Personal Reflection on Online Teaching.

Transition to Online Teaching, and Lingering Scepticism.
 
When I first jumped into online teaching, I was honestly a bit overwhelmed. The tech hiccups and the challenge of keeping students engaged through a screen felt daunting. But over time, I’ve found so many positives that have transformed my teaching experience.

One of the biggest wins has been the flexibility. The students can learn at their own pace, revisiting lectures as needed, which helps them grasp tough concepts much better. It’s great to see how this autonomy boosts their confidence and curiosity.

Building a sense of community has been another rewarding aspect. Using breakout rooms and other online platforms, as a team we have managed to create an inclusive environment where students feel comfortable sharing their ideas. It’s great to see them connect and collaborate.

The online learning space for the PGCert has also been rewarding, and having the opportunity to speak and interview individuals such Yasi Tahrani who is working at UAL on the delivery of online courses was refreshing.

The narrative around online teaching from some of my colleagues can sometimes be a little disconcerting, I think this is maybe based on everyones shared trauma of the speed of switching to online methods as a necessity in 2020. I sometimes don’t think the opportunity and benefits are not fully realised by colleagues because of this. There are many inclusive and sustainable components to this delivery method that I think it would be great for UAL to celebrate more and internally educate on. I understand and appreciate this is my personal opinion.

Reference List. Bibliography.

Crosby, S. D. Howell, P. B. Thomas, S. (2020). ‘Teaching through Collective Trauma in the Era of COVID-19: Trauma-informed Practices for Middle Level Learners’. Available at Middle Grades Review, 6(2). https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/mgreview/vol6/iss2/5 . Accessed 24th January 2024.