How to take STEM from Classrooms to Online?
Coping with the impact of the corona virus on the world of education seems to be a herculean task and yet an awe-inspiring transitional journey.
In this catastrophic situation, the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) field is one such part that has advanced its methods of teaching by considering the option of online classes. This quote by Aimee Kennedy, Senior VP for education, STEM learning, and Philanthropy at Battelle emphasizes the importance of this field. She says, “STEM offers a cooperative, innovative, and exciting work environment that is unparalleled.” Thus, it is also important that the future generation is guided well as career opportunities in these fields will continue to grow. The most challenging and rewarding jobs are in the STEM related fields and hence a more flexible learning option is what learners would prefer. The flexibility that the online option offers is the main reason it will garner a lot of popularity amongst the youth. Not only the youth, these online courses will be explored by teachers, technicians, and volunteers as well.
Many will agree that technology is more of a boon than a bane and this will definitely prove to be true in the world of e-learning. While transitioning from classroom to online sessions technology will play a major role and hence a good knowledge and a hands-on experience of using the desired software and the computer will result in a smooth, uninterrupted session. Explore various options and research well before finalizing on the software that will be use. Ensure strong connectivity. Once these are in place, you are off to a good start!
The course material should be developed in a manner that inspires and intrigues participants to attend the course. Keep in mind the various academic levels while building the material. It is imperative to ensure that the effectiveness of the courses offered is not lost while maintaining flexibility in the learning process. The key to successful session is planning. Plan your sessions well in advance and be innovative. Being well prepared for the probable questions that may come your way will ease the teacher tension that may be caused due to questioning. There can be multiple questions that participants may ask since it isn’t a classroom session, being patient will help in dealing with these questions. Incase participants shy away from asking questions then encourage them or prepare a way to review learning during the session. Keep the sessions interactive and invite participation. The sessions will be more effective if they are more engaging and collaborative than theoretical. During virtual sessions it is very easy for students to get distracted or disengage and hence being communicative
There are different styles of learning, visual, auditory, verbal and kinesthetic and it will be helpful if they can be included in the online sessions. Understanding these styles briefly and incorporating ways to include them will further enhance the sessions. This can be done by including activities, videos, exercises, etc. Be sure to research well before planning the sessions.
Reviewing learning is very important to check effectiveness. Conduct assessments to monitor progress. Arrange timely group discussions on various topics. Be innovative while planning assessments since invigilation is not an option. The idea of an assessment is to ensure that the participants have gained the knowledge that was delivered and to that it will be retained.
While this is a new medium of teaching it is also a very flexible one and will be a preferred way going forward. Finally, it will be your call since you would be the best to plan the sessions according to your participants. Take that leap and make a difference.
