As a cohort we came up with a list which of ideas that we thought were essential for student engagement. This is my ranked list ranked from most important to least.
1. Purposeful- Ensure that the technology and activities relate to the
task/learning and will enable meaningful learning
2. Choice about how they work, autonomously or collaboratively
3. Provide a variety of technology mediums for delivering information and instructions
4. Cultivation of on-line presence so participants feel like they are communicating with people they know.
5. Prompt, detailed and personal feedback was what ended up being the
most significant for my online class. Also providing a choice of
platforms to access and submit work.
6. Feedback from peers and tutors.
7. Provide access to real-life data from online source.
9. User Testing - Test your activity with actual users or close to actual users.
10. Apply online communication and F2F opportunities to connect learners with external support and experts
It was difficult locking in my final rankings but I think purposeful
technology is a strong component in student engagement, followed closely
by giving children choice about how they work. Learning is enhanced
when students are encouraged to talk with their peers and technology
enables learners to communicate with people in different classrooms
anywhere in the world, a powerful tool to support peer to peer
networking (McLoughlin & Lee, 2008).
