The readings for this week were interesting, especially the Teaching and Learning Online reading. I found it contained a thorough examination of the principles of eLearning and readers will hopefully learn from it that eLearning is more than having readers just read and interact online. If done effectively, eLearning can be an extremely powerful and engaging tool. Although, as pointed out in the DE article, eLearning is a relatively new concept with widely ranging results of success. It is not a perfect concept, but it is also a new one. Distance education, as the article suggests is a concept that has been around for quite some time. However the methodologies and means that the learning is presented in have changed substantially.
As the TALO article discusses, it is critical to have the Learning Tasks, Supportss and Resources to make an online learning setting work. While having all three is important, it is also important to provide a variety of all three. It is important to remember that even as the learning takes on new mediums for instruction, any learning environment is supported best through good, engaging instruction.
While the debate is present for asynchronous versus synchronous learning, it is and always will be an unanswerable question about which is best as all learners will learn in different methods. No one way is going to always work for everyone. Just as some will engage in lively debates in a classroom, the same can be done online. Granted the medium allows for the quieter students to more easily speak out, it still requires bravery and thought to put your words out there. Unlike in a traditional classroom, words are often permanently documented and can be re-read more easily by those seeking to review. This is a big brave step to take for anyone to make a comment. I often find myself writing "If this makes sense" at the end of any discussion thread as a disclaimer of sorts that my words may not be cohesive after all.
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