Tips on Establishing an Elearning Community

A PHYSICAL distance exists between online students and virtual instructors that is seldom crossed. They may never meet, speak or share experiences. Here are some thoughts on how to mitigate the non-social environment on the web. Some of these options are expensive, but with a little thought, you can probably develop at least a couple of methods for helping your students to operate as a community, able to share their knowledge.

1. Virtual worlds allow students and the instructor to share a common virtual environment which they enter as avatars (multi-user domains; web-conferencing).
   
2. Simulations let students share a common physical computerized environment. i.e. flight sims.
   
3. Whiteboarding lets them share a common screen environment.
   
4. Chat rooms lets students type messages back and forth to each other. i.e. IRC.
   
5. Videoconferencing lets them see each other.
   
6. Virtual environments show promise. Holography like that in Star Trek is also a some-day possibility.
   
7. Create opportunities to interact in a meaningful way with the instructor or study partners through Chats, Phone, email, post or a classroom.
   • Explain everyone's role and how people can be contacted;
   • Provide an explanation of who is available for hand-holding, for example, an HR person, or a Newsgroup.
   • Explain how queries will be managed. Its okay to say they won't be, in some circumstances. For example: this tutorial is free for you to use. However, you are on your own as I have a new job at Stellar Microsystems and cannot answer emails on this topic anymore.
     
8. Meet other emotional needs. Students expect:
• Accessibility - no red tape; no convoluted instructions or installations
• Courtesy - professional treatment. Let them know what they need to complete the course: headphones, a specified number of hours, a manual or workbook, paper, etc. Speak casually and to the reader.
• Personal Growth - recognition of unique needs - smart systems that adapt to the user, or at least track them well enough to prevent the need to repeat information again and again. The program should recognize where the student left off; should know his or her name; should be able to provide feedback on their progress. Should cater to different learning styles and to disabilities.
• Empathy - acknowledgment of their concerns. Spell out the objectives, the outcomes and the instructions.
• Privacy - Protect their privacy with a stated privacy code.
• Rest - Create natural breaks in the tutorials where students can either bookmark their work or walk away and do some stretches, get refreshments, etc. Signpost how far it is to the next break with navigational features like, Slide 7 of 15.
• Continuity - Create a chain of events. Before transitions, explain what is in the next section.
• Simplicity - Provide a means for the student to take notes without resorting to pen and paper. It is counterintuitive to take paper notes while e-learning. Further, it is inconvenient since the space that would be taken up by pen and paper is occupied with a keyboard and mouse.
• Job Knowledge - up-to-date knowledge of the learning environment provided in a jargon-free manner
• Consistency - in answers, in standards
• Teamwork - a spirit of working together: faculty and students.

 

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