Wow. SO much reading and so much information. Let me begin with my previous blog. There was nothing in my blog that was false or proven wrong by the readings due to the fact that I wrote from my own experience. I have been fortunate enough to have been thrown into the wave that is "online learning" so I have a lot of first-hand knowledge regarding this issue as it effects my school. I did find the readings very interesting. Allow me to go thru those readings:
As far as the "Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning" reports, I found the first few years of the report to be redundant. The reports from 2004 to 2005 were mirror images of each other. It wasn't until 2006 that new information was delivered, namely the legislation that required an "online learning experience for each student in order to graduate". I had no idea that the requirement had been around that long. I guess I was surprised because I haven't heard or read about it. After 2006 the report for 2007 was some what redundant. In 2008 the "seat time waiver" notion was implemented. It basically gave guidelines on how to count a student who wasn't expected to be in school all of the time. We use this a lot at my school. In 2009 the formation of full-time online schools was allowed to begin in the fall of 2010.
What I liked about the reports was the evolution of the whole thing. I had no idea of the history of the law or the progression it took to become what my school uses frequently today.
Now on the the myths. I have, in fact, come across a number of parents and other educators who harbor these myths close to their hearts. I have spoken to many people regarding this online learning idea and many push back with things such as Myth 3, Myth 5 and Myth 7.
Myth 3 talks about the lack of interaction online students must face. Not true in our program partly because it is a Blended program. Our students come into school several times a week. In my readings I have seen this idea addressed and full time online students do meet and collaborate, sometimes more frequently than their "traditional" counterparts.
Myth 5 talks about online teachers having an easy job. Totally not true! I know when I was doing it last year I had more work to do than any other teacher in the building (I was also teaching several ELA classes in the morning to "traditional students"). When you have students online learning there are many other things you have to contend with such as schedules, keeping track of students log ins and frequency, passwords being forgotten, hardware being stolen or broken, students not emailing their content-level teachers, content-level teachers not responding to their charges, the list goes on and on.
Myth 7 claims that online courses are easier for students. Also not true. Online courses, as we have all experienced in this course, generally have more work and assignments than other more typical classes. The same goes for 6-12th grade students. More Independence is required but also tested more frequently in an online course.
Your post made me laugh, especially the part about the myth of an on line class being less work and on line teachers having less work. I heard that all year and my students did more work than most of the traditional classes. I also found that they had much more interaction with each other because they did a lot of group work .
ReplyDeleteI also found that a lot of things I had to do did not apply to traditional teacher, like checking to see what internet sites my students were on, how many times they practiced their tutorials, how many test did they take before passing and so much more. I really enjoyed teaching an on line class and am glad all the myths are being proven.
Thanks Andrea. You are correct about the different things one has to do with an online learner. There are so many things that we don't think about in a traditional classroom. Sometimes I can't forsee them. I have to come across them in the moment. Thats when things get "fun". I try to write all of the potholes down that I fall into so I can plan for them next time around.
DeleteI think both of you hit the nail on the head. It must be way more work for the teacher in an online class. Plus, think about those unmotivated individuals. Think about the students that come to school late and without any supplies. These particular students are hard enough to deal with in a face-to-face environment, but as teachers, we have training in classroom management. All that training goes out the window in an online forum. One would have to develop different intervention strategies to reach and motivate these students and a lot of that would have to come with experience.
ReplyDeleteGreat point Shaun, the unmotivated learner. Man is this a tough one in an Blended class. We usually take the students who have proven to have been unsuccessful in the traditional classroom so they normally always have some sort of baggage or aggressive behavior. Couple that with the fact that students who exhibit aggressive or antisocial behavior ususally have low grades and are behind at least a few years and you have yourself a fun situation. But that is the beautiful thing, these students have done very well with our program because of the small class size, greater flexability to their schedule and more one-on-one attention. Motivation is still a factor. Sometimes we have to bring parents in and have very frank discussions with both parties. Our program does not work for everyone. Simple. However, for those who can begin to see their own power, they do very well.
DeleteYou definitely brought up some great points, especially about the myth about online teachers having an easy job. That's definitely not true. You definitely added key points about remembering different passwords, worrying about being hacked, different software and hardware that's involved, plus the extra work on top your traditional classes.
ReplyDeleteHi Matt, I like the fact of hearing how you are an experienced online teacher at your school, and wonder what district are you working in. I assume you are probably working somewhere between 6th and 12th grades, and think it is a remarkable thing to hear you talk about how you are blending. I would love to have such a job, but we are not truely blending yet at my school, though, we may begin in the near future. Thank you for revealing some of your experiences in a day of an online K-12 teacher, and I can see how important it is to have a team that is committed to this type of teaching in order for it to work. Finally, I agree with you that online teachers in a blended environment have a much greater job responsibility because of the complexity of all the variables that come into play; but known and unforeseen.
ReplyDeleteMatt, I agree that was a lot of information but it was good to see how much thought has gone into this new process called online learning or virtual schooling. I also agree that there was a lot of rdundant information and a lot of bias as well. I really found it interesting how they based there information on only a few students who lived in a particular area when you are doing research I thought the point of it was to cover a vass aray of area's and put it all together. What students in a rual area might be offered in a online class could be very different from what a city or surburban student might be offer. Also it still all comes back to funding and what district is investing money in technology and online supporlt.
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