Distance Learning Best Practices

Teachers and administrators must ensure students are comfortable navigating the online platform their school/college is utilising. 

FREMONT, CA: Distance or remote learning has made its way into the traditional education system, enabling students to learn from anywhere, anytime, at their convenience. As the trend is here to stay, some distance learning best practices are available to maximise its benefits. These best practices highlight how one should design and teach online programs courses.

Understanding the Platform

Educational institutions must ensure that students are acquainted and comfortable with navigating the online platform their school/college is utilising. It is important that students know what to find and where to find it in the digital space. Administrators can use screenshots and short videos to show how to navigate. They must not overwhelm students with too many instructions. Keeping consistency in the form and format of courses and course materials is the key.

Displaying Information Online

Rather than posting chunk information, teachers can break down content, especially learning activities, into short, manageable steps. They can minimise the amount of text on a given screen and use white space to house students with visual-perceptual difficulties. They can also use great videos, but they must be kept short (3 min or less). Note that students lose positional memory when they have to scroll through a paper they are reading on screen, so build-in memory cues by adding links to mnemonics or YouTube shorts to give cues for the activity.

The Social Presence of Instructor

Teachers must let their students know they are present. Some students may think this is one extended summer vacation, while others may be anxious and confused. Instructors must be active with announcements, discussion board posts, emails, and more. For example, they can provide video introductions of the week’s objectives, activities, and other auxiliary information.

Communication

Instructors must be explicit with directions. They can give students instructions on how to locate what they need, particularly assignments and due dates. Timely feedback, on the other hand, is important in online learning. Teachers can use various types of feedback.

Self-Monitoring

One of the most significant challenges in online learning for students is self-monitoring and maintaining pace with assignments and due dates. Teachers must remind students of due dates more often than in a face-to-face setting. They should provide a syllabus for each class. They can provide weekly recommended study and work schedules with due dates. Allowing flexibility so that students can adapt based on personal preferences and monitor as a coach using a non-directive approach is also critical.