Hybrid
and Blended Learning Reflection 1:
Becoming
an Online Instructor
When
asked about becoming an online instructor,
one tends to believe that is a difficult step to take, especially when one has
been teaching face to face most of one’s professional life. However, from my
point of view and experience, becoming an online instructor is “a small step
for a teacher but a great leap for one’s learners.” In other words, if one
turns into an online teacher, helping students to learn how to learn by themselves at their own pace is a matter
of time, patience, and training.
Being
an online instructor ought to be a professional goal for teachers as well as
professors. Let it be bore in mind that technology is now “the most important
element” in 21st Century education; consequently, an integral part
of our professional development has to be aimed at developing competencies in
this area. It is not possible to envision education as a mere face-to-face
interaction with students; education is now more that this when technology is
part of our classroom and students’
learning environments.
Now
that I am enrolled in the Hybrid and Blended Learning certificate program via
Laureate International Universities Faculty Development Program, participants
have also been asked what we expect to gain from it. As an English language teacher,
I want to perfect my use of technology geared towards the teaching of the
language and the learning of it by my students, whether they are part of the
ELT program the university offers or part of the English language courses it
offers to students of all majors.
On
the other hand, as a curricular developer I have designed blended learning courses
and programs from a very empirical
point of view with the ultimate idea of incorporating the use of online
resources for better learning results. That is, in the near future my idea is
to have a solid base to have the ability and capability to design blended
learning language courses much more appealing to students and instructors,
having them understand that this modality of knowledge building is as good as
the traditional way of teaching face to face. Personally, being just a mere
instructor who is encouraged to work on blended learning teaching scenarios is
not exactly my purpose; becoming the creator of such courses is my whole
learning, professional motivation at this point.
As
an online instructor one is bound to face several challenges. First of all, as
a teacher trainer I have sensed their reluctance to using technology they are
not used to because they let be borne in mind that students cannot learn in
virtual environments and then become isolated. Second, although it is quite
certain, developing an online hybrid course for students is much more
time-consuming than simply sitting down to plan. However, anything that is
created for this blended learning course can be easily recycled with a
different group when teaching the same or similar course. Next, the belief that
personal attention cannot be provided to students is false. In a hybrid course,
face-to-face interactions exists and questions can also be answered via
electronic means (Twitter, email, Hootcourse, etc.). Because of these ways of
communication, participation can peak since it allows intrapersonal learners to
voice their opinions freely and with any lack of peer pressure. Lastly, the idea
that one has to be a technology expert to design or create a hybrid course is
wrong. It does take time to get the knack of how to use something, but once the
instructor is confident with the new tool, a new one can be tried out to
complement the former, and so on. With some good guidance and strong desire to
develop technology competencies, any teaching professional can become an online
instructor.
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