What does humanizing online learning mean?

Humanizing online learning is the ability of the course instructor to develop meaningful instructor-learner relationships which promote a community of interconnectedness and belonging. Furthermore, establishing “humanization” provides the leaner insight into the instructor’s personality and may be used as their own frame of reference when establishing his/her own connection to the course. Most importantly, the online learner may experience the feeling of being valued which may nurture instructor-learner rapport and trust. Ultimately, when humanizing online learning occurs, learners experience a sense of fellowship, willingness to be part of the learning community, feelings of supportiveness by instructor and positive affirmation of being successful during the online learning experience.

Helpful Links:

Humanizing Online Instruction

Humanizing Online Learning and Pedagogy

Humanizing Online Learning: The Secret Sauce for Student Success

Top 5 Apps to Make Virtual Lessons Interactive

The pillars of humanizing an online learning course

According to Pacansky-Brock (2020), the following four interwoven principles are the pillars of humanizing an online teaching course:

• Trust – it is crucial to establish rapport and foster trust with online learners by illustrating your “humanness” with selective snapshots of your life via storytelling, pictures, or experiences. Allow your personality to shine!
• Presence – you are the online learner’s main lifeline; therefore, provide constant communication. By providing frequent text, audio, or video presence, you are affirming your accessibility, engagement, and commitment to helping them succeed in your course.
• Awareness – your ability as an instructor to discover and get to know your students and provide comprehensive support based on your students’ needs.
• Empathy – be mindful of the online learner experience. Use the phenomenological perspective which may help you understand the learner’s feelings, perceptions, challenges, and/or needs.

Why is humanizing important to online learning?

Online courses approximately range for sixteen weeks of content, supplemental materials, assignments, activities, and exams which may quickly become overwhelming for an online learner. Online learning environments may isolate the learner potentially cultivating feelings of detachment, lack of motivation, or complete loss of interest without any human connection. Therefore, it is imperative to establish “human connection” in hopes of affirming a sense of belonging, supportiveness, and recognition.

What does humanizing my online course look like?

• Be organic. Be your authentic self when creating audio or video content.
• Provide a biography using pictures, storytelling, vlog or through music. Skip the traditional written introduction.
• Establish your presence. Communicate often by short video/audio clips. Reassure the students you are continually present in order to help them succeed.
• Do not be perfect. It is refreshing for students to see you as a “person.” Therefore, video, and micro lectures should be left in original state. Save yourself some editing time.
• Provide messages of encouragement by providing stories of your own student experience, inspirational or motivational videos.
• Continually ask for feedback on class content and framework. Construct a chat room where students may submit questions or concerns anonymously.
• Share an aspect of your life weekly such as a joke you heard, your pet’s latest habit, a hobby of choice or a show you just recently began viewing in efforts to illustrate elements of you as a real person.
• During micro lecture recordings, make an appearance. It is always refreshing to put a “face to the voice.”
• Use other supplemental materials such as TedTalks or videos with presentational speakers.
• For asynchronous courses, offer a random “Live” check in where students may stop by just to say hello or address course questions/concerns.

Helpful Links:

10 Fun Activities for Distance Learning

Student Engagement in Synchronous Online Classes

3 Engaging Ways to Start Your Online Class

Top 5 Apps to Make Virtual Lessons Interactive

Keeping Students Engaged in Digital Learning

3 Ways to get Feedback from Students

Important online learner feedback to keep in mind when creating your online content:

• Show us your face! We want to associate and “connect” as much as possible in attempts to provide the traditional face to face interaction “feel”.
• Structure is greatly appreciated. Clear, crisp, and concise weekly course modules.
• Pictures, videos, or stories about the instructor may provide a sense of closeness.
• Daily or bi-weekly personal messages from instructor makes us feel like he/she cares about our well-being.
• Interactive activities will not make the class feel like I am alone and isolated.
• Laser focused micro lectures (5-7 minutes) are greatly appreciated.
• Create opportunities for dialogue and interaction.
• Incorporate self reflective activities so that online learners may know what others are thinking/perceive.
• Sometimes the only thing we like about online learning is the support provided by the instructor.
• Provide opportunities for feedback about the online learning experience.
• Please remember our homes have parents, siblings, pets, and other distractions that can interfere with the learning process.
• Students may not be as technology savvy as they are perceived to be.
• Multiple online courses can cause too much “screen” time and contribute to feelings of “always being connected” to digital world.

