Abstract
Distance learning courses offer the opportunity/flexibility for diverse persons to take college classes. We know, from cognitive research, that students comprehend information more deeply and retain it longer when they can relate it to personal experience. Engagement and active learning are critical to student success and understanding. In 2007, when I started to teach online classes, I had great concerns. With in-person courses, students gain more than content-knowledge. They gain experience and exposure to professional role models, group activities, and the synergy that develops when individuals actively converse. These functions can be lost in the online setting. It was essential to develop techniques to maintain these non-content experiences so critical to learning and lifetime success. This workshop will offer principles for: 1. At-home, real-world activities, interviews, and experiments that demonstrate applications of course content (not online virtual activities, but real, “get-your-hands-dirty” activities); 2. Instructor and student videos that made the courses feel live and real; and 3. Use of AI-generated materials. Students report that the in-home activities and videos increase their understanding of content and maintain their interest. They report feeling like they were in a “real” classroom, that the technology and use of AI was helpful, that they knew me as an individual and a person to whom they could relate and turn to for assistance. Workshop participants will be given opportunities to work in small groups to apply these principles to their own courses and disciplines.
Presenters
Melissa Shyan NorwaltEducator Associate Professor, Psychology, University of Cincinnati, Ohio, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Theme
Considering Digital Pedagogies
KEYWORDS
Student Engagement Online, Designing Hands-on Home Activities, Instructor Videos
