It’s interesting the perception people have about online instruction. I often listen to Dave Ramsey podcasts as he helps callers on his show work through the issues of personal finance. He recently had a call from a teacher who was tying to get out of debt, but wanted to remain home with a young child rather than return to full-time teaching. He suggested that she look for an online teaching position at a local community college. He made it sound like it was an easy way to make additional income without a substantial time commitment on her part. He told her she could do the work around the baby’s schedule. While it is true that online instructors have the benefit of time flexibility, the time demands for an online instructor are high. Due to 24 hour access to courses, there are always messages that need a reply, questions to be answered and course pages and discussion posts to update. I find that the demands can be a time-sucking black hole if I’m not careful. So, to say that online instruction is an easy way to supplement an income is shortsighted.
Online instruction is not simply posting a powerpoint lecture. In my earlier days of online teaching, I found this belief was common-place with my colleagues. Many felt that they could post a series of powerpoint presentations online and that would constitute an online course. Today’s post-a-powerpoint strategy is capturing a lecture in video format and sharing a podcast or webinar link to the lecture. That’s as effective as watching paint dry, with the paint having a longer lasting effect on the observer. Beware of short cuts to the integrity of online instruction.
Online instruction is not less demanding than a face to face course. I actually find online instruction to be MORE demanding. Lost in the online environment are the subtle communication cues we take for granted. Online students cannot see the smile I have when responding to an answer, the question in my eyes as I clarify a response or hear the lift in my voice as I encourage someone’s statement. Online I need to work even harder to make myself clear. I need to anticipate questions BEFORE they occur. I need to put myself in the computer chair of a student in a different time zone half way around the world who will finally have time in their day to do an assignment when I am safely snuggled asleep in my bed.
Online teaching is not for the faint of heart. Teaching online requires a different paradigm, one that embraces a growth mindset over a goal oriented approach. It forces the instructor to find ways to connect with students through the online medium, a growth oriented process. I liken it to embarking on a trip where I need to pack all the essentials before I leave home because I won’t have time to pick up forgotten items along the way. Once the train of an online course has left the station, it’s hard to turn it back.
Online instruction is NOT boring or static, but dynamic in every sense of the word. I love the challenges presented by teaching online which force me to look at new ways to approach instruction. Like the rainbow that follows a storm, I appreciate the rewards of online teaching that come in the form of meeting the challenges of connecting with students and creating a learning environment that is inviting, intriguing and rigorous. I value the flexibility that I can build into my day as I budget time to meet the needs of my online courses. The more time I spend teaching online, the more I have come to value the process, focusing on the journey. I agree with John Maxwell who writes in The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth, “If you can believe in yourself and the potential that is in you, and then focus on growth instead of goals, there’s no telling how far you can grow.” This certainly resonates with me as an online instructor.
I’ve read John Maxwell’s book you referenced above and LOVE that quote. I have that exact quote written on my journal and posted on a note to the side of my computer monitor.