Welcome, educators and teaching enthusiasts, to a captivating discussion on a virtue that serves as the cornerstone of effective online teaching: patience.
What is the role of patience in teaching online students? As the world continues to embrace the digital revolution, the field of education has witnessed a rapid transition towards virtual classrooms, unlocking new opportunities and challenges for both educators and students alike.
Photo by Beci Harmony on Unsplash
We will delve into the vital significance of patience in the realm of teaching online students. Beyond the realm of conventional pedagogy, patience emerges as a superpower, empowering teachers to foster meaningful connections, maintain engagement, and cultivate a supportive learning environment in the virtual realm.
Join us as we explore the profound impact of patience and discover invaluable strategies to enhance your online teaching journey.
Patience is a virtue
When schools shut down and opted for online learning, teachers needed to grapple with confidence and facilitate student learning with the utmost efficacy ever.
As for me, online teaching and learning mean a pedagogical challenge to teachers.
“Patience is a fair virtue.” – William Langland, Piers Plowman
Now, being patient when teaching online students shouldn’t be an issue for I know that great teachers know how to establish a genuine connection with the learners. But what does it take to facilitate instructions behind screens?
Teaching online can be made as productive as face-to-face instruction and we have to uphold the role of patience in online teaching. The act of teaching online is overwhelming.
We, teachers, are better known for being so patient in dealing with students and even in different situations in the classroom. But an online setting can be a different story.
In a face-to-face classroom, there are many nonverbal cues that teachers can use to gauge student understanding and keep the class on track. However, in an online setting, these cues are often lost, which can lead to frustration on both the part of the teacher and the student.
Without physical interaction, students just need more and expect a lot from us. Let’s figure out the role of patience when teaching online students.
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<<Aiming for maximum student interaction online? Here’s how you can make your virtual classroom fun.
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Role of Patience in Teaching Online Students
Now, let’s talk about how patience can transform your virtual classroom into a learning environment full of hopes and dreams.
1. With patience, you can engage students positively
Patience allows us to find ways to reach out to our students. With the current situation, we have to remain steadfast with our teaching goals and keep our learners engaged. This requires hard work and enormous patience on our part.
Getting students engaged in online learning can be very overwhelming. However, if you have the patience to delve into different teaching strategies and apply them accordingly, you will find your students enjoying their new learning experiences. This is one of the biggest achievements you have each day if you put a value on the role of patience in teaching online students.
Having this quality affords you to equip yourself with the appropriate beginner-friendly digital tools for learning. And even though the process of acquiring it is also challenging, trust me, with your patience you can best learn how to use Kahoot, Padlet, Animoto, and other platforms and apps that can be useful to assess student learning and to keep them engaged.
2. With patience, you can deal with differences effectively
Being aware of student diversity in the virtual classroom wouldn’t be enough for a teacher to handle differences in culture, religion, gender identity, and family background.
Dealing with differences in the classroom requires teachers to manage diversity with extreme patience and dedication. And getting agitated easily is no patience at all.
All the more, you have to develop culturally responsive instructions in your online class to establish good relationships and rapport.
Greater than ever, the increasing diversity of students brings in enormous differences that need to be managed well. Building a community online can be a lot similar to the physical classroom but there’s always a big difference in how things are in the virtual classroom.
You need to catch effective strategies for inclusive education that can benefit all your students. Again, this calls for your great effort and ultimate patience.
Moreover, helping students to get along with one another in the virtual classroom makes them feel safe and accepted. In the process, you will also be inculcating the virtue of patience in your students which leads to having a positive learning environment imbued with respect and understanding.
3. With patience, you can set high expectations
To highlight successful student online learning, you need to set high expectations for all your learners and not only for a few, just like in a regular classroom.
This establishes a clear framework in the virtual classroom that encourages students to do better and be mindful of learning outcomes. Once again, hold onto the role of patience in teaching students online.
Moreover, if you are patient enough, you can foster learning goals that will guide your students so they become more responsible for their performance and attitudes.
