It is finally time to reflect on the most important (and memorable) aspects of the ONL course journey. I do feel some sadness to have to say goodbye to my wonderful groupmates across the globe that I have grown to know and understand over the course of 12 weeks, but we are now connected via WhatsApp and I know that we can always reach out to one another across time zones in the future. Apart from the people, I also brought home with me some really important lessons that I will most definitely apply to my current courses and future online courses that I aim to develop.
One of the most important things that I have learnt through the course of 5 topics is the utmost importance of a home base. This took the form of the Shared folders that we share. As full-time educators ourselves, we were inundated with our current teaching commitments that were made more hectic due to the many changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. The shared folders were like havens where I found confidence to keep up with my team mates and to keep going in the journey when time gets tough. There I know the schedule and links to Zoom group meetings await for me. I found solace in the fact that all materials and work done for the course is there. That all recordings of group meetings that I had missed due to time zone differences are preserved for me to catch up whenever the journey gets weary. It is a sanctuary that lets me know that I am not left behind in this journey as a group and gives me the confidence to continue learning in the journey.
Constant communication in all forms and via different platforms is another important aspect of this learning journey that I found to be extremely valuable. From learning how to interact as a group in Zoom conferences, to figuring how to make group decisions in order to focus and complete the tasks assigned, I realized that the lessons on the dynamics affecting such group discussions on Zoom were best obtained through experiences rather than textbook. We complement this real-time interaction platforms with other platforms that enable each one of us to reach out to another at any time. These included the use of WhatsApp messenger. On this platform, I came to see the value of peer-to-peer learning. Questions and doubts surfaced on the platform was answered by any other person who sees the message. This shows that teachers do not have a monopoly on knowledge in a genuine collaborative networked course. It is the students who should be solving problems among themselves and help one another out whenever the need arises.
Overall, I have obtained many learning points on top of the two important lessons that I have personally valued above. My group, however, do not think that it is fair for us to have learnt so much from the course without paying it forward and helping the group that will come after us to learn as much, if not better. We concluded our group task for the ONL201 journey with some tips for those embarking in the ONL202 journey. I summarize the 3 tips below that PBL 11 had produced together and wish that future ONL learners would benefit, learn, and enjoy the course as much as I have had – or even more!
- Time
- Establish clear meeting agenda
- Keep close watch of meeting and discussion times
- Consider time zones for different group members
- Communicate
- Don’t be too shy to ask for help
- Use multiple channels (e.g., FISH, GDrive, WhatsApp, etc.)
- Decide on how to make decisions as a group
- Collaborate
- Focus on shared outcomes
- Share your ideas, but be prepared to accept others over your own
