There is so much I have learnt from this course.  Meeting and collaborating with like minded individuals from across the globe has been amazing.  From our very first Zoom meeting – when we were all a little tense to this very moment – we have had such amazing fun whilst learning.   

PBL 7 – CREATIVITY GALORE

As a creative I was glad when I was placed with other creative individuals.  Every topic was discussed in great length and then we put together amazing final presentations.  From remaking the song HELP by the Beatles and writing lyrics as a team to suit our first topic, to an online debate about openness in education, to a full on “pass the post-it challenge” video production, to a creative fine-art depiction, to the creation of memes and gifs –  We had the best time working together as an online learning community and constantly pushing the boundaries and our individual comfort zones.  What an amazing journey it has been.

Here is how we functioned as an Online Learning Community:

1 – ENVIRONMENT

From the get-go we created a friendly, safe environment, free from judgement for all our team mates.  We started off by setting ground rules that we created together.  We shared our thoughts and ideas and assisted each other in learning together.  We all had a mutual respect and understanding – making our collaborative work a success.

2 – SHARED LEARNING OBJECTIVE

We set out on this course from all over the globe to achieve the same learning objective –  our aim was to expand our knowledge base to effectively change the way students learn.

3 – SET GOALS

We came together on every topic and shared our thoughts and ideas.  We set goals based on our democratic decisions and then worked collaboratively to successfully orchestrate each project. 

4 –  SUPPORT

As we worked together, we grew a special bond as a community.  There were times we were even finishing each others sentences as if we knew what each other were thinking.  We formed a support structure amongst ourselves  – helping our team mates and learning together.  Our funniest moment was when we embarked on the journey of using MIRO for the first time.  We had great fun laughing at ourselves. 

5 – CONNECTION

We formed a life long connection.  We have even set up time to meet after the course has ended.  However, during the course –  we created a Whatsapp group so that we could share about our work, our lives, our projects and just about anything. 

6 – REFLECTION

We spent time as a team reflecting on each task.  It made for better learning and assisted in shaping our thoughts.

I have learnt so many amazing new things during this course – collaborative learning through discussion boards like Padlet, Miro, Whiteboard, Jamboard… But also, I take away the knowledge of how to create an online learning community that is conducive to learning.  As the digital age grows increasingly popular I will continue to use what I have learnt during ONL 202 to enhance the online learning platforms within my sphere of expertise.  I look forward to implementing the numerous things I have learnt.  The journey have now come full circle but there will always be more to experience, more to learn and more to grow. Here is to the future of academics online…