Teachers Discovering Computers

Integrating Technology in a Changing World

8th Edition

Chapter Six
The Changing Face of Education –
Teaching Online
Chapter Objectives

• Describe online learning and virtual environments

• Describe how online and mobile technologies are
changing the ways we teach and learn
• Explain the differences between 100 percent
online and blended learning
• Explain the skills and strategies you need to know
as an online teacher

2
Chapter Objectives

• List characteristics of a virtual school

• Explain how apps, Web pages, blogs, wikis, and
screencasts can be used as tools to enhance
teaching and learning
• Distinguish instructional strategies for
differentiated online learning experiences
• Identify online assessment or eAssessment
techniques

3
Tipping Point – A Moment in History

• The 21st century has seen many advances in

instructional technologies
– Web 2.0
– Communications tools
• The Tipping Point is the level at which the
momentum for change becomes unstoppable

4
Distance Education

• Distance education, also called distance learning, and distributed

learning, is defined as the delivery of instruction from one location
to another
• A Web-based course (also called an online course or eLearning
course) is a course delivered via the Web
• Online education may be:
– Synchronous
– Asynchronous
– Instructor-led
– Self-paced
– Combination
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Distance Education

• The delivery of distance learning courses can take

on different forms
– Web-based training
– Webinars
– Online tutorials
– Online workshops
– Web conferencing
– Webinar
– Webcast

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Distance Education

• Today, all federal and state governments, most local governments,

as well as many businesses and organizations in the United States,
provide employees with some type of Web-based training in order
to teach new skills or upgrade current skills
• Thousands of online classes are available in virtually all disciplines
and millions of undergraduate and graduate students take online
classes every term
– Walden University is one of the leading fully accredited 100
percent online universities in the world

7
Distance Education

• States and school districts are adopting online

training as a way to train their teachers in many areas
• A number of school districts and most states have
developed online portals for their teachers to enroll
in professional development courses, access
resources, and receive assistance
• Many companies and universities now work with
school districts to provide graduate courses and
online professional development training for teachers
and administrators

8
The K-12 eLearning Environment

• eLearning, also referred to as electronic learning,

online learning, distributed learning, virtual
learning, and distance learning, utilizes a local
network or the Internet for delivery of content
and interaction between students and teachers,
as well as content
• Classes take place in a virtual classroom
environment or virtual learning environment

9
Growth of Online Schools and Programs
• Many schools and universities use terms such as
eLearning, online, and virtual to define classes that
are delivered completely online and terms like
blended, hybrid, or mixed mode to define classes that
are a combination of both F2F and online
• A 100 percent online course, also called a Web-based
course or virtual course, is a course or class taught
completely on the Web
• Brick-and-mortar school refers to a traditional school
with physical buildings for teachers and students to
gather

10
Growth of Online Schools and Programs

• Research revealed that in 2011 over 500,000 K-12

students attended some type of virtual school or
online charter school full-time and three million
additional K-12 students were enrolled in some
type of education offered online

11
Growth of Online Schools and Programs

• A virtual school, also called a virtual charter

school, cyber school, or cyber charter school,
refers to an institution not bound by brick-and-
mortar buildings
• Like F2F teachers, virtual teachers coordinate daily
lessons, interact with the students, and teach
core content

12
Growth of Online Schools and Programs

• Most virtual schools are very flexible in how they address students’
learning needs and schedules but their content is still standards-
based and performance-driven
• Virtual schools and brick-and-mortar schools hold the same high
standards
• A Learning Management System (LMS), also called Content
Management System (CMS), is a secure, restricted, Internet-based
comprehensive package that includes instructional tools for school
administrators, documentation, student tracking, online courses
and classes content, and training content

13
Growth of Online Schools and Programs

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Growth of Online Schools and Programs

• Virtual school programs are created by school districts or

commercial eLearning companies and are school programs that
contain an online component
• Parents who homeschool their children have the option of
purchasing the curriculum they use to homeschool their children in
an online format from an eLearning company
• A learning coach is a teacher or instructor who creates
individualized lessons and engages with the learner through
effective personal communication, feedback, and assessment, as
well as provides support and encouragement
– Blackboard Collaborate

15
Growth of Online Schools and Programs

• Some high school virtual school programs have developed joint

relationships with colleges and universities so their students can do
dual enrollment
• A Credit Recovery program provides a student with a way to regain
credit toward graduation for a course that the student was
previously unsuccessful in earning academic credit
• Blended learning, also called hybrid learning or mixed mode
learning, combines traditional classroom-based (F2F) courses with
some type of eLearning instruction

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Growth of Online Schools and Programs

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Growth of Online Schools and Programs

• The goal of a blended learning environment is to

combine researched best practices with
instructional techniques of both traditional F2F
and online instruction
– Encompasses the best of both worlds
• Differentiated instruction, also referred to as
differentiated learning, involves providing
students with different opportunities and ways to
master content
18
Transitioning to Teaching Online
• A multitude of resources available on the Web can
help you meet the often-demanding requirements of
teaching virtually
• The daily tools you will use as an online teacher
include a course administration and/or learning
management system (LMS), a word processor
program, a presentation program, a calendar
program, an e-mail program, a spreadsheet program,
different Web browsers, your favorite Web 2.0 tools,
a screencast recording program, and a plagiarism
detection service

19
Transitioning to Teaching Online

• Stay up to date with current educational

technologies

20
I Am Ready – Sign Me Up!

• First, you should be well informed about the organization where

you have applied to work
– Be familiar with the mission statement, history, and other
information available that will help you understand whether the
culture of the organization is aligned with your teaching and
work philosophies
• Before the interview, be sure to take an inventory of your greatest
strengths and of your areas for improvement as a teacher, a leader,
or a team member
• One of the best ways to prepare for your new job is to ask
questions

21
I Am Ready – Sign Me Up!

• Develop the curriculum

• Create supplemental materials
• Compose letters welcoming students to your
courses, reminding students of learning goals and
deadlines, and giving feedback
• Create a screencast
• Use an online whiteboard, also known as an
eLearning whiteboard
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I Am Ready – Sign Me Up!

