We are now super heroes, tech wizards and planning experts
Keary Shandler is Programme Coordinator Undergraduate Business at Murdoch University Dubai.
Here, she shares some hard-won insights
into the reality of online teaching
Like many of you, with the closures of physical campuses, Murdoch University Dubai moved swiftly to a 100% online teaching environment. And even though it’s only been for a relatively short period of actual time, I feel like a year’s worth of learning has been compressed into a few blurred months. If you can imagine a hockey stick, that’s the trajectory my learning pace has gone through.
I teach business subjects at multiple levels, so my audience is wide and varied. I have an interest in business sustainability, and my MBA class gives me some big rewards in this area. As an educator who hails from industry, this combination of juxtaposing business with society and the environment offers enormous potential. The passion and enthusiasm the MBA students have for this area certainly fuels my own engagement level.
But when it comes to creating engagement online, what I had to do in a face-to-face class almost seems juvenile now, in comparison to the hoops I’ve recently been leaping through. My unit is highly participatory; it involves debates and lots of vigorous discussion. I genuinely feel like each class is a workout. Although I have not let go of trying to create this same level of energy online, I have certainly had to make some monumental adjustments in my evaluation of what constitutes a ‘successful’ class. There is just no comparison. I’m sure many others will be familiar with the intensity and heightened sense of responsibility, but hopefully also the fun amid the chaos. Here’s what I’ve learnt so far.
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