TEC VARIETY

Online learning requires motivation and engagement for success. Learners need to feel connected and empowered to support their involvement for online education. Curt Bonk explores motivation and retention in various e-learning environments. His latest publication, The World is Open, explores how technology is revolutionizing technology itself.

Here are a couple of other worthy finds from Curt that may be useful for your next your virtual learning environment planning:

1. Empowering Online Learning
2. Tech-Variety – guide for motivation and retention online

• Tone – how do learners describe themselves? set expectations & set goals?
• Encouragement – provide means to give feedback to learners
• Curiosity – online field trips, activities, remote sites, local correspondence, etc

• Variety – hands on, visual, reading integrated text, providing options
• Autonomy – choice, empowerment over learning, options, scaffold learning skills
• Relevance – meaningful activities that relate back to the content
• Interactivity – problem solving, case studies, working with a group, discussion threads, blogs and more!
• Engagement – drafts due for projects, check-ins, experience the process of learning
• Tension – role-play, alternative perspectives, controversy, e.g. devils advocate for positions
• Yielding products – post to the web, present a gallery of students’ best work, showcase, share with an audience beyond a teacher – experts, peers, etc.