A number of people I know are learning how to facilitate online learning. At first glance you may think, well apart from the technology there isn’t a great deal of difference. To a certain extent this is true as you are still teaching, still attempting to explain new content and achieve certain learning outcomes but added on top of that are the challenges of managing the communication process between participants, stimulating comment and activity in new ways as you can’t just point to someone and ask a question and creating new and varied visual/auditory ways of demonstrating to an audience you often can’t see. You always have to deal with technical glitches, both equipment and people and keep the session moving despite setbacks and distractions. The Baranduda blog has a good article on the varied roles and you might like to check it out. While I was reading the blog I also checked out an old bookmark that I used to refer students to that might also help you understand what online facilitation involves. A good simple guide with some great links.
Personally I am still waiting for the day that the technology is something we don’t need to discuss because it will always work, will always allow you to do what you want with minimal restriction and all learners will know what to do with it and when to use it. How far away is that?? How long did it take for people to know how to use a television and a ATM without a 300 page guidebook? I don’t know, do you?
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