Strategies to Support, Motivate & Engage Online Learners

Control Content

Build in success

Design modules so that it is necessary for students to log in regularly

Assessment Strategies

Communication & Socialisation Strategies

Students can feel overwhelmed if faced with too much material leading to anxiety. Anxiety leads to disengagement so careful control of content is necessary for success(Schwer & Lewis 2013)

Collect data and use it

Additional Resources

Gilly Salmon 5 stage model

Feedback

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Moore (1991) asserts that there is a psychological and communication gap when students undertake online learning. In order to combat this there must be high amounts of dialogue or communication between the learner and the instructor. It is very important to address this at the beginning of the programme. Ideas to combat this include.

welcome emails or texts

having online students introduce themselves to their peers

Discussion groups

group work

blogs

Isolated Student

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Challenges to retain motivation and engagement of online learners versus face to face teaching.()

Asyncronous

Preparation

E-Learning ladder (Moule, 2007)

Pre-assess your students readiness for online learning

Carpe Diem-5 Stage Model

  1. Access and Motivation
  1. Team Building
  1. Information Exchange

This first step of the Gilly Salmon model is an essential foundation to the framework

Individual Assignments puzzle-1019766_960_720

Authentic

Meaningful

Relevant

Varied

Online Group Assignments collaboration

Create structure of positive interdependence.

Allow adequate time

Provide ongoing feedback

Provide constructive feedback

Social Presence - “Designing an environment that promotes social presence has been shown to lead to greater group cohesiveness and higher level critical thinking" Haythornthwaite (2006)

Provide Rationale for setting group tasks

Helps model workplace practices

Helps build a sense of community

Helps build feelings of belonging, commitment to group goals and trust

Design Carefully - what is the desired knowledge/learning outcome?

Collaborative action - no single hand is visible in the final product

Coordinated Action - where each persons contribution is identifiable

Performance - utilise rubrics

Link performance to effort

Monitor performance

Intervene if necessary eg by developing a self improvement plan in conjunction with the student

Level of cooperation and interaction can be assessed by participation analysis and structured network analysis

Importance of a framework with clear steps to engage and motivate students throughout.

  1. Knowledge Construction

Giving your students your students the opportunity to have success in an assessment or assignment early on in the programme will build motivation and encourage engagement (Schwer & Lewis 2013)

If students are not logging in regularly follow them up to see if they are in difficulty. Engagement is a predictor of learning(T4LT Kirkwood)

Time management

Screenshot 2019-02-03 17.21.33

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Promote an information sharing culture through File Sharing Technology, mind mapping and discussion boards
https://edshelf.com/shelf/paulinerooney-collaboration/



Intrinsic motivation can be fostered where courses are competency based rather than grade orientated (Schwer & Lewis, 2013)

Build in choice and flexibility

Personal Responsibility

Designing online courses which offer choice and flexibility to the learner that will help motivate the learner and increase success (T4LT Kirkwood)

Set clear expectations

Learning Contracts

Netiquette

  1. Review

Encourage students to be learning focused rather than grade focussed

polls

Live classes

Theme emerging: More difficult to pick up on ques from students. Many tutors note the lack of eye to eye contact to establish a level of understanding.

Webinars

References

Use Verbal Persuasion (but remember to be realistic about student abilities)

email

text

discussion areas

Moule, P. (2007) Challenging the five-stage model for e-learning: A new approach. ALT-J: research in learning technology, 15 (1). pp. 37-50. ISSN 0968-7769 Available from: http://eprints.uwe.ac.uk/4792

Salmon, G. (2016, February 8), Carpe Diem - 5 Stage Model. [www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILCnUgfeuoc]

Mandernach


See extensive work by Prof. Jean Mandernach, Centre for Innovation and Teaching, Grand Canyon University

Lewis, J. and Schwer, M. (2013, May 21) []

Google hangouts

coggle

bongo

Google docs

T4LT (2011, February 2013) []

Tobin, T. J. (2018). The eLearning Leader’s Toolkit for Evaluating Online Teaching. In Leading and Managing e-Learning (pp. 235-251). Springer, Cham.

Haythornthwaite, C. (2006). Facilitating collaboration in online learning. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 10(1), 7-24.

Bart, M (2010, September 20), How to Design Effective Online Group Work Activities, Faculty Focus

Kelly, R. (2012). Five Factors that Affect Online Student Motivation. Faculty Focus. Retrieved from https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/five-factors-that-affect-online-student-motivation/


Mc Carthy, J. Feedback 101. Retrieved from http://www.feedback.mccarthywebsites.com/

U of S, G. (2012). <yt-formatted-string class="style-scope ytd-video-primary-info-renderer" force-default-style="">Teaching Online Vs. Face-to-Face</yt-formatted-string>. Retrieved from