Distance Learning Manifesto: Part 1 - Design

To teach students and teachers anywhere and anytime makes online learning and an online learning module (OLM) an extremely valuable asset to education. One of the most important elements to an OLM is the organization and structure.  The layout and design is key to its usability and ultimately the frequency that it will be used as a learning tool by the learner (student or teacher).  Therefore, it is imperative that an online learning module have key features that relate and resonate with the learner in today's digital age. 

Several innovative ways of thinking about teaching and learning have emerged in the online learning field, such as video communication, micro-lectures, badges, gamification and challenge-based learning.   EDUCAUSE 7 Things You Should Know About ^TM …. Learning Technology Topics series provides information on developing education technologies and interrelated practices. One of the most promising of these practices for training new technology teachers is the use of micro-lectures.  

New technology teachers typically attend or participate in a new teacher orientation where they learn about how to use software programs (library, technology and school-wide curriculum), technology and/or library curriculum, best practices for teaching technology and how to manage and care for the technology in their school building.  After an intense day or few days of training, the new teachers have a lot of information to process and remember for the upcoming school year.  Referring back to notes is only moderately helpful when needed to refer or relearn something from previous training. Micro-lectures provide a clever tool for teachers to recapture information from training. 

Micro-lectures are short recorded audio or video presentations on specific topics that enable the learner to refer back to topics learned or studied.  These short presentations focus on single topics and explain basic concepts that new teachers could refer to immediately after training or several weeks or months later as needed.  This empowers a new teacher to select lessons to review and move through at their own pace. A new tech teacher would be able to select a specific video lesson when repairing or problem-solving tech issues in their school. The teacher would, also, be able to access these lectures on personal devices and stop and start or rewind the instructions as needed.

Instructors can create activities and follow-up assignments in a micro-lecture format for the learner to ensure that the learner understands the material being taught.  The short lecture format, also, gives instructors the ability to tweak course content when curriculum software or school technology is updated or changed.

For the new teacher that is hired when the school year has already begun the micro-lectures serve as a flipped class model.  These new teachers can watch the micro-lectures on their own (self-directed). As follow-up, the new teacher and instructor can use video communication with MS Lync or Google Hangout, to discuss the learning, follow-up activities and/or questions about the micro-lecture. This format, also, adds a personal touch to the instruction when the instructor can refer back to the micro-lecture on a point or topic talked about in the video or audio presentation. 

"7 Things You Should Know About... Learning Technology Topics." 7 Things You Should Know About... Learning Technology Topics. Educause, 2015. Web. 10 Apr. 2015.

Soul4real. "Micro-lecture on Micro-Lectures." YouTube. YouTube, 9 Nov. 2012. Web. 25 Apr. 2015.

For reviews & comparisons about various online learning modules, you can 'check it out' here:
Tech4schoollibrarians
Talktechwithme
The Innovative Educator
The Top 8 Free/Open Source OLM
Discovery Education - Ms. De Santis