Tools and Strategies in Distance Education

     Online learning can be very rich if the right tools and strategies are put into place.  The tools and strategies we use is important to develop skills in content, communication, and collaboration.  Tools that students are using outside of the classroom can be used in the classroom as teaching tools.  Social media can be used to enhance communication and collaboration.  Wiki sites, Edmodo, and blogs are good ways to increase the amount of communication and collaboration that is needed in an online learning community.  These tools provide students with familiar concepts and allow them to communicate and collaborate from a distance.  Discussion boards allow them to share thoughts, ideas, and questions with the learning community.  They can debate issues and build critical thinking skills.  Problem-based learning is a strategy that groups students to solve real world problems.  “Providing students with the opportunity to take part in a simple PBL scenario helps them develop strategies for supporting one another and sharing responsibilities for solving problems in future PBL scenarios” (Durrington, Berryhill, & Swafford, 2006, p.192). 

     The use of a syllabus demonstrates the instructor’s expectations of the students and allows the students to be able to understand what the course offers.  Mini-lessons provide straight to the point details and information about a topic.  It is a great starting point for students.  Course media are videos or clips of a professional on the topic that provides insight into a topic.  The use of the tools and strategies used in an online community can help students and instructors.  Moving from face to face to online education can be a difficult change.  The tools and strategies can relieve some of the stress and foster student learning.  The challenge, according to Siemens (2008), is finding the right technologies and tools that will be familiar for students to be able to foster learner engagement.

References:

Durrington, V. A., Berryhill, A., & Swafford, J. (2006). Strategies for enhancing student interactivity in an online environment. College Teaching, 54(1), 190−193.

Siemens, G. (2008, January). Learning and knowing in networks: Changing roles for educators and designers. ITForum.