Trust is a powerful word! It means and
implies many things. I think people often assume that safe and trust go together. Most of the time they do go hand in hand. I can be assured in many things that I trust, I will be safe or
safest. An example would be, if I keep
my tires at the correct air pressure and not worn out, I trust that I should be able to
drive safely on them. What I can't
account for is the nail in the road that might change the safety level of my
tire. I can plug the nail hole, but
I'll always have a little doubt in the back of my mind about that hole. I no longer trust that my tires are at the same level of safeness.
I can take this same thinking and bring it
into the classroom, live or online. When
a student enters a learning space, I think most students believe that it is a
safe space. Once a student's gets to know how a teacher operates, what they can
expect from the teacher and what the teacher expects from them, there is a
feeling that this is a safe place to learn and I trust this teacher enough to
share my ideas. Of course it's not as
simple as that. Students want to know a little
something about the teachers when they meet them. They often want to share a few things about
themselves too. To truly trust someone, we want to know who they are and how
they think. We want to believe that what
we say is valued. Trust sometimes takes
time. And just like that tire, if a
unexpected negative behavior toward a student comes from an educator, getting
the trust back can be tough. It might
get better over time, but probably won't be the same. So we have to be careful how we treat the
relationships with students, so that they believe we value their thoughts and ideas,
even when we don't agree. Norms should
be established and respect should always be expected from anyone entering the
space, live or online.
The challenges of the online class are that
many of the nuances of being in the same physical space are lost. You don't know that Ms. BB drinks coffee
every morning, like your mom or that she wears cowgirl boots, just like you,
both of which give you a certain level of comfort. Seeing someone and forming ideas and opinions
about them through their physical presence can be a positive or negative
attribute of the learning experience.
Obviously, being physically present isn't a necessity, but it likely plays
into the psyche of many students, without their even knowing it, if they are
taking an online course for the first time.
This can be especially challenging,
if the course is all asynchronous. Never having an opportunity to put a face or
voice with an instructor can be intimidating.
I would suggest that any opportunity to make face to face contact should
be attempted, at least once.
A few of the things that have helped me to
feel safe and trusting of the instructors are the following:
- · Post your photo (if not synchronously meeting)
- · Tell me about yourself
- · Make a video
- · Have clear instructions and guidelines for the course (I don't want to be blindsided with a last minute assignment. Who does?)
- · Participate in the students threaded discussions.
- · Discuss your experiences as they pertain to the topic.
- · Allow open and inclusive discussions.
- · Keep lines of communication open.
- · Let's be real! It's 2017. People Google people. Make sure, as an educator, as a professional, that students looking you up are going to find some positive things about you. Have a professional site, a blog, a LinkedIn or something that can reinforce your credentials and experience.
- · Be honest!
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