by David Moglen

Created on: January 19, 2009   Last Updated: January 27, 2009

For those considering entering the education field, teaching in a digital age can be daunting to the non-technologically-savvy majority. When making career decisions, educators must overcome their fears of rapidly emerging educational technology.

Thankfully, there are a number of similarities in the applications of different teaching platforms that various educational institutions use. Knowing what to expect should put even the most computer-averse educators at ease.

As you familiarize yourself with your e-learning options, realize you do not have to use every option (some of these are "bells and whistles") that the platform offers. Some of the basic elements usually included will be the ability to upload documents for your students and communicate to the class.

The documents you upload could include articles, assignments, outlines, and practice quizzes. The communication methods are typically an email and announcements. When using announcements, the platform may list the oldest announcement first, expecting students to scroll to the bottom of the page to find your latest communication. If this is the case, don't use the function as students will only see the first few announcements you make in any term.

As for special features, audio, video, or diagrams on a digital whiteboard are often available. If you want to, go ahead and use them, but don't feel like you must use any or all of them every week.

Inquire if the school's IT department offers a website for teachers where they can just upload documents. Single-page websites have an added bonus because you can write a note in a prominent place for your students.

The usefulness of instructional technology is as a support function, with classroom instruction as the vital core. My classes have the simple website where students get outline-style notes, assignments, links, and the syllabus. Students are told to access the class site several times per week.

Purely web-based courses are more problematic. No matter how good the technology gets, there is always something more that most students get from being in the same room with a teacher. Despite email, a chat feature, and the synchronous learning option, many students will not feel comfortable typing questions. In a wholly web-based class, you will have to accept these limitations.

As soon as possible, have the technical staff get you started. Try posting a document and the special features. Keep in mind that with educational technology, there are large fixed costs in your initial time investment. Conversely, the time investment for each subsequent class is much less. You still have to update and improve your content if you want to be exceptional, but the future time investment will never be as much as your effort when you are just getting started.

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