The best time to set expectations is at the very beginning of your online sessions. Thus, the consistency of the implementation should be observed as well so your students comprehend better the virtual learning environment you created for them.
Setting expectations in online learning is a whole new experience for you, I know. But then, with your patience to help students do better, everything good will be possible.
4. With patience, you’ll never give up on your students
Demonstrating your patience in online teaching can be very overwhelming. However, great teachers never give up on their students. I know you do too!
In moments of differences and imperfections in performances, you should not raise your hands to say you give up. Remember, it’s what you are made for!
You should never give up on your students no matter how complicated things may get. One more time, you can always show the best way to learn and to endure with patience.
By being sensitive to your student’s learning needs, you will always find a way to engage them better and let them feel your love and concern.
If a student fails to master the skill, what should be done? Maybe, this requires you to revisit your teaching styles and assess your pedagogies to ensure that your learners will exercise patience and won’t give up either.
5. With patience, you’ll love teaching even more
Your aim is to make learning interesting and engaging no matter how complex the topic is. Thus, making you acknowledge the role of patience in teaching online students.
Planning for the different learning activities insinuating that you love teaching more and more. And, you can’t effectively implement your plans without patience.
Never disregard the role of patience in teaching online students. Sharing what you have with your learners in terms of knowledge and skills will help them thrive in online learning and achieve better.
Teaching them how to learn efficiently instead of teaching them how to get good grades will create an indelible mark in their hearts and minds that you are the teacher they need.
Following that principle will lead you to strive hard to reach out to your learners and the better outcomes will make you love teaching even more.
By teaching your students with great patience, they can easily adjust to online learning and feel comfortable. Remember, your love for teaching isn’t about carrying out lessons each day, but it’s more than that.
Your love for teaching is about making your students love learning and never giving up on their dreams. Further, it’s the work of patience after all!
6. With patience, you’ll strengthen your mission to teach
My patience in teaching children gives me the strength to carry on my mission of creating responsible citizens and successful individuals. I know deep in my heart that teaching isn’t just a job and that it goes beyond that. You should consider that too.
Ours is more than a career. Hence, we need to develop the quality of patience within us so we can become better teachers who can always make the best for our learners.
We should believe in our student’s potential and help them to be at their best. We should be willing to persevere and wait.
If for example, our chosen online platform won’t work, we should be looking for other ways to connect and find solutions instead of giving up and telling students that classes will resume the next day.
With patience, you can always say that today is always the best day. Say it again the next day, and experience perpetual energy in your virtual classroom.
Most Practical Tips for Incorporating Patience into Your Online Teaching Practice
Be clear and concise in your communication with students. When posting announcements or assignments, be sure to include all relevant information so that there is no confusion. If you need to give feedback on a paper or project, be specific about what needs to be improved.
Give students ample time to complete assignments and tasks. In an online setting, there is often a temptation to move too quickly through the material. However, it is important to give students enough time to process information and complete assignments at their own pace.
Respond promptly to student questions and concerns. When students reach out for help, be sure to respond in a timely manner so that they don’t feel ignored or unimportant.
Use technology effectively to keep everyone on track. Utilize features such as discussion boards and chat rooms so that everyone can stay connected and engaged in the material. These tools can also help you keep track of what’s been covered and what needs to be covered.
Give clear instructions. Keep your instructions clear and concise. If you are using technology, make sure you have a backup plan in case it fails.
Make sure everyone understands. Before moving on, make sure everyone understands what was just covered. This can be done through questions and answers, or by asking students to demonstrate their understanding in some way.
Take questions. If a student is having difficulty understanding the material, make sure to take their questions. This can be done through online and offline forums, or through a private messages.
Concluding Thoughts
Teachers can’t just fulfill their passion without patience. I believe that is so. Being a teacher for years, I have encountered glorious and miserable days in the classroom but I never allow myself to wallow in frustrations.
Can you name another situation in online learning that needs patience? How do you exercise patience in teaching online students? Share your thoughts below and I will be patiently waiting as I am always excited to read about them.
