Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash
I have distinct memories of the groups of friends I met during my time at university. From the awkward introductions and questions of “Is anyone sitting here” to the coffees between classes and the beers afterward, I had always found my time at university to be very social. Having like-minded people to share ideas with, lamenting challenging assignments, and the collective anxiety of a deadline fast approaching, we were all in the same boat and could get through this together. However, as I was preparing to get started with the Provincial Instructor Diploma Program, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of detachment, a separation, and a sense of being alone as I stared at the computer screen.
I came across an article while researching trends in adult education titled “Creating a sense of Belonging through Instructor Social Presence” by Donna Vinton, PhD. This article starts with the quote, “For students, taking an online course can feel like being the only student in the class—isolated and lonely at times, and connected to the outside world through just a computer screen.”
Boy howdy did that seem to resonate with me!
I have taken many, many, many online courses from short sub-three-hour courses to much longer and more involved multi-day courses, and that sense of connection has always been lacking. The one exception was the Workplace CARE Certificate- Level 2 from go2HR that had you answer questions in a forum and the instructors did a great job of commenting, as did other participants. That created a small sense of connection. This was amplified by having interacted with the instructors during separate webinars offered by go2HR so I was able to put faces to names. But that was the exception to the rule.
Coming into the PIDP I really didn’t know what to expect. One of the first things I saw when accessing our online learning platform for the first time was Glenn’s smiling face welcoming everyone to the course and the first module. Then after some light reading, there is another video of Glenn, and another, and another! In fact, each week has one or two videos that help create that connection. Then there was the Zoom call. Glenn and I connected and spoke for maybe 25 minutes about the course, expectations, and each other’s stories. Then I was paired up with another student to be my learning partner and we connected via email and arranged a time to connect via Zoom.
The article goes on to share some strategies that instructors can use to create a social presence and what do you know but as I read each one, I could see how it was reflected in the PIDP.
Friendly language? Check! “Your sense of humor shines through!” (G Galy, personal communication, September 17, 2023).
A conversational atmosphere? Check! Just watch any video of Glenn chatting about the course or resources and you feel like it is a conversation and not a recording.
And this is just the start. After all, we're only nearly 3 weeks into the course but I’m sure that after this strong start, it will continue with, “suggestions for additional resources”, “Identify[ing] connections or progression from concepts in previous units/modules/assignments” (Vinton 2023)
Now how does this relate to me and my training journey?
Well, even though, “Students place less importance on in-person classes and more on online options” (Pelletier et al., 2023, pg 8), Vinton (2023) concludes that, “increasing instructor social presence can add to students’ enjoyment of and success in the course and add to instructors’ feelings of connections with their students and courses as well.” So, while I may share a variety of online courses with the team members here at the Inn, those asynchronous courses are often taken in isolation and lack the social presence of an instructor as well as classmates. The onus then falls to me as the facilitator to take more of an interest in the team members' progression, utilizing some of the strategies that Vinton suggests and Galy models to help the team get the best out of the courses offered.
I shall leave you with a question, “How do you create a sense of connection with your students/learners/team members?” Share your tips and tricks in the comments below!
Pelletier, K., Robert, J,. Muscanell, N., McCormack, M., Reeves, J., Arbino, N, and Grajek, S., with Birdwell, T., Liu, D., Mandernach, J,. Moore, A., Porcaro, A., Rutledge, R., and Zimmern, J. (2023) EDUCAUSE Horizon Report: Teaching and Learning Edition.https://library.educause.edu/resources/2023/5/2023-educause-horizon-report-teaching-and-learning-edition
Vinton, D., (2023) Creating a Sense of Belonging through Instructor Social Presence, https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/equality-inclusion-and-diversity/creating-a-sense-of-belonging-through-instructor-social-presence/
댓글