Helpful Links:

As a learner what is your opinion of online learning?

Pros and Cons of Online Learning

References 

CanvasLMS. (2015, July 10). Humanizing Online Instruction [Video]. YouTube.  https://youtu.be/Us7w1b7UVwU. 

Cohen, K. (2020, August 9). 10 FUN Activites for Distance Learning [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/-dFPGbSa-to 

Dochiniak, M. (2020, April 27). Teacher Tip: Student Engagement in LIVE online classes [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/YjvRd9_pGik 

Edutopia. (2020, April 8). Keeping Students Engaged in Digital Learning [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/-LybF2YlWn4 

Espinosa, A. (2020, September 3). 3 engaging ways to start your online class [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/dYzy2zsdp84 

Ever Educating. (2020, September 4). 3 Ways to Get Feedback from Students Before Things Go Terribly Wrong [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/NvlI9ytxxXs 

FAU Center for Online and Continuing Ed. (2020, July 28). Humanizing Online Education  [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/Z584yXGA78s. 

FranceE, P. E. (2020, April 1). 3 Tips for Humanizing Digital Pedagogy. Edutopia. Retrieved  from https://www.edutopia.org/article/3-tips-humanizing-digital-pedagogy. 

Glazier, R. A. (2021). Connecting in the online classroom: Teachers, students, and building  rapport in online learning. Johns Hopkins University Press. 

Mehta, R., & Aguilera, E. (2020). A critical approach to humanizing pedagogies in online  teaching and learning. The International Journal of Information and Learning  Technology, 37(3), 109–120. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJILT-10-2019-0099.   

Pacansky-Brock, M. (2020). How to humanize your online class, version 2.0 [Infographic].  https://brocansky.com/humanizing/infographic2 

Pacansky-Brock, M. (2016, January 28). Humanizing Online Learning: The Secret Sauce for  Student Success [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/4wI4HxIwXTU 

Pacansky-Brock, M., Smedshammer, M., & Vincent-Layton, K. (2020). Humanizing Online  Teaching to Equitize Higher Education. Current Issues in Education, 21(2). 

Palacios, K. (2017, January 27). Humanizing our Online Teaching and Learning [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/hCv7ffABcNg 

PearsonStudents. (2020, October 16). As a learner what is your opinion of online learning? [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/Psa2-rLodAo 

Permiakov, E. (2020, September 11). Top 5 Apps to Make Virtual Lesson Interactive [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/C7vxAn0w7YA 

Radha, R., Mahalakshmi, K., Kumar, V.S. and Saravanakumar, A.R. (2020), “E-learning during  lockdown of Covid-19 pandemic: a global perspective”, International Journal of Control  and Automation, Vol. 13 No. 4, pp. 1088-1099. 

Raygoza, M., Leôn , R., & Norris , A. (2020, March 11). Humanizing Online Teaching . Saint Mary's Digital Commons. Retrieved September 11, 2021, from https://digitalcommons.stmarys-ca.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2804&context=school-education-faculty-works.  

Stenman, S., & Pettersson, F. (2020). Remote teaching for equal and inclusive education in rural  areas? An analysis of teachers’ perspectives on remote teaching. The International  Journal of Information and Learning Technology, 37(3), 87–98.  https://doi.org/10.1108/IJILT-10-2019-0096.   

Strauß, S. and Rummel, N. (2020), “Promoting interaction in online distance education:  designing, implementing and supporting collaborative learning”, Information and  Learning Sciences,Vol. 121 Nos 5/6, pp. 251-260. 

The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Center for Teaching Excellence, & Miles, C. (2021,  August 20–October 15). Active Learning in Online Teaching [Professional  Development]. Active Learning in Online Teaching, Edinburg, Texas. 

WhyRyerson. (2020, November 5). Pros and cons of online learning [Video]. YouTube.  https://youtu.be/gIdvo2cjS94 

Weiss, R. E. (2000). Humanizing the Online Classroom. New Directions for Teaching and  Learning, 2000(84), 47–51. https://doi.org/10.1002/tl.847. 

Zhang, Y., Fang, Y., Wei, K.K. and Wang, Z. (2012), “Promoting the intention of students to  continue their participation in e-learning systems”, Information Technology and People,  Vol. 25 No. 4, pp. 356-375. 

Created as a dissemination activity informed by the CTE Active Learning in Online Teaching Faculty Learning Community facilitated by Faculty Fellow Dr. Caroline Miles, Professor, Literatures and Cultural Studies.