Wu Ya Jun’s Reflection on Topic 4: Design for online and blended learning

     I created my first Twitter account and started to follow a few people on ONL212. Every day, it will show me some interesting news from the people I am following. The ONL212 community always has continuous questions and discussions.

    During the group meetings, we have shared the experience of how to design high-quality online courses and the pros and cons of traditional and online learning. We found some courses’ designs are more focused on content and delivery rather than students’ experience. We need to consider students’ learning experiences. We need to know if the pace of teaching is suitable for all students. How to help students who are not motivated to learn. For example, if we have online learning by pre-recorded videos, we may value-add to provide students with one-on-one or small group discussions via Zoom if students need to discuss their personal opinion or dispel their doubts. In reality, some lecturers prefer face-to-face teaching in a small group of students, but most lecturers prefer online teaching because it can reach more students at the same time. There is no room limitation for online learning. It is more convenient whether synchronized or asynchronizedonline learning. Asynchronized style can allow part-time students to learn courses in their free time after work. Synchronized session is beneficial for group discussions and team communication. Most of us agree that blended learning should be the best solution for the current COVID-19 pandemic situation. Some students may complain that they paid for university education to be held in school, but in the end, they have to deal with online learning at home. For totally online teaching, they may prefer to learn from Harvard University or MIT online distance education. So we need to provide blended learning, which can give students opportunities to meet their team and friends, communicate well with each other. They can get some sense of belonging during their study journey. Marlin shared that she has produced a lot of videos and online learning courses for students. However, there are still some areas that cannot be replaced by online learning. For example, operation practice for nurses. They need to learn hands-on and get a lot of real practice before they can get a licence and physically face the real patients. 

We accepted the suggestion from Charina Ong to consolidate all related questions to input in a spinning wheel. Every time, we spun the wheel, it will stop at one question with virtual colorful confetti floating out with cheerful sounds. We tried to answer all related answers and recorded them as our video presentation to share with the ONL212 community. It is quite a fun and useful tool to reach our target with satisfaction.