Digital Education

A Brief Look at Online College

            Being an online student myself, I felt this topic to be a very important one to discuss.  An educational environment is one in which communication is absolutely crucial to the development of both the students and the instructors.  Being an online student can be very tough and challenging at times, because it takes a special skillset to succeed.  This doesn’t apply only to students though, as every level of the online education needs to be proficient in these skills.  To put the situation into words is almost making light of it though, as a college education is one of the most important decisions in a person's life.  It really takes a level of confidence and independence that I personally have overlooked for some time.  So what skills are important to refine and why?  There is no absolute rulebook for skill development, as everyone learns at their own pace in their own way.  Skillsets will differ between students, teachers, advisors etc. 

            Some skills may apply to students and instructors alike, because some abilities are just good general attributes for the educational environment.  Personally, as a student I am expected to communicate my thoughts and words in a time-efficient manner.  This has definitely been a learning experience in more way than one, as I have also had to refine my abilities to communicate over the Internet while building a good technical skillset in the process.  All of these attributes are comparable to what an aspiring instructor can expect to utilize in an online teaching environment.  Melissa Venable reminds us that we have to remain within our own limits and only try to teach courses we are knowledgeable in (Venable, 2013).  In her contribution to OnlineCollege.org, How To Break into Online Teaching she gives some very good advice for anyone interested in teaching online. 

            So how powerful can a digital classroom be?  How many lives can be improved with online education?  Probably the best example I have found comes from a TED talks presentation, in which Daphne Koller of Coursera describes their online educational mission.  Some of the numbers where absolutely astounding, as it truly shows the global impact.  Coursera is a group that is trying to get multiple colleges to offer some of their best courses for free to some of the more disadvantaged areas of the world.  Within months of starting up, as Koller explains, they had approximately 640,000 active students with 1 ½ million enrollees spanning nearly 200 countries.  Not to mention their videos had been digitally viewed around 14 million times, and they had over 6 million quizzes for people of every educational level to take.  Her video as posted below is a bit lengthy, but truly worth the watch.  This is but a glimpse of what the future will bring if trends continue in the same fashion.

            Richard Sousa, senior associate director and a research fellow at the Hoover Institution, points to a continued increase in numbers with his article What Lies Ahead For Digital Education.   In early 2014, the Khan Academy, whose mission is to provide a “free world-class education for anyone anywhere,” agreed to a partnership in which they cooperated with the College Board to provide free, online SAT prep software.  The Khan Academy, with ten million users visiting its web site every month, is at the leading edge of digital education. The Khan-SAT partnership allowed for self-paced learning and helped to level the playing field by providing access to those who were unable to afford proprietary preparation courses (Sousa, 2014).  It seems that the digital classroom is taking hold, and this could be for many of the aforementioned reasons.  It could also be attributed to the fact that online classes are non-traditional in the fact that the student feels somewhat empowered to set a very flexible learning schedule.  Of course money factors in, and many online degree programs are cheaper or free through certain groups.  Perhaps people are turning to the Internet because of the rising danger in American classrooms.  Either way, I believe this trend will continue for years into the future. 

References

Sousa, R. (2014, May 7). What Lies Ahead For Digital Education: Forbes Website. Retrieved from Forbes Website: http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2014/05/07/what-lies-ahead-for-digital-education/#2715e4857a0b5f55819055db

Venable, M. (2013, July 15). How To Break into Online Teaching: OnlineCollege.org Website. Retrieved from OnlineCollege.org Website: http://www.onlinecollege.org/2013/07/15/breaking-into-online-teaching/

Public Speaking Globalized

            Public speaking is something a lot of us don’t really enjoy, and in fact many people are afraid of speaking in public.  The majority of society has some form of anxiety or nervousness associated with the thought of public speaking, but we understand that it is not the end of the world.  Right around 10% of people really look forward to getting up on stage and discussing whatever message they are trying to convey.  Another 10% or so are truly petrified at the thought of publically speaking, and they will do anything within their power to avoid it at all costs (Morgan, 2011).  As described in the article Why We Fear Public Speaking And How To Overcome It, it is important for the communicator to recognize and train themselves to handle the adrenaline rush that comes with public speaking.  Which brings me to my next point, and that is the fact that public speaking has become public broadcasting with modern technologies.  This is exceptionally true about people that are seen as important to society.  Nearly everything politicians, entertainers, or sports stars say is immediately picked apart by the media and we see different examples of it every day.  A lot of these people don’t want to speak much either as is the case with Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch.  They are expected to interact with the fans though, and it can actually lead to repercussions if they fail to speak with the media.  Lynch actually referred to this in one of his more infamous interviews, and it has over 2 million views on YouTube.             

