Education has gone rogue! Or at least it has changed greatly relative to what people are used to and expect. When the Covid-19 pandemic turned the world on its head, teachers, parents, and students continued to find a way to make it work. And while some sense of normalcy has started to return, the shift into distance learning has not diminished. Part of the reason for this is that distance learning and remote teaching was already trending before the pandemic. As more people see and continue to see the benefits of learning remotely, there will be greater demand for teachers and programs for those people. Although distance learning is relatively new for many people, it is likely to continue to grow so it is important to understand what it is and how it can help people.
Why is online teaching important?
Some of the reasons that online teaching is important are obvious. The first thing that will come to most people’s minds is the Covid-19 pandemic. This is true, it was and is important for students to continue to have the opportunity to get their education and develop. The only way to do this sometimes is through distance learning. This is not only important to the student but to teachers as well who not only want to continue their development of their kids but also it is their profession, and it is necessary to continue working and earning a living. Besides the Pandemic, there are other reasons for teaching remotely.
Most people think of students who are in quarantine when they think about remote learning, but it is a benefit to many other people as well. People who are sick, disabled, or otherwise not able to attend in person should have the opportunity to attend school and advance their educational possibilities. It is also great for adult learners or for people who are continuing their education. People who work all day might not be able to make it to a university class, but a remote evening course might be possible. So as can be seen, there are many people who can benefit, but distance education not only helps people, it offers some advantages relative to traditional classroom learning.
Advantages of distance teaching
While no method of education is perfect, there are some big advantages when it comes to remote learning. For one as we have seen in the past few years, it is not always possible for people to attend class in person and that means at the very least having an alternative method is a great advantage for students, teachers, and parents. In addition to that, there are some technical benefits. Learning online means more materials are accessible. It is easy to show students videos, share materials, and other class-related items. This makes online learning more adaptable compared to traditional learning.
What is the purpose of remote teaching?
The main purpose of remote learning is distance. It is not possible to attend lessons or classes in person. This has been demonstrated widely in recent years. For students who can’t come to class, it is a great asset if they can continue their studies without having to be there in person. This is also true not only of students but of people who have to work and otherwise could not be at the class. Distance is not only a factor in terms of illness or being unable to go, but also a boost for those students who live far away such as rural students or students who live in an underprivileged area, or even international students. There are benefits besides the distance aspect though.
For many adult learners, there is no time in their day plan that would otherwise allow them to attend courses in person or online that fall into what is considered a traditional learning time slot. For remote education though, this is ok. That is because when it comes to distance learning, the timing of the course is more changeable or even irrelevant. A teacher can hold a course at 8 pm in the evening for students who also happen to be workers and need to learn when they are not on the job or have to deal with other responsibilities. With distance learning, not only is this possible but time might not even be a factor since the course might not be held at certain times. The courses might be done at the student’s leisure as they watch pre-recorded lessons and assignments.
E-tools for teachers
While distance learning is great for students, there are also a lot of benefits and tools that are available to teachers as well. People often think of distance learning in terms of the students. Especially students sitting at home with their parents during the time of quarantine; however, there is another side of the story. The teachers have to organize online lessons and make sure everything runs smoothly. To do this, they need a myriad of tools and utilities. One of these tools is the PDF. PDFs are document types that can be used alongside a PDF editor to do almost anything. This can be for making tests, quizzes, homework, or even a study guide for the students who are in the course. For remote teaching, PDFs are very useful tools, especially when combined with an online PDF editor such as Lumin PDF.
The other very important tool that has become synonymous with online distance education is video conferencing platforms such as Skype, Zoom, or one of the many other teleconferencing tools that are available. Which one they use depends on the teacher and their preference, but they allow teachers to conduct lessons live online and let students not only see lessons as they might would on some sort of pre-recorded online video lesson but truly be able to interact with the teacher as well as their fellow students. While there are many different types of tools that teachers might use for remote learning. These are some of the more beneficial ones.
