3-2-1 Blog Post
Below you will find a number of items written in response to some prompts on Activity 1-4 for LRNT528, namely: three initial thoughts/ideas/feelings on digital facilitation, two questions I have about it, and one metaphor/simile about it.
3 Thoughts/Ideas/Feelings
Uncertainty: Having been out of facilitation for years, and my previous experience in digital facilitation being email-based, I’m uncertain as to my ability in digital facilitation.
Passion and Knowledge: Okay, so I’m cheating a bit as these are clearly separate ideas. In my defence, I believe that it’s important to have both since one without the other leaves the learning experience lacking.
Teachers are Learners: Having said the above, it’s impossible to know it all. That’s part of that uncertainty and, I believe, facilitators (digital or otherwise) can never truly know everything. The key, then, is to be shift from being experts to being directors and co-learners with students, directing learners to concepts and information resources, offering your knowledge and experience while learning from theirs.
2 Questions
1. While perhaps basic, if one is coming from a in-person facilitation background, how might one the skills or process for digital facilitation differ?
2. Secondly, how might one coming from such a background preemptively identify possibly digital facilitation challenges for learners in order to ensure a smooth experience for all involved?
1 Metaphor
Given all of the above, I think the below metaphor from Phil Collins is quite apt …
Hi Jean-Pierre,
Is it ok to answer your second question with a question? 🙂
What challenges have you faced in this program so far?
Of course, every learner is different, so it’s natural that your challenges will not be experienced by everyone, but it could be a place to start, no ?
Here’s a personal example, my biggest challenge is that I lose interest when the material is too dry and not relevant to my professional or personal life. So when I am facilitating, I try to make it interesting and relevant. I can’t simply follow a textbook or a lesson plan made by someone else.
Denys