9
Wendy Taleo
“Humanizing online instruction means creating a sense of connectedness that has been noted in research studies as methods for engaging and retaining students” (HumanMOOC Week 0, 2015).
This chapter will look at three applications as examples of Internet-enabled technology that is more engaging for the student than written text. Moving onward from text-only forms of communication, these applications can create a sense of connectedness and enhance presence in online learning. These applications, Youtube Live Events, Google+ (Google Plus) Communities, and FlipGrid can be used in conjunction with a Learning Management System (LMS) or outside of that framework. In the HumanMOOC these applications were used in conjunction with the Canvas Learning Management System. Participants were required to sign up to the Canvas network to access learning material. Participants were then directed (via hyperlinking) to other applications that were used for various activities. This will be both a practical guide to operate these applications and understand using these types of technologies in a learning environment to assist in humanizing instruction.
These applications are a “media/technology fusion” (Carlson et al, 2012) that fits into the category of “new, new media” (Levinson, 2009). These applications allow for open access across the Internet with freedom for anyone to create and share content. The ability for students or participants in a course to create content gives a more dynamic learning experience than just relying on preset content. By using these applications, the facilitator or teacher can strive for the connectedness mentioned above, as a way to engage students.
The applications will be addressed in four sections: Introduction, Before you sign up, Be Aware, and Exemplars. The first two sections will look at what the application does and what is needed to start using it. Some pointers are provided in the Be Aware section that may assist in choosing the correct tool for your learning design. Exemplars are provided from the HumanMOOC and other studies by the author where you can quickly see the end result of using these applications. For each application, there are areas that need to be considered carefully and some restrictions which may guide your usage of these applications. There is not a single perfect solution to engaging and retaining students but by considering the function and possibility of these applications it might guide you in a new direction worth trying. In the classic novel by Robert Pirsig (1999), he said, “But how can you put on the blackboard the mysterious internal goal of each creative person.” We can seek to tap into the intrinsic motivation of each student by using a range of modes for delivery and more than that, to humanize the instruction for students that are remote from other students and instructors or facilitators. Through this humanizing, we seek to connect and learn in a way that is effective and engaging.
F