My own DLE’s are generally restricted to work and study – I use the Google Classroom platform for work and the CSU platform for study. I like the Google Classroom because you’re not overwhelmed by everything else but the CSU platform is more cohesively designed for online study. My students also use Google Classroom to access their work and to submit assignments. The main frustrations of going digital is being able to help students engage and our familiarity with audio and video tools to provide lessons. I am also hesitant about having a video or audio recording running while I am teaching face-to-face as I don’t wish to have parents criticising the flow of the lesson or while I am dealing with a behaviour management issue. I would love to see more accessible forums available in the Google Classroom rather in addition to the ‘Facebook style’ posting feed it has now. Being able to have the forums easily accessible would be great.
Instilling the need for regular, reliable and responsible behaviour for learning is hard enough face-to-face, trying to do this online would be really hard. I think students need to be familiar with the concept of online learning for a long period of time to try and replicate the preferred type of behaviour. Behaviour within a DLE is being able to participate in discussions, be prompt with the viewing or reading of materials and generally speaking, having the ability to complete the work in a timely manner. Having checklists that the students can update themselves can help as they are then – in part – accountable for their progress.
My experience with social media for learning is limited. I agree that it has it’s place and can be useful; however, I do feel that it should be used with a grain of salt. Many of what is said online can be taken the wrong way and could result in bullying or harassment online.