3 Initial thoughts about facilitation in digital environments:
- One can never make assumptions that everything is clear to the user/learner. Unlike face-to-face environments, there are no gestures, no body language or nonverbal signals to give the facilitator insight into their users in a digital environment. For this reason, regular check-ins may assist the facilitator with gaining insight into their learners.
- Digital environments come with their own unique challenges and facilitators need to be able to adjust, adapt and pivot as needed when unplanned issues arise.
- There should be a balance of synchronous and asynchronous in order to create a community where learners feel connected and supported. Without this some learners may feel they are alone and flying blind.
2 Questions about digital facilitation:
- What are some proven strategies that help to build community and strengthen connections in a digital environment? And strategies to ensure that the connections do not start to waver midway through a course or program?
- What are some strategies to help support and motivate learners in a digital environment that are different from face-to-face?
1 Metaphor about Digital Facilitation
In the dental world, we often use the metaphor of the iceberg to describe dental issues to clients. Common dental issues may present with little to no symptoms which may give them a false sense of security that everything is great but underneath there may be something more serious happening. When the dental issue becomes serious, it can no longer be ignored.
I believe this metaphor can be applied to how I perceive digital facilitation at this time; all may look smooth above water but a digital facilitator needs to be aware and checking for potential issues under the water.
Gail, those are great observations, especially #2. As much as we try to plan there are always unexpected hiccups that facilitators have to be ready to roll with.