Learning in the Time of COVID-19: Where is Teaching in Online Learning?

As of writing, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that COVID-19 is a pandemic. Countries have locked down. Celebrities and public figures have been tested. Here in the Philippines we scramble for meaning amidst an incomprehensible mandate from the president of a community quarantine. What a wonderful time it is to live and to learn!

One of the many things we can all learn from all these is the transition to online learning. I am proud to say that our learning community has dealt with this change in a well thought out manner. More on that in another blog post. For now, I am sharing a Facebook exchange I had with friends from the Edtech and Instructional Tech disciplines.

I posted the question, where is teaching in online learning? 

Here are the interesting replies:

Johann Frederick A. Cabbab I'd say in the constantly provided feedback towards the outcome initially set.
Johann Frederick A. Cabbab Which is why whether synchronous or asynchronous means easily understood and applicable feedback must be given.

Jamie Bautista Johann Frederick A. Cabbab Agree. Also, if doing a live stream or even a video lecture, the ability for students to give immediate feedback as well (similar to how we react in social media to content) may allow teachers to also adjust their content for better comprehension or more engagement either mid-lecture or for the next session. Difference is this can be done discreetly and simultaneously, unlike in a live class where someone would have to raise their hand and can just be addressed one at a time. Watching how YouTubers do love streams with live chats is enlightening in this regard.

Galvin Radley L. Ngo I think it can be in a couple of things: The careful curation and creation of resources, the design of activities to process the resources and make meaning/ and the sequence of activities (most specially for novice learners), and yes, I agree, in the feedback that students get in both synchronous and asynchronous environments. However, the assumption here (most specially in asynchronous activities) is that the learner themselves would be able to "teach" themselves - so the learner plays a new role - and I think that's quite crucial. If in case it helps, we wrote an article to help guide students :) Hope this helps! https://ateneosalt.org/a-quick-guide-for-first-time.../

Jamie Bautista Imagine also a class discussion, but done as a chat or message thread. It would be a discussion untethered by time where every question can be addressed even a day after it was asked, where the pressure of having to speak in public doesn’t hold back students from asking questions, and visual aids are not fleeting and can be returned to by students without having the whole class stop. The teaching comes in the facilitation of the online discussion.


Maria Criselda Santos Ang plano ko po ay gamitin ang existing FB group namin para doon maglabas ng lecture, in script format, para accessible kahit sa walang data. Q&A sa comments. Worksheets uploaded at pwedeng i-email for submission.

This is going to be a running post given the rise and the demand for online learning methods, pedagogy and resources. Other than COVID-19, I have another series to maintain. Yay! The reason to keep blogging in the time of social media goes on.