Facing the Challenges of Distance Learning

In my short presentation, I will report on how I was thrown into totally uncharted waters when our university was shut down from one moment to the other. Without any official support, I very quickly learned to swim, so to speak. After teaching with a videoconferencing tool for almost three months, I can say that I am extremely grateful that such a tool exists; nevertheless, my attitude towards the use of technology in the classroom has not changed in any fundamental way.

For this panel discussion, I will be talking about the ways in which we have accompanied our teachers during this contingency, the work we have done as a community.

The work our coordination team does with the group of teachers in our language programmes relies heavily on the Ignatian concept (we are a Jesuit University) of “accompanying others” as we face challenges together. This contingency in particular has given us the opportunity to explore these ideas further and learn from and with each other.

This is a posture that supports teacher autonomy to support student autonomy and it does so by putting a focus on doing with others through collaboration and developing discerning skills through dialogue.

Unexpectedly, with next-to-no notice, we were forced to make decisions about the way we approach remote teaching and learning in the context of COVID-19. This included rethinking the increasingly complex challenges of distance learning. This includes not only identifying learning profiles and objectives but also using, proving, adapting or discarding strategies, materials and resources. Our learners are challenged to self-regulate even more than before and to develop abilities to learn under the effects of fear, distress, anxiety and uncertainty. 21st century skills - including empathy, creativity, solidarity, resilience, flexibility, collaboration, autonomy - have to be adapted and cultivated by our students to keep on learning confidently, autonomously and with certainty. For these reasons, it is important to explore ways in which we can guide students through the process of learning to learn while dealing with a world in crisis, at the no-school, at the self-access hopefully, and certainly, to the distance.

With classes being conducted entirely online, many students at Kanda University of International Studies (KUIS) have been thrown into uncharted waters. Unfamiliarity with the technology needed to make online language learning happen, and a sense of disconnection from their peers is making it difficult for learners to stay afloat. As a learning advisor, it is my job to help them learn how to swim (so to speak). However, advising sessions are highly collaborative with each learner bringing their own set of problems, ideal solutions, and differing reactions to the advising process. In my talk, I will break down how collaborative dialogues can help learners to face the difficulties posed by distance learning.