Online Teaching & Project-Based Learning: Towards an Emerging Online Pedagogy
Last month I gave an invited talk for the 3rd DCT Virtual Week with STEM women scientists offered by the Portucalense Univerisdade’s Department of Science and Technology (Porto, Portugal). It is always quite energizing to speak about my academic work in my first language, Portuguese. Participants were both from Portugal and Brazil.
The session titled “Online Teaching & Project-Based Learning: Towards an Emerging Online Pedagogy” discussed key societal shifts in a pandemic world that demand for online pedagogies that foster engagement and collaboration. This talk explored current issues in online learning and teaching and their relation to project-based learning. It described online learning experiences designed and delivered with this approach in mind. It ended with an examination of experiential e-learning as an emerging online pedagogy. Especially in more applied areas, such as educational technology, online courses ought to offer learning activities that push the boundaries and expose online learners to real-world encounters with professional-like situations.
Experiential e-learning builds on the Kolb’s experiential learning cycle where four learning modes—concrete experience, abstract conceptualization, reflective observation, and active experimentation—are organized into a cyclical pattern. Experiential learning in higher education is often approached through case analysis, role-playing, and live or computer simulations. These activities allow learners to apply what they are learning to new situations and to learn by doing. But they lack the messiness of reality because they neglect critical relationships that can only be encountered when working in real contexts.
Related Publications & Resources on the topic were shared with the audience. Most of the references are in Portuguese and Spanish and were curated to offer a multilingue collection of resources on project-based learning, experiential learning, authentic online discussions, emergency remote learning, principles of online education, and cyberculture.
For more information check:
presentation slides in English
session recording in Portuguese