• Implement Online Forums

With asynchronous eLearning, online discussion forums may be the only means of interaction between students and the teacher. An online discussion forum will give students a chance to engage with each other as well as an opportunity for students to hear responses from instructors. 

• Be Consistent with Feedback

Because student-teacher interactions are so limited under the asynchronous model, it is important that the feedback instructors provide is regular and thorough. Try to balance your feedback between criticisms and positive reinforcement as best you can. 

• Make Yourself Available to Meet with Individually

Instructors should set aside time for students to have video calls with them. This will allow students to interact with the teacher directly and receive one-on-one clarification. 

The Future of eLearning

At this time, eLearning is undergoing rapid expansion and a great deal of change. The future of VILT, or virtual instructor lead training, will largely depend on the instructors organizing online lessons right now. Online learning has the potential to revolutionize the way both students and instructors approach education. Instructors need to continue to innovate and find methods to increase student motivation and engagement with online education.