As part of EDCI 570/571, I researched online asynchronous learning in K-12 with my new friend and classmate, Krista. We both work at online schools. Krista works in Alberta, and I work in BC. While working on our presentation we had the chance to share our thoughts about feeling isolated. We also helped each other think about the content we were researching and motivated each other. The outcome of our process was not only a deeper understanding of our topic, but also and a new relationship with a classmate.

To start, here is a link to our presentation, Online Learning in Partially Asynchronous Learning Environments.  

The first steps in our process were choosing a topic and method of research. We chose these in class by writing our names in a google doc, and Krista and I both landed on the broad topic of “online learning.” At this point, we had never talked to each other and had no idea what we would be specifically researching. We met after this class on Zoom, and talked about our background and determined a way to split the work. We quickly familiarized ourselves with Zotero, an online tool that helps organize research. We also created a google sheet that kept us organized by listing the articles and key information about each one. We also added a tab with our presentation rubric, and a tab where we unpacked each article and noted the key findings, method, and more. We both re-learned how to find relevant sources through using the University journal databases. We spent hours collaborating, adding our notes together, and making sense of what we were reading. Speaking for myself, I was greatly impacted by what I read. We found approximately fifteen sources that we reviewed, and we narrowed down our presentation content to eight, while focusing very closely on three.

The next steps in our process were to thoroughly read the sources that we found. As noted, chose to closely read eight sources. We made detailed notes on the key findings, research method, research context, and conceptual frame (which were all parts of our presentation rubric). I learned a lot about online learning in general while reading these sources, three of which were books, three were research studies, and two were literature reviews. We found that literature on K-12 learning was hard to find. Half of our sources focused on K-12 while the others were on post secondary. We ensured that two out of the three sources for our presentation were focused on K-12. The recurring topic that was most interesting to me personally was the relationship between peers in online learning. I plan to write another blog that unpacks this topic and what I found in the literature in more detail.

The final steps were to meet and discuss what we had read, and to create our presentation. At this point, we had a google sheet full of relevant information and as a google doc that outlined what topics would be part of our presentation. We asynchronously reviewed the google doc and added comments to each other, to review when either of us had a spare minute. We also increased our communication during this time to text, phone, Zoom, and occasionally Mattermost. We met multiple times per week over the course of two weeks to fully explore the research and make our collective understanding of what we had read. It took quite some time, but we got to the point of drafting our presentation and chose to make this in Canva. Canva is available for free to teachers in the full version and has an almost infinite number of templates available. We were able to work on the presentation asynchronously through Canva as the updates were autosaved. We could also leave each other comments in Canva. We talked extensively and debated about what to present on and also the methods we would use to engage our classmates. One of our biggest concerns was how to summarize the content in the time we were given to present (15 minutes) while also being relatively engaging. We chose to poll our classmates before the presentation through a google form to find “what word(s) come to mind when you think about student engagement in an online learning context vs. in person?” The top words were participation, distraction, discussions, and interaction. We did this poll to increase the engagement on our learners, as we did not have much time for activities during our presentation. The other way we had our learners engage was to use their “reaction” buttons at key times during the presentation to give their feelings on the content. If we had more time in our presentation, I would have done a chat in breakout rooms. The last steps were to practice the presentation a day before, and the morning of, our date. We added speaking notes to stay on point and refined these each time we practiced. We worked on our tone and added a bit of humour at the start of the presentation to be as engaging as possible.

There were other nuances to creating our presentation that I am sure I forgot to add. If you are making your own presentation for this class, or a similar one, I recommend giving yourself plenty of time to discuss the research after you read it. Luckily, we had a reading break a week before our presentation date that allowed plenty of time to think about the texts. Working with a partner might seem daunting at first but is a great way to push yourself to look at a topic in different ways. Working with a partner is also a wonderful way to create a deeper relationship in an online environment. Looking back, I feel grateful for this opportunity to explore a topic I am genuinely interested in while getting to know someone new at the same time.

Photo by Chris Montgomery on Unsplash.