Lesson 2 - Online Learning and Teaching Methods

Key takeaways from this lesson are:

• There is a continuum of technology-based learning, from ‘pure’ face-to-face teaching to fully online programs. Every teacher or instructor needs to decide where a particular course or program should be placed on the continuum.
• We do not have good research evidence or theories to make a decision on online learning, although we do have a growing experience of the strengths and limitations of online learning. What is particularly missing is an evidence-based analysis of the strengths and limitations of face-to-face teaching when online learning is also available.
• In the absence of a good theory, the suggested four factors to consider when deciding on mode of delivery, and in particular the different uses of face-to-face and online learning in blended courses:
• Student characteristics and needs
• The preferred teaching strategy, in terms of methods and learning outcomes
• The pedagogical and presentational requirements of the subject matter, in terms of content and skills
• The resources available to an instructor including the time
• The move to blended or hybrid learning in particular means rethinking the use of the campus and the facilities needed to fully support learning in a hybrid mode.