RSA #3

Link to article

Online learning in the past ten years has exploded in popularity. Many colleges and universities are offering online classes and degree programs. With this change in classroom environment teachers have to change their pedagogy. “When instructors begin to use technology in education, they experience  a whole new set of physical, emotional, and psychological issues along with the educational issues” (Palloff, Pratt, 2007). Instructors had to become more flexible with students and also be able to work with technology issues when they arise. Not only is a challenge for the instructor it is a challenge for the students as well. Online classes fit the introverted student well because they tend not to be out spoken in a face-to-face class. There are some characteristics that online learners should have if they want to be successful. These include but are not limited to, self-motivated, have the ability to communicate through words, have access to the classroom tools (computer and internet), feel quality learning can take place outside of a face-to-face classroom.  Although, sometimes there can be problems it is proven that online learning can be as successful as face-to-face classroom learning.

In the article titled The Importance of Interaction for Academic Success in Online Courses with Hearing, Deaf, and Hard-of-Hearing Students they did a study on academic achievement of students in face-to-face classes compared to online classes. The most interesting part to the article I think is when they talk about how the hearing impaired students liked the online classes better and achieved better grades. “This “slower” pace also allows these students to participate more fully because they can take the time to reflect and construct their own ideas and respond to those of peers” (Long, Marchetti, Fasse, 2011).

 Online classrooms are here and are not going to go away. If teachers and students are willing to learn new technologies and be flexible with one another the online classroom can only get better. Both of the readings were similar in their beliefs for online learning.  They both talked about how different people can be successful not only in a traditional classroom but also in an online classroom.   

References

Palloff, R., Pratt, K., (2007). Building Online Learning Communities: Effective Strategies for the Virtual Classroom. (2nd ed). San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Gray L. Long, C. M. (2011). The Importance of Interaction for Academic Success in Online Courses with Hearing, Deaf, and Hard-of Hearing Students . The International Review of Research in Open and Distant Learning, 1-20.