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Seeing a few comments by those who started teaching online this past year about how online takes more time. This has certainly always been true, but I think it's more helpful to think about it as requiring a large(!) front-end investment ...
If all you're doing is really emergency remote teaching and you plan to ditch online as soon as you can, then all that investment truly is just extra time. However, if you are intentionally designing and online learning experience that will remain online, you'll realize gains on
that investment over time, especially after the 2nd iteration. One thing an LMS is good at is delivering content, so I set up my online courses to serve up content and even automate some consistent communications (e.g. announcements I would make the same time every iteration).
It can take an iteration or two (or three), though, to get that all set up. But once it's built, this is when you can see real gains. Instead of focusing your teaching time on delivering content, you can spend your time differently. I choose to focus on interactions and feedback.
It's a qualitative shift in the course design, in my teaching approach, and in the way in which I spend my time - a shift that I like, as it better supports learning, building relationships, and developing a learning community. But "change is a process, not an event"- Hall & Hord
For anyone who's planning to resume 100% classroom instruction, they may never realize that change, and so the front-end investment really isn't an investment. For those who plan to go back entirely to the classroom, perhaps consider how you can realize some benefits ...
You can still use an LMS to automate some content and communications for you, especially if you now have lectures recorded that you give every year anyway or you have announcements created or resources loaded that you always use. This can afford you a chance to reconsider your
real-time strategies with your students in the classroom. Instead of so much of your instructional time being focused on content delivery, what are some generative learning opportunities (active learning, direct application, authentic or formative assessment) you can add in now?
You may even identify some areas where you want to take some degree of a blended approach, keeping some activities and interactions that happen asynchronously or via live video (e.g. virtual office hours). Or give students "basic" problems to work on and submit virtually then
work through more complex problems or examples with them in class when you're there to detect misconceptions as they crop up and provide immediate feedback. Turn online quizzes into pre-class practice activities, then run a quick analysis to see what they had problems with
and target your instruction at problem areas.
We've been working harder, and we're truly tired. I think a good goal for Fall 2021 will be how we can work smarter by retaining some investments that were actually quite useful.
We've been working harder, and we're truly tired. I think a good goal for Fall 2021 will be how we can work smarter by retaining some investments that were actually quite useful.
