Agent Kate Ames (Online Education)

Your lesson, should you choose to accept it, is to explore the diversity of engaging online learning experiences. The special agent assigned to help you with this task is Professor Kate Ames, director of learning design and education, at CQUniversity Australia in Brisbane.

 

When I first started reading Kate Ames’ blog, and contacted her about a possible interview, distance education was a fairly niche topic. Since then, as the world has been attempting to slow the tide of COVID19, this has become a more pressing issue. My hope is that listeners who are currently facing the reality of distance and online education being thrust upon them will feel more confident as they move forward, and that those who are listening in the future where everything has hopefully gone back to normal can be equally intrigued by Kate Ames’ thoughtful practice. 

 

 

In this episode Kate Ames discusses how:

• being a life-long student informs her teaching practice
• distance teaching means being a facilitator and curator of resources
• to get away from the in-class mindset
• to reimagine learning time when students aren’t in class
• not to overwhelm students
• student-centered learning engages reluctant learners
• teachers can deal with criticism in student forums
• online learning promotes diversity
• to monitor and get energy from your class
• to keep expectations clear for students and teachers
• connecting with students is not only possible, but enriching 

 

Links:

• Kate's blog: https://onlineedreflections.wordpress.com/
• Kate's twitter: https://twitter.com/Kate_Ames
• Kate's research: http://cqu.academia.edu/KateAmes
• Kate's book on time management: “Time Management for Academic Impact: Controlling Teaching Treadmills and Tornadoes”

 

Thank you to everyone who has rated and reviewed Lesson: Impossible on iTunes! The podcast made it onto the US charts for the first time, which means more people have the possibility of discovering it and being inspired by my amazing guests. So if you were one of those who rated and reviewed, thank you very much, and if you haven’t already, please consider doing so!

 

A quick note: I had some technical difficulties at the beginning with our voices, but it soon smooths out to normal.

 

Lesson: Impossible’s Website: www.lessonimpossible.com

Lesson: Impossible’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/avivalevin

If you have suggestions for a teacher that would make an inspiring Lesson: Impossible guest, please email me at aviva.levin@gmail.com