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Online Learning: Good or Bad?

I was recently in a forum where Berno Nilssonasked asked the question, “What do you think about online learning?”

My response was:

I believe that online learning is a growing educational forum. I feel that all educators need to consider this as something that is not an alternative but is considered necessary integration in education. Students today are living online. We need to meet them in the arena they know best.

Judith Hammock, another responder, wrote:

I believe that online distance learning will continue to build momentum in the future. It brings education to students who do not have access to colleges and universities and provides them opportunities they never had before. Online teaching, to me, requires some special skills. These include the ability to show your enthusiasm for your subject matter through writing, good organizational skills, and the ability to engage your students without your physical presence.

Having had experience with online learning both with teaching and as a student, I feel that the best instructors provide a caring atmosphere which keeps the students engaged.

Conversely there is the argument that online learning takes away from the personal, humanness that we should nurture as we grow. We need to tread slowly in this journey into the digital. For example C. L. Max Nikias writes:

…between the ages of 17 and 22, a person’s mind and spirit open wide, as she begins to explore her world, her place in it, and what she intends to contribute to her society. It is during this age that some of a person’s most intense bonds and affiliations take shape. Because of this, the best undergraduate college or university education should be experienced in community, so that shared social, athletic and cultural experiences can be as mutually transforming as the intellectual experiences inside the classroom, library or laboratory.

My argument is also that online learning does not need to be separate from learning at school, especially in earlier years. Teachers should be guiding students through ways to learn online. I have a blog post that talks about Searching beyond Google and a page that Explores ways to Collaborate Online.

2 Comments

Posted by Dr. Thomas Johnson | ict-design.org on May 16, 2011 in Education, Technology

Tags: Distance education, Distance Learning, Education, eLearning, Learning, Methods and Theories, Services, Student

Finally! They are charging cyber-bully teens

14 May

Washington State has set a precedent by charging 11 and 12-year-old kids for cyber bullying.

This is fantastic. All too often I have heard about kids making others upset writing on Facebook walls, harassing, creating fake profiles, showing and creating unsuitable content on computers, tablets and smartphones. This isn’t just the boys. It’s the girls too! And it isn’t just the older ones. Students are starting as young as grade 2.

This is definitely an issue that is occurring in schools, but they can’t take full responsibility for the problems. People, young and old, educators, parents and children need to do something about this problem.

My recommendation is that it doesn’t stop there. If all countries adopted laws that are not toothless, students will think twice about being inappropriate online. Coming from the top-down takes out the grey area for schools. A lot of the harassment is taking place at night-time, on weekends, and in the summer time, which is outside of the educational domain. Is it still suitable for schools to be managing these situations?

We are charting relatively new territory. However, there is already substantial proof that cyber-bullying is effecting students detrimentally.

Queensland University of Technology (QUT) researcher Marilyn Campbell said many child victims of cyber and internet abuse felt they had no place to hide.

She said cyber bullies were posting personal information about the victim on the internet while letting all their peers know the web address via email.

Dr Campbell said the victim had no method of direct retaliation and could not even strike back physically. She said that there is a feeling that everybody in the peer group knows what’s going on, whereas in face-to-face bullying it’s at least more contained with only a small audience.

More than 13 per cent of students already had fallen victim to cyber-bullying by year eight of school and 25 per cent knew someone who had. More than half of kids thought the phenomenon was on the rise, the study showed.

While traditional bullying often had long-term damaging consequences for its victims, it was possible to surmise that cyber bullying could have even worse consequences, Campbell said.

What if countries and states are not taking control where you live? What can you do? This video has a few strategies, including parenting, education and involvement.

Good ePortfolio example

10 May

Hello students, educators, professionals, prospective employees and possibly even prospective employers. I am sure that you are aware that you need to consider your online presence. You need to worry about what you post on Facebook and tailor your comments professionally on blogs and websites because you know that once you post something it is always out there.

Future schools, employers, colleagues and acquaintances will all possibly be able to see what you created. It’s best that you take a proactive approach to the internet and create your professional existence.

That said, I came across an excellent ePortfolio just now through LinkedIn (I would consider this site a professional’s Facebook). The portfolio created by Eric Forsyth had these elements that you might consider for yourself, especially if you are an educator, but you could adapt them accordingly:

Home
Contact Information
Education
Employment History
Promotion Timeline
Teaching Timeline
Scholarship Timeline
Service Timeline
Teaching and Advising
Publications
Presentations
Research Studies
Authorship Samples
Service
Grants
Recognition
Affiliation
References
Family
Outdoor Pursuits
Just Out Riding

It makes me feel like I need to do more substantial things in my life. You might think so too. I look at Dr. Forsyth’s efolio and compare it to my rendition. Noting differences, he is missing artistry and my idea of good resources and videos.

You too, can and should update or create your very own ePorfolio if you haven’t done so already. You could do that here at WordPress.com, start one on Google Sites or try eFolios or just do a Google Search for Online Portfolios and decide which website suits you best. It’s best to start early and keep it up, because you would be surprised how many things you can add to it if you are diligent enough.

To see Eric Forsyth’s portfolio click here

2 Comments

Posted by Dr. Thomas Johnson | ict-design.org on May 10, 2011 in Technology

Tags: Electronic portfolio, Employment, Facebook, Google, Google Sites, LinkedIn

I want that.

09 May

Bento box from Fujitsu. I didn’t know I needed this before, but now I can’t see how I can live my life without it. I was writing posts about the 3:1 ratio that people need for the future, and now it seems that Fujitsu has heard what I was saying. From my understanding everything works in sync with itself: the notepad holds everything; the tablet becomes the keyboard; and the smart phone is the track-pad; plus more. Its sleek.

As we all know with technology, the first versions of everything are always cool, but I wonder what other companies have up their sleeves along these lines. I agree with the jump article which states tactile touch keyboards have something that a digital surface is missing. All in all though, I like it.