Is my material suitable for my online sessions?

by Karen Walstra Any paper-based resources you used with your learners can be used online. If you printed resources, such as worksheets, before for your learners to use, these could now be shared or emailed to learners. If you have hand drawn and wri en resources such as wri ng cards for Founda on Phase learners, these could be scanned into the computer, and turned into digital resources. Learners could trace over the le er shapes with their fi ngers on the screen of the device they are using. If you use physical models or conduct experiments, video yourself or a student using the model or conduc ng the experiment. These videos can be used as a teaching resource when learners can’t do the experiment themselves. So to answer the ques on: is my material suitable for my online sessions? – the answer is yes, your exis ng teaching material may need to be digi sed, but it could be used. As me progresses, review the materials and inves gate how to make the content more interac ve. For example, a document you scanned that is now a sta c pdf, which the learners can’t interact with, can be converted or retyped to become a document where learners can add in the informa on and work on the document. Provide teaching situa ons where learners create their own informa on digitally, instead of working in a paper book. Digital learning tools allow teachers to easily set and assign ac vi es, conduct ongoing assessment, and analyse results quicker and more eff ec vely than paper-based assessments and tests. This in turn makes it easier for the teacher to develop individualised learning pathways for their learners. The relevant digital resources can be assigned to their learners depending on the individual’s needs, ability levels or interests. Digital resources can be used for individual or group learning ac vi es. Group or projectbased tasks are more eff ec ve when learners use a shared document to collaborate and work on. As a teacher, using a shared document with your learners means you can see how your learners are progressing. You could mo vate learners, or off er assistance or praise learners for work done, before it is handed in, thereby making teaching more eff ec ve and proac ve. Use your exis ng material to begin with, but adapt it as you become more comfortable with the digital tools, to crea ve more interac ve, eff ec ve and user-friendly digital resources for your learners as me goes on.

Sources

● h ps://www.evolveschool.co.za/post/teaching-online-you-will-succeed ● h ps://www.evolveschool.co.za/post/2019/01/12/communica on-among-class-peers ● h ps://www.evolveschool.co.za/post/2019/11/03/crea ng-problem-solvers