I think my strengths that will be a benefit to me as an online teacher are that I am very detail-oriented and organized, and I enjoy the planning process. I think something that will be hard for me are all the technical problems that are completely outside of my control and my students' control. Thinking more about teaching online actually has made me appreciate more the experiences that I have with my students in person. Humor is an important part of my classroom, and I think it's easier to have a quick back-and-forth exchange with students when they are literally sitting in front of you. Having taken an online class on Art History this summer, as a student I really enjoyed the flexibility of being about to work when I wanted to and to move at my own pace. I feel that overall I have many of the skills that are beneficial for online teachers to have, and I am definitely interested in this new challenge.
I really enjoyed reading your blog especially your thoughts on humor in the classroom. I like to use storytelling as a tool for motivation and engagement. I wonder how how storytelling can be integrated into an online learning situation. Thanks for getting me thinking about this...
ReplyDeleteI love the fact that you are looking to the next challenge. I too feel excitement to dive into a new environment and to meet new students. This will bring out new sides of our teaching personality, including our humor. You are right that is often something that is hard to convey, but I feel that with a mixture of synchronous and asynchronous learning it will be easier to let students get to know our personalities and understand where we are coming from. So excited for a new chapter in my career. :)
ReplyDeleteYou and I sound like we'd be great team teachers. :) I feel pretty confident with the technical stuff, but the organization would take serious focus on my part. I know I could do it, but it is not something I consider to be one of my natural gifts! You make a really good point about humor. -It is an excellent way to gain rapport with our students. It makes me wonder, what is the role of student/teacher rapport in online education? Is it as important? Is that a barrier with online teaching? Hmmm.
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