Creating Online Learning Communities

    There are many ways for instructors to promote a sense of community in an online learning environment.  Here I will share three of the techniques I've researched.  The first is creating a plan for communication.  Even if the class is asynchronous the instructor should still communicate to students regularly either through announcements at the beginning of each week or giving feedback on assignments that students turn in.  Another way to communicate would be touching base with students through email before a larger assignment is due.  Instructors can also promote student to student communication through the use of discussion boards by requiring students to make an initial post and also respond to a peer's post with their thoughts.

    Another way for instructors to promote a sense of community in an online learning environment is by using collaborative learning techniques.  Collaborative learning requires students to work with each other, which can help reduce feelings of isolation.  In addition to simply being glad to know that other are in the same boat, many online students seem to value interacting and forming relationships with peers.  Getting to know their peers in an online environment can improve students' overall experience.  Online collaborative learning provides a solid foundation on which such relationships may be founded.

    The third way instructors can promote a sense of community in an online learning environment is by creating opportunities for information and expertise sharing.  One way to do this is by creating study groups for the course.  By putting students together in small groups it can help them learn to work together and make connections with other students.  Another way is by including a "relevant resource" section for the course.  Here students can find information that may be relevant to their course and students could be encouraged to add other information they think might be relevant.  Instructors could also create a common space(such as the discussion boards previously mentioned) so that students can bounce ideas back and forth with each other.

    The method I find the most appealing is creating opportunities for information and expertise sharing.  I like this method because it doesn't force the students to interact with each other but instead makes it the student's responsibility to reach out to peers.  I also like this method because I think it's the best way to simulate a traditional classroom discussion; students are able to communicate ideas with each other in order to find the best solution for a problem and they can communicate with the instructor as well.

Online Learning

     Online learning can have many advantages and disadvantages as compared to the traditional classroom setting.  Online learning also comes with its own learning theories that are applied to students and coursework.  One theory of online learning is community of inquiry.  The community of inquiry model supports the design of online courses as active learning environments dependent on instructors and students sharing ideas, information, and opinions.  This model is based on the concept of three distinct "presences": cognitive, social, and teaching; "Presence" is a social phenomenon and manifests itself through interactions among students and instructors.

    Another theory of online learning is connectivism.  This is a learning model that acknowledges major shifts in the way knowledge and information flows, grows, and changes because of vast data communication networks.  Technological advancements in the internet have moved learning from internal, individualistic activities to group, community, and even crowd activities.  Connectivism as a theory is driven by the dynamic of information flow.  Students need to be able to understand, and be provided with, experiences in recognizing and navigating oceans of constantly shifting and evolving information.  Connectivism is particularly appropriate for courses with very high enrollments and where the learning goal or objective is to develop and create knowledge rather than disseminate it.

    A third theory of online learning is online collaborative learning.  This model of online learning focuses on the facilities of the internet to provide learning environments that foster collaboration and knowledge building.  In online collaborative learning there exist three phases of knowledge construction through discourse in a group: Idea generating - the brainstorming phase, where divergent thoughts are gathered; Idea organizing - the phase where ideas are compared, analyzed, and categorized through discussion and argument; Intellectual convergence - the phase where intellectual synthesis and consensus occurs, including agreeing to disagree, usually through an assignment, essay, or other joint piece of work.  A major aspect of online collaborative learning is the teacher is not necessarily separate and apart but rather, an active facilitator of, knowledge building.  Online collaborative learning is best suited for smaller instructional environments due to the active role of the teacher.

    Online learning also utilizes synchronous and asynchronous learning.  Synchronous learning in an online setting means that the class meets online in a virtual meeting like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Skype, etc. at a specific time on specific days.  Synchronous learning often involves the instructor going through the assignments in the class, step by step, for the entirety of the term.  Asynchronous learning on the other hand, means the class never comes together to meet at a specified time.  Usually these online learning environments involve the instructor making all of the coursework for the term available right at the beginning of the term.  It's then on the students to properly manage their time and compete all the coursework by the respective due dates.

    There are many advantages and disadvantages to online learning.  One advantage is flexibility, you can complete coursework from anywhere with an internet connection.  Another advantage is it helps you develop time-management skills.  There's also the added bonus of not having a commute to and from classes.  Online learning also allows students to experiment with different learning styles.  One disadvantage to online learning is less in-person interaction, this could make it harder to ask question when you don't understand a topic.  Another disadvantage is you might experience distractions, the internet is full of distractions that are just a click away.  One final disadvantage of online learning is the technology requirement, not all students might have access to a computer.

Welcome To My Blog!

     Hello all, and welcome to my Educational Technology blog!  My name is Zach Zabonik and I'm currently a student at Columbus State Community College.  I'm currently trying to achieve my Associate of Arts degree so then I can transfer to Ohio State University and get my Bachelor's in education.  In my free time I'm a huge lover of sports, so I watch a lot of football, basketball, and soccer.  My favorite team will always be The Ohio State Buckeyes, I enjoy nothing more than cheering for the Buckeyes football team on fall Saturdays.  I also enjoy getting together with my friends and having a good time.

    For my future career as a teacher, I hope that I'm able to reach all of my students and help them become the best possible learners they can become.  Beyond whatever subject I end up teaching I want to be able to give my students the tools they'll need for future learning endeavors, because I don't want my students to leave my classroom and feel like I didn't prepare them well enough for the future.  I also want to be a teacher that my students feel they can reach out to or ask for help if they need it, I don't want to be the intimidating teacher that all of the students are afraid of so they don't ask question when they need to.