The Lighthouse Diary #18: Volcanic Eruption and E-Learning

Where we live and work is 27-40 km from Taal, Batangas. The eruption of the volcano has left many of us afraid, insecure, nervous, unsure and “shookt”. Leadership and School Administration are up and about mitigating clean up of campus, checking on members of the community and setting up of an area to relocate students so that learning continues. Somewhere in the midst of the chaos, we are all striving to bring back a sense of permanence into our lives. 

One of the many decisions we made as a learning community last week was to use e-learning and distance education with face-to-face sessions among our junior and senior high school students. We are making use of several e-learning platforms and social media tools to facilitate teaching and learning. Life has to go on. 

As the Teacher Librarian, my role now as content curator and e-learning resource person comes into play more than ever. My staff and I began identifying library administrative work that can be converted into a virtual platform. Right now, I am in touch with school librarians in the south and in the Makati area seeking support and activating networks for learning. If there is one thing I learned from facing natural disasters, it is to look at it straight in the face, roll with the punches and fight back when it is not looking.

I cannot help but pause and think back on the many e-learning experiences I had in the past. How do I channel this experience as concrete actions to further help and support colleagues? Technology is evolving but, a common thread or pattern can be found in its matrix. It’s time to read and do some research and development. 

So here are links on e-learning and Blended Learning which I discovered and trawled online. Expect a part two of this post or a series. 

Let’s begin with e-learning and why it matters  The link is a chapter from an ebook that discuss e-learning basics, history, pedagogy and applications in business and in the corporate world. For the full e-book, follow this link Introduction to e-Learning. The ebook is available for download in PDF format. There is a chapter on Blended Learning with discussions on ways  to use it as an approach with tools for classroom instruction.

Scholastic has a blog article where in different models of Blended Learning are described. Education Elements has a video showing why it is necessary to rethink traditional teaching and where Blended Learning come into play as an instructional innovation. The role of the teacher changes too. From a sage on the stage to a guide on the side, a mentor who is a companion of the learner or an architect of learning environments, the teacher, at this juncture needs to collaborate with different departments in the learning community to reach a sense of fulfillment and succeed in some measure. This natural disaster leaves everyone with no other choice but to face these challenges and work together. 

I am ending this post with an infographic on Blended Learning. There is going to be a part two of this post. Definitely.