Public speaking is not a simple town hall meeting anymore though, because technology can take any speech and globalize it through social media or other digital platforms.  So this means any time a communicator is getting ready to present some information, they have to prepare for millions of viewers on an international scale.  Up until humans harnessed electricity, the viewing audience could only be several hundred or potentially a few thousand audience members.  Communicators have to be able to do a lot more than simply give a speech to boot.  They need to be well-versed with the Internet and other digital platforms, as they have to touch base with their fans through each medium.  Ronn Torossian, Founder and CEO of 5W Public Relations, advises public figures to leave some mistakes alone, as it shows that public figures are human after all.  His article, 10 Tips For Public Figures On Managing Social Media also explains that people of importance need to remain active when responding to negativity, and also to apologize when needed (Torossian, 2015).  Communicators should have minimal trouble if they remain ethical and respectful while they convey their messages though the Internet.  Even many speeches have taken a back seat to technology, as some presenters use teleprompters so they can read their speech while keeping eye contact with the audience.  Communicators of today have to really blend a solid traditional skill set with an invigorated thirst for technology in order to truly reach full potential.

References

Morgan, N. (2011, March 30). Why We Fear Public Speaking And How To Overcome It: Forbes Website. Retrieved from Forbes Website: http://www.forbes.com/sites/nickmorgan/2011/03/30/why-we-fear-public-speaking-and-how-to-overcome-it/#2715e4857a0b30432796ea43

Torossian, R. (2015, April 15). 10 Tips For Public Figures On Managing Social Media: LinkedIn Website. Retrieved from LinkedIn Website: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/10-tips-public-figures-managing-social-media-ronn-torossian-5wpr-ceo

       

Trending Technologies

     Technology has influenced humanity ever since people began inventing.  Every invention ever discovered was a piece of technology during a certain era, but our advances are now happening much more quickly and often than they previously were.  With technology growing so rapidly, it has become a double-edged sword in some aspects.  However, one of our most basic needs as humans is the need to convey bits of information to each other.  Communicating with one another is how we all figure out ideas, and find solutions to problems.  That is also how we plan agendas, set up appointments, and communicating drives everything we do in our lives.  Communication is so easy to take for granted, although it is the first step to bringing our dreams to fruition.  Communicating is also a constant step that has to be maintained throughout the entire process.

     We can all see the results on a personal level pretty clearly, but many times we overlook how much technology and communication influences our careers or other areas of life.  Some careers have always revolved around the ability to gather information, and then present it to the public in a fair and understandable way.  Journalists have been part of society for a long time, but have also had to adapt to new ways of producing, promoting, and presenting the news.  These adaptations have helped journalists to excel in some aspects of their jobs as well, such as the ability to be on the scene with mobile technology very quickly.  News crews will also be reliant on transportation and standard equipment, but they will be able to completely process, edit, and even upload a story without be tied to a building.  Technology has made it possible to virtually work from anywhere at any time.  Now we have wearable products (i.e. smartwatches) that will allow for the same communicative power of our current smartphones (Agrawal, 2016).  8 Tech Trends Changing How We Work In 2016

     So where will the future take us in terms of communicative technology?  This clip from 2010 gives a somewhat comical, realistic, but still very informative explanation from a journalist’s and bloggers perspective. 

   

References

Agrawal, A. (2016, January 11). 8 Tech Trends Changing How We Work In 2016: Forbes Website. Retrieved from Forbes Website: http://www.forbes.com/sites/ajagrawal/2016/01/11/8-tech-trends-changing-how-we-work-in-2016/#2715e4857a0b67d57ede7013