Four ideas to effectively teach with distance learning.
The world has changed so much in the last few years for a variety of reasons, but primarily due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This Pandemic changed things for a lot of people as many people had to start working from home. This has also been true for students and teachers. Although many schools are now back to teaching in person. For some students and families, it is much easier to learn remotely or at a distance. This presents a series of challenges, but it also gives opportunities that were not there before. Since so many people switched to distance learning, there have been great strides in terms of what teachers and schools are capable of relative to what was possible only a few short years ago. New skills, technologies, and methodology has made distance learning possible for millions in recent years, but what does distance learning entail exactly?
Distance learning is a way for people who can’t or otherwise do not wish to learn in person can continue their education. While we often think of this now in terms of the Covid 19 pandemic, there are many other circumstances where distance learning is not only applicable but also preferable. Distance learning is useful for students who have a health issue, do not live close to a school, or for adults who are continuing their education. This is why remote learning has become so popular, and while it is good, it is not for everyone and there are challenges associated with remote education.
Learning from a distance is great but there are some potential problems that need to be overcome. The first and probably most obvious is the distance factor. If you are a student or teacher, there has to be an efficient way to engage in a course and exchange materials. In addition to this, there are possible technical issues since everyone needs a good internet connection as well as all the necessary tools that will be needed for the course. Distance learning is not exactly the same as in-person learning, and that is not a bad thing. Everything has its own challenges and while learning remotely online does have challenges, there are some great ways to be more effective when teaching at a distance.
Adapt your communication skills
If you are working as an educator or teacher and are having to work with students remotely, there are some obvious communication differences that you must learn to deal with. With distance learning, one of the main differences is how students receive information. For example, if you are giving a live lesson over Skype, Zoom, or some other virtual presentation medium, you must organize and conduct those lessons in a different way. For one, you must be more prepared than for an in-person lesson. There are issues such as connectivity and an inability to access materials for students. You must come prepared to deal with these issues. In addition to this, there are other ways you need to adapt. Another adaptation is how you send materials. You can no longer pass out documents by hand as you would for an in-person lesson. Instead, there are other ways such as emails or Google Drive accounts that can be used to share information online.
Choose the best tools
Besides being adaptable, there is another part of distance learning that is becoming very important. And these are the essential tools that are needed for virtual learning. There are many as mentioned earlier such as Zoom, Skype, and some video presentation platforms. These are not the only tools that can be used for virtual distance learning. If you are sharing information, one great tool is Google Drive. Google Drive is a tool that lets you host and share files. If you are a teacher, you can upload files to Google Drive or into a specialized folder for your students, where they can access it and then save it for you to view there later. In addition to Google Drive, another great tool that works directly is Lumin PDF which is a PDF editing tool that allows you to not only create PDF files for your students but also merge PDFs and convert PDF documents.
Set Your Expectations
As a teacher, when working and teaching at a distance it is important to set expectations and goals. Although it might be tempting to conduct the course exactly as you would in person and have the same set of goals, it would be better to temper your expectations a bit especially when you consider that many students may not be used to distance and remote-based learning. Also, students might be at mixed levels and not be at the same point in their education. So with this in mind, it is a good idea to be open-minded in regards to your expectations.
Gather Your Educational Resources
Just because you are working online or at a distance, does not mean that you will not need all the materials that a teacher might need in a traditional classroom setting. You and your students will still need books and supplies. Books might be in the form of PDFs or videos, but you will still need teaching materials. When putting together an online course, it is a good idea to have all the material in a centralized place such as a Google Drive account so that students can quickly access the material and keep up with the class. In addition to this, for distance learning, many teachers use PowerPoint presentations to give lectures. So be sure to be prepared ahead of time and have all the slides, links, images, and videos prepared.
Being a teacher has always been hard and while the challenges are great, there are many benefits for people who want to teach and educate others. Distance learning is an exciting prospect for students who are unable to learn in person and this makes it a special opportunity for teachers. Although teaching remotely comes with challenges, it is a rewarding endeavor that allows you to push yourself and learn new skills yourself.
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