Online teaching has its pros and cons. I am an advocate of students learning through movement, social engagement, and interaction with community and nature; much of which is taken away by online teaching. As a result, students are often distracted and unmotivated during online classes, and online teaching is often seen as a 'make-do' until in-person classes can resume. However, I believe that online teaching can provide an excellent opportunity for new, unique, innovative forms of education and can be a full and enriching experience on its own if done right. 

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When online teaching, I focus on two things: independence and environment. 

 

Online learning asks of students for a lot of independence and self control. While some may see this as a hinderance to teaching, I lean into this as a learning opportunity and experience of its own. Online learning and particularly asynchronous work can work as practice of self regulation and meta-cognitive thinking. Rather than asking students to stay on screen and stare at a computer all day, I give students wise freedom and independence  combined with scaffolds and systems to help students learn how to work independently and how to reach out and ask for help. Of course, the best way to encourage students to work independently is for the work itself to be fun and engaging! I don't transform my in-person units to an online platform, rather, I believe in taking advantage of being online to make learning fun in its own way. 

 

When students are online learning, they are not only on the computer, they are also at home. Again, rather than asking students to stare at the screen all day, in my online teaching, I ask students to interact with their surrounding environment: make artwork using recyclable trash, practice maths using the number of windows in the house, read a book aloud to their pet, find out the species of the nearest tree to their house. Even if they are learning online, I want my students to connect and interact with the world and grow appreciation for their home, neighborhood, and the tools they have at hand.

I ask my students to get creative and be innovative.