Abstract:

Professionals in higher education are often required to use technology in their learning and teaching, adopting unfamiliar approaches and adjusting their current practice to accomodate institutional e-learning tools and technological innovations. Teaching to include an element of e-learning, both blended and online, requires an augmented skill set for the facilitation and delivery of e-learning, alongside an understanding of the paradigm of technology enhanced learning.

As experiental learning constitutes much of teaching professionals knowledge it has served to inform their practice and understanding of teaching in the face to face paradigm. It is the case that many current educators will have little or no personal experience of online learning and as such will not have the required experience to inform their own teaching practice.

This paper is a case study of a number teaching professionals’ experiences upon assuming the role of a student in online environments as an integral part of a short intensive programme. The research explores their reflections on how the event may alter or illicit reconsideration of their own teaching practice using technology.

Keywords:

Online environments, teacher education, undergraduate teaching, professional development, empathy, technology enhanced learning.