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Post by gamero26 on Jan 16, 2010 21:16:25 GMT -5
As everybody says, being an online learner is a bit more difficult than being a traditional one, since an online learning situation demands from students a series of skills to master and carry out all the tasks. Now, contextualizing this information I do consider that at first, many students may find all of those requirements shocking but with continuous practice they may get used to them. One of the most important keys to succed in an online environment is to be self motivated and self disciplined, that would help learners overcome any kind of difficulties they face and develop all of the others qualities they need.
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Post by belkisy on Jan 16, 2010 21:27:24 GMT -5
Virtual classroom could be an alternative way of learning for those who feel comfortable using technology to keep in contact with their peers as well with their online instructors. It is very clear that online learning is not for everybody. This means that prospective students must assess their conditions in terms of equipment, learning style, availability, attitude and, most importantly, commitment and discipline. From this reading, I learned how serious it can be to be a virtual student. When I joined BaW2010, I was not only seeking learning to keep up with technology, but also convenience. This reading is a must.
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Post by yohimar on Jan 16, 2010 21:44:09 GMT -5
[glow=red,2,300]Hi there,[/glow]I´ll start my point by giving an example of what abilities are implied when studying on line. “we” as participants of this online workshop can put on student´s shoes when facing with too much information to read, activities to do, as well as many web tools to communicate with moderators and peers. So, always my first concern is where should I start? What am I going to do with such amount of information? Even though we have the best instructions provided by teachers, tutors , moderators, etc. That´s why I think an online student will be only successful when knowing how to get organized and low down her/his affective filter in front of tech applications because the teacher is not there to see their scary faces and realize they are overwhelmed. Then, knowing how to work by themselves, setting schedules and goals…just being autonomous!!! Yohimar
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Post by anisoara on Jan 17, 2010 5:00:42 GMT -5
Gamero, it's praiseworthy that we can all be students and see better what our students feel when working in an online environment. In this way we can better tailor the instruction to their needs.
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Post by anisoara on Jan 17, 2010 5:01:47 GMT -5
Dear Belkisy, it's perfectly true online learning is not for everybody, only for those forward-thinking :-)
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Post by anisoara on Jan 17, 2010 5:07:01 GMT -5
Yohimar, you're perfectly right about organization in order to survive and benefit from online courses.
I think that we should also take into consideration the fact that being asynchronous, many tasks can be revisited and carried out at convient pace. Moreover, support and feedback are maybe even better in online environments because they are face-saving, we only blush through emoticons - so questions and worries are articulated/should be articulate more freely.
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Post by Sonia on Jan 17, 2010 7:42:27 GMT -5
I think this article sums up what i discovered about online learning when i did my first online course last year regarding the different skills that it requires from face to face learning . I agree with the previous comments about self-motivation, time management and analytical/ reflective skills being so important to success in this kind of course, but i think some other more 'social' skills are also paramount. As the means of communication are so different in that you often can't actually see or hear the other students, participant in online courses have to use a higher degree of discresion to determine what is appropriate to share and when/ where they share it (net-etiquette) Are social asides necessay to building comfortable 'classroom' enviroment or do they only add to the amount of online reading already required? I think in order to get students motivated to use English, for example, in order to improve their knowledge and use of it , it is important for them to find things in common with other students (they have a reason to communicate) but at the same time, some students just don't see the point because they figure they will never 'meet' the other students anyway so what's the point? Any thought?
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Post by Mariana on Jan 17, 2010 10:49:45 GMT -5
This is a very good article and the idea that I liked the most is that the online training process "requires commitment on the student's part". Being aware that the learning process takes places mainly through interaction and postings, students need to be responsible that the outcome depends mainly on them.
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Post by vieiraonline on Jan 17, 2010 12:23:07 GMT -5
In my point of view an online learner should be self-motivated and set his/her own goals. He/she must be organized in order to complete their work/tasks on time. They have to be familiar in using Web tools and able to filter the great amount of information so that they can interact and share them with others.
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julia
New Member
Posts: 2
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Post by julia on Jan 17, 2010 14:54:19 GMT -5
The reading was short and straight to the point. Very nice. I agree with all the qualities suggested and highlight the self-motivation and open-mindedness as means of success.
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Post by gilmattos on Jan 17, 2010 21:55:13 GMT -5
Well, it seems I'm a little bit late (not good for an online learner) but all in all I believe an online learner MUST be really interested in the subject offered (obviously) and so be fully committed, disciplined, open to learn, try to become (if he/she is not already) a risk taker and also learn to share. Most of the things we come across through our PLNs are given for free and it's only natural (should be) that we keep it going. Get your hands dirty!Be careful, though. It is really addictive.
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Post by marci2010 on Jan 17, 2010 23:40:24 GMT -5
After reading the reading the article, I agree that the 10 statements proposed by the author are important qualities to become a successful online student. Not having or failing in one or more of these, it could represent the total failure of the student's learning. I also think that facilitators who teach online have to be very explicit with the instructions of all activities and what objectives they expect their students to achieve with them.
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Post by novice on Jan 18, 2010 6:53:17 GMT -5
I think online education is our inevitable future. We've got less and less time to waste on the way to class and more and more technical opportunities for distant learning. Let's begin getting used to it.
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Post by sandrogers123 on Jan 18, 2010 17:32:18 GMT -5
Regarding the article, I liked #10, 8<Feel that high quality learning can take place without going to a traditional classroom>8. I just had a conversation with my niece who thinks that online learning is simply rote memorization and that you will forget what you have learned because you don't "do" anything with the information learned. In contrast, I like online teaching/learning because it follows the constructivist approach of creating new meaning out of your world through various applications/platforms. In creating our online learning environment, we can tailor it to our needs and thereby learn exactly what we have set out to do!
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Post by Simone T M Ramos on Jan 18, 2010 21:26:04 GMT -5
;D
I think It will be impossible to live without online access and online learning... It is part of our lives and part of learning process. The Y Generation is ready for this, but we (teacher) have to learn how to deal with the velocity and audacity of technology. It´s a delecious challange!!! In fact I am in love with tech that´s why I am optmistic about it...
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