There’s a term for the anxiety many novice instructors feel about the online teaching-learning environment. It’s called “transactional distance.” This relates to the dissonance of feeling “distant” or disconnected from one’s students when one is used to only teaching face-to-face.
Tisha Bender, in Discussion-Based Online Teaching To Enhance student Learning (Stylus, 2013), identifies the pedagogical components that can mitigate the discomfort of transactional distance (something that potentially affects both teacher and student online). What is interesting to note is that they are the same things that are applicable in the classroom learning environment:
For the student:
Experiencing a sense of belonging
Having a safe place where they can risk learning
The opportunity to learn from others
Feeling self-motivated to learn
Understanding the social environment of the learning context
For the instructor:
Practicing hospitality in the learning environment
Providing a place where respect and affirmation or other’s opinion is affirmed
Providing for collaborative learning
Creating the conditions for learning (interest, curiosity, challenge, and meeting student needs)
Understanding and managing the social environment of the learning context (classroom or online)
All that to say, one way to overcome anxiety about transactional distance is to remember:
- Learning is learning, in whatever context
- Learning is a social phenomenon; pay attention to the important “non-instructional” dynamics of the learning environment and experience
- It is the application of sound pedagogy that makes the difference in the effectiveness of learning (context and modes are secondary)
- The context of learning matters, but no context is perfect and learners have great capacity in being resilient when it comes to contexts of learning
The role of the instructor is critical to effective learning. - Whether you teach in the traditional classroom environment, design a hybrid course, or creating an online learning experience, how well are you paying attention to those factors for successful learning?
Israel Galindo is Associate Dean, Lifelong Learning at the Columbia Theological Seminary. Formerly he was Dean at the Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond. Galindo serves on the Advisory Committee of the Wabash Center and is available as consultant through the Center in the areas of curriculum development and assessment, leadership, and teaching and learning in theological education. He writes for the “Along the Journey” blog of the Columbia Theological Seminary.
