in the classroom
Online lessons
What we learnt from remote learning could change the face of education .
By Rochelle Borton
The virtual classroom has evolved from an early 2000s video conference that delivered instructions with little teacher interaction to an innovative , interactive and collaborative learning space that all students can be involved in .
To meet the challenges of recent times , school leaders and teachers have been at the forefront of innovation , creativity and adaptability . They have been part of the movement that has recognised the individual process of learning may not have changed , but the way in which learning is delivered has begun to change education forever .
Once upon a time , parents could have suggested that communication from school was not as frequent , timely or considered as they would have liked .
The reliance on face-to-face school events or weekly printed newsletters also meant that for many parents , engaging or being regularly involved was not an option due to work and other commitments .
Nowadays , educators and school leaders are engaging with their communities and stakeholders via a range of online mediums , which has increased their ability to interact like never before . These new channels of communication have created meaningful interactions between members of the school community and have highlighted again that this is one of the keys to student success .
This increase in engagement and attendance has made its way into the classroom and learning spaces too .
Teachers , students and parents alike have been applying new digital and online tools to engage students with learning in new and different ways . The challenges of recent times stimulated creative lesson designs for engaging the most distant of learners , and this ( infused with more confidence and the demand to access a range of digital tools ) meant success for many .
As time progresses , we are sure to see even more dynamic models of learning allow a range of students to engage in lifelong adaptive learning .
Online learning has also helped students develop communication skills in new and different ways , helping to inform , imagine and engage with peers .
Whilst most students have access to some form of digital device to interact with friends and family members socially , for some , the past few years is the first time they have had to use this digital literacy to co-share and develop learning environments .
Online learning created flexible , selfpaced learning environments , and we saw this develop even faster in the further education space with universities and colleges delivering courses and subjects that can be accessed at any time and in any place .
Students attend tutorials from around the country and internationally , and course materials , readings and discussion boards are accessed at the student ’ s pace .
It leaves many in the primary and secondary education space wondering whether the student , parent and teacher ’ s new technology skills , coupled with essential skills developed throughout online learning periods and the teacher shortage across the nation , will mean school content is delivered in a similar way in the future .
There has been much praise and emphasis given to the technical skills school communities developed during this time , but less given to naming the essential skills our students have developed . Some of these deliberate , some out of necessity and some accidently , students ( and parents and teachers ) have reminded us about the foundations of learning and behaviour .
Bandura ( 2006 ), framed self-efficacy as being an individual ’ s confidence to have control over their motivation and behaviour .
We see this idea intrinsically linked to the online learning environment that can provide immediate feedback to students , reinforcing and motivating learning .
Teachers can be motivated to plan and deliver learning materials in much the same way , with student success in both their engagement with more selfdirected learning and the immediacy of online formative assessment , which can help develop reflective practices for both teacher and student .
As all stakeholders reflect on the challenges of pandemic years on learning , it ’ s the hope that the time and space away from classrooms ( both physical and online ) brings clarity as to the incredible successes that must not be forgotten .
Have we started something we just shouldn ’ t stop ? Have we begun to breed a new group of world problem solvers and change agents , who had just enough time to think for themselves , to critically think , to reflect , to challenge ? ■
Rochelle Borton is the founder and managing director of EduInfluencers .
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