In the wake of COVID-19, there was an almost immediate move toward online learning. The “Lessons Learned Through Online Education That Should Stick After the Epidemic” are what I’ve given in this article.
As soon as the clock struck midnight, institutions rushed to keep education going while bridging the physical distance between the teacher and student.
To keep up with the times, traditional educators recorded lessons, posted videos, and set up breakout rooms using whatever technology they could find.
Rather than online education, these initiatives resulted in internet-enabled, digitally mediated classrooms.
These two choices may look similar at first glance, but they’re actually rather different. Students’ special needs cannot be met simply by using technology to connect them across geographical distances.
No amount of online content and lecture recordings will suffice to create an environment where students may work together in a supportive, collaborative, and directed manner.
We’ve learned a lot about online education, so what else can we say? What are our options at this point?
There are lessons to be gained from earlier study and experience in the field of online learning.
Athabasca University, where we are all academics, pioneered the world’s first online MBA, M.Nursing, and M.Ed programs more than two decades ago. As a result, it has become one of Canada’s most esteemed online schools.
According to online pioneers, four unique qualities of online learning should persist post-pandemic: learning to learn online, designing online education with purpose, integrating place and time online, and constant disruption with AI.
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1. Acquainting Oneself with the Methods of Learning via the Internet
One-size-fits-all schooling techniques were shown to be ineffective during the pandemic. In order to encourage socializing among younger kids, teachers should supervise them and provide them with educational content.
Most of Athabasca’s student body is over the age of 25, and they appreciate how easy it is to communicate with their peers and teachers via the internet at their convenience.
A lack of financial resources, a poor internet connection, and a lack of technical skill are all typical inequities in online education.
However, students who cannot attend traditional classrooms because of geographic restrictions can access online education, and further concerns of inequity are addressed through multi-modal distance education, financial assistance, and orientation to studying online
Students and program differences were ignored in emergency online education, which used blunt-edged devices. The pandemic response emphasized the importance of being ready to learn for all students, whether online or in a physical classroom.
2. Designing Online Courses with a Purpose in Mind
There must be an emphasis on active, engaged roles for each student in any teaching and learning system, whether it is in a traditional or online setting.
In order to teach meaningfully, you need to use a range of methods. Active learning is supported by including high participation in collaborative learning groups in a learner-centered rather than content-based online course and teaching design.
Many months rather than weeks are required by instructors and course developers to provide high-quality online course materials.
Everything the instructor would say in a live classroom is included in the course materials, including course prerequisites, readings, videos, and internet resources for students to access.
Instructors were forced to transform classroom delivery into technology-mediated delivery as a result of the epidemic; while this worked for some, it was difficult to adjust to specific learning needs.
It’s time to bring technology back into the physical or hybrid classroom, working in tandem with online instructional strategies that enhance active, collaborative learning and student-generated choices.
3. Online Spatial and Temporal Blending
Pandemic education popularised the terms “synchronous” and “asynchronous” learning.
Asynchronous meant working alone, usually with materials designed for a physical classroom, but synchronous meant reproducing actual classrooms through real-time, digitally mediated teaching in a virtual environment. Future learning will be impacted by factors such as the timing and physical presence of the learner.
Students at Athabasca are able to participate in synchronous and asynchronous online learning at the same time. At their own pace, teachers work one-on-one with each student.
Traditional undergraduate courses impose a rigid schedule on students, who are expected to learn at a fixed pace.
The speed of our graduate programs necessitates students to work independently while still participating regularly in an active online discourse with their classmates and faculty.
Flexible teaching means that students can get help from their instructors whenever they need it. Synchronous, collaborative learning allows for reflection rather than real-time reactions.
4. It began with COVID-19 and AI will keep it going
During the epidemic, instructors were compelled to look for new strategies to improve student learning outcomes outside of the classroom, which highlighted how education practices might change.
Athabasca was able to begin a co-op program despite the epidemic thanks to a virtual co-op program.
Simulated work experiences were available to all students, regardless of location. They were able to practice cooperation, problem-solving, conflict resolution, ethical reasoning, and leadership while working on an assigned project.
As a result, students were free to experiment and revise concepts that had been refined through reflective discourse with the instructor.
To be successful in using online and AI tools, educators must have a strategy in place, as well as supporting digital infrastructure and timely student support.
As a result of thorough planning and implementation of these steps, education becomes really open, accessible, and inclusive.
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