Online education was a difficult transition for me. When COVID hit, I was studying abroad in France. I hurriedly came home and spent two weeks quarantined in a trailer, frantically trying to ensure my school credits were safe and that I would not have to repeat another semester of school due to this pandemic (the least of the world’s problems at that point). thankfully my school credits were secured and my semester abroad was effectively ruined.
The next year and then some was rather challenging for me. I am not necessarily a fan of how our North American school systems are laid out, and at this point, I was feeling even more upset with it all. Educators were not versed in online education and it showed. I can’t say this is anyone’s fault, aside from the systems that be. I was really losing it for some time, until I met one educator in a class who did things well. This professor used a combination a synchronous and asynchronous activities and assignments and used our time on zoom well. Turns out, online education can work!
With online education, it is necessary to change student evaluation. For tests, this means creating open-book tests with questions other than simple definitions and regurgitation. Keeping in mind that subject matter is important when creating methods of assessment is also important.
Some more advice I would give to future online educators is to equip yourselves with lots of technology and become technologically literate. Too often was I a part of classes whose profs were lagging in their tech knowledge. This slowed our classes down and really brought their authority to a bad sort of level.
Some ideas for future online educators would be to make use of 360-degree technology and create virtual field trips for students. This can be for landmarks, art exhibits, of cultural explorations.
Another important aspect of online learning is understanding how to decolonize and Indigenize online learning. Honouring student voices, upholding culture, and creating reciprocal relationships are all necessary aspects to this decolonization of online learning.
