Blog #8: Less is More
- Makenna Carlson
- Feb 27, 2023
- 2 min read
COVID came with a lot of consequences, most of them not too great. At first glance, it is hard to imagine any good things that could have resulted from a worldwide pandemic. However, I think at least one blessing in disguise, was how COVID forced educators to really tap into all of the amazing online resources we have available to us. As a missionary during that time, I was an educator of sorts, teaching about the gospel online. We were able to meet with way more people because of the lack of time required to travel to and from appointments, we invited our friends to virtual tours of Temple Square as well as baptisms where they could watch from the comfort of their homes. I believe there were many similar advantages found in secular education as well. On returning home and starting school again, although we were back in person, I noticed how teachers provided us with many more virtual resources like videos they had made in the previous year and a half, more online programs were being used, including some I had never heard of before, and on the occasions where I have fallen sick and did not have the opportunity to attend class in person, making it up was way easier than ever before. While I still think in-person teaching is better than all online, I think the use of online resources both in class and as homework can greatly enhance students' education.
When using all of these online resources, however, it is important to apply the multimedia theory. I have many personal experiences I can recall where I am sitting in class as my teacher uses a powerpoint presentation to explain something. The only issue is that each slide on the powerpoint has a bajillion words, I might as well have just read the whole textbook. I am hardly focusing on the teacher's words, because I am trying to read the screen behind her, but since I am pulled between the two, I do not comprehend either. The classes that I do retain information best is when the teacher presents a powerpoint with a few words, perhaps bullet points, with pictures and videos to complement. Then, the words spoken expound on what we are seeing, and all of these different types of input work together to help us understand the necessary concepts and come closer to today's learning objective. I know in my future classroom, I want my students to experience the second of those two scenarios.
Hey Makenna. this is really awesome. I totally understand how hard it is to really want to get something out of class when it is boring and there is too much going on. I feel like Power Points sometimes get turned into glorified multimedia textbooks. I feel like there is much untapped potential with our ability to use technology as a means of improving learning rather than hinder it and I feel like our experiences with Google Classrooms is a great example of that. I think its important to teach our students but teach them authentic and real-life scenarios, so they can be better suited to not only excel in the workplace but innovate in all that they do!
I agree that the pandemic had bad and somehow good effects. It was hard to see it at first but I realized that it has really helped people to become more creative and resourceful. For me personally, it has helped me appreciate my life and the things that I have. I am glad that I was able to continue with my education even if it was online. I agree that it was easier to make up with classes and assignments because everything was online. I can relate with your experience having a teacher who had slides with almost like paragraphs on them. I also prefer having slides with pictures and just bullet points with keywords or main concepts about the…
Thanks for sharing Makenna! I loved your share about how the pandemic has been a blessing in disguise. This is an optimistic view for me. I agree with you about the online resources that have helped us to save time on the road so that we can save more time to do more things. I also like the example you gave about how supplementing with pictures and videos can better help students improve their focus and interest in learning than a slide with many words.