• Really know the course content and assignments well

beforehand
• Test the learner experience
• Teachers with in-depth content knowledge can find
multiple ways to present the material
• An established curriculum should have been
developed to rigorous standards and include age,
grade, and content appropriate questions
– You should present Bloom’s Taxonomy to students so they
can understand and strive for higher levels of learning

23
I Am Ready – Sign Me Up!

• Time management is the process you develop and tools you use to
organize your day to be more efficient and productive
– Virtual office hours
• When you establish your schedule, be sure to know the
expectations of your school and district
• Crafting a schedule that works takes time and, once created, your
schedule will require constant adjustments
• You will want to break down your day and create a daily to do list
of what you need to do and what you want to accomplish

24
I Am Ready – Sign Me Up!

• Team teaching is a method of instruction in which

two or more teachers work together to combine
their individual talents into one class or course
• Whether you teach in a brick-and-mortar school,
you teach online, or you teach a blended
course, you should establish a home office

25
Tools for Online Learning

• mLearning is a type of learning that incorporates the use of cost

efficient, lightweight, portable devices such as smartphones or
tablet computers
• Today, there are over 50,000 apps that were created specifically for
educational purposes, including thousands for K-12 teachers and
students
• A rapidly emerging trend is the use of curriculum-specific apps on
mobile devices or mobile learning apps to supplement online
teaching and learning, a concept called app-based learning or app-
enhanced learning

26
Tools for Online Learning

27
Tools for Online Learning

• User-friendly Web development programs allow

teachers, students, and other users to create their
own Web resource pages using basic word
processing skills
– Google Sites
– WebBlender 2
– iWeb
– TeacherWeb

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Tools for Online Learning

• Students can use blogs to practice writing and

communication skills
• Teachers can use blogs to post daily or weekly
assignments, generate thoughts, stimulate
classroom discussion, connect with parents, and
much more

29
Tools for Online Learning

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Tools for Online Learning
• This ease of interaction and operation makes a wiki a
great tool for group authoring — a powerful tool for
use in teaching students team work, writing skills,
and so much more
– Wikipedia
• You can integrate wikis in virtually any curriculum
• Wikis are great tools for journalism and collaborative
writing
• There are numerous Web sites that will walk you
through creating a wiki and will even host your wiki
for free
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Tools for Online Learning

32
Tools for Online Learning

• Podcasts are a popular way people share information on the Web

using audio
• A podcast is recorded audio stored in a file on a Web site
– Video podcast (vodcast)
• The host or author of a podcast is often called a podcaster
• A podcast can be downloaded to a computer or many mobile
devices
• To create a podcast, you need a computer with a microphone to
capture the audio input, software that allows you to export the
audio file in the MP3 file format, software that lets you create an
RSS feed, and a site to upload your podcast to

33
Tools for Online Learning

• Multimedia authoring software is used to create

electronic presentations, simulations, and software
demonstrations that can include text, graphics, video,
audio, animation, and screen captures
• Camtasia Studio is a powerful, yet easy to use solution for
you and your students to record, edit, and share high-
quality instructional videos, student-created video-based
projects, and more on the Web, via CDs, via DVDs, and via
mobile devices, including tablets, smartphones, and
iPods

34
Tools for Online Learning

35
Assessing Online Learning

• Any instructional or supplemental materials

should include an appraisal or assessment tool
• A rubric is an explicit set of criteria that the
student can use to self-evaluate his or her work
prior to submission and that the teacher can use
to provide feedback to the student
• Alternative assessment uses nontraditional
methods to determine whether students have
mastered the appropriate content and skill level

36
Assessing Online Learning

• Formative assessment is the evaluation of student

learning based on a specific time span at multiple
points by gathering various activities and
assignments to make sure the learner is
developing the knowledge, skills, and ability to
master the content
• Summative assessment is the process of
evaluating the student learning at any given point
in time
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Assessing Online Learning

38
Putting It All Together:
The Florida Virtual School
• First virtual school in the nation
• Founded in 1997
• Teachers interact with students regularly through
multiple communication modes

39
Putting It All Together:
The Florida Virtual School
• Another effective strategy used by FLVS teachers
is the use of virtual reality
• Teachers at FLVS use meStudying apps to engage
students and supplement their online curricula

40
Chapter Summary

• Describe online learning and virtual environments

• Describe how online and mobile technologies are
changing the ways we teach and learn
• Explain the differences between 100 percent
online and blended learning
• Explain the skills and strategies you need to know
as an online teacher

41
Chapter Summary

• List characteristics of a virtual school

• Explain how apps, Web pages, blogs, wikis, and
screencasts can be used as tools to enhance
teaching and learning
• Distinguish instructional strategies for
differentiated online learning experiences
• Identify online assessment or eAssessment
techniques

42
Teachers Discovering Computers
Integrating Technology in a Changing World

Chapter Six Complete

The Changing Face of Education –
Teaching Online