Abstract:
Closed campuses, working remotely, and physical distancing have changed the way we work, teach, learn, shop, attend conferences, and interact with family and friends. But the Covid-19 pandemic has not changed what we know about creating high-end online education. Two decades of research has shown that online education often fails to fulfill its promise, and the emergency shift to remote instruction has, for many, justified their distrust and dislike of online learning. Low interactivity remains a widely recognized short-coming of current online offerings. Low interactivity results, in part, from many faculty not feeling comfortable being themselves online. The long-advocated for era of authentic assessments is needed now more than ever. Finally, greater support is needed for both underrepresented students and for faculty to move beyond basic online instruction to create a strong continuum of care between the teaching and learning environment and the student support infrastructure. For those who have been long-term champions of online education, it has never been more important to confront the three biggest challenges that continue to haunt online education – interactivity, authenticity, and support. Only by confronting these challenges squarely can instructors, educational developers, and their institutions take huge steps towards better online instruction in the midst of a pandemic and make widespread, high-quality online education permanently part of the “new normal.”
Abstract:
This paper will share the experiences of two instructors as they moved from teaching
in a face-to-face environment to blended teaching and then to online teaching.
It will describe the four-year journey and shed light on the issues, perspectives and practices as the instructors
reflected on the changes to their pedagogical practice and the resulting online student engagement. Data included three 1-hour interviews and an analysis of online discussion postings. The instructors reflected on their values, beliefs and assumptions about teaching and earning. As higher education has embraced online education as a way to reduce costs, increase flexibility, and enhance access to students it is important to gain an understanding of the
perceptions of instructors moving into online teaching. This study found a change in the beliefs and teaching presence of the instructors from their initial resistance to online teaching to an
approach which is mindful of the student experience and promotes a dialogical approach to online learning.