Have you ever heard of the term “online teacher”? The idea of a teaching methodology using digital platforms has been evolving and becoming increasingly popular.
Due to the evolution of these technologies, new market needs, and many other reasons, distance learning has been growing exponentially for years, bringing together more and more students, educational institutions, and teachers. As a result, the popularity of online teachers is also growing.
But how can a profession as traditional as teaching adapt to an increasingly modern world full of digital interactions? In this article, we'll tell you all about the work of an online teacher and, more importantly, if you have a new project to teach online.
Table of Contents
What is distance learning and how does it relate to online teachers?
ODL stands for Distance Education, an online teaching model. This means that learning takes place at a distance, especially via the Internet. So students don't need to be in the same environment as their teachers.
This teaching model is possible thanks to the use of various types of technology, such as virtual learning environments, which allow educational content to be transmitted via digital platforms.
As well as distance learning being positive for students, who in many cases can create their timetable and adapt teaching to their needs, the distance learning market is also positive for teachers, who can work to create lessons that will be consumed online.
Who is an online teacher?
Imagine a classroom full of tables and chairs placed side by side, occupied by different students looking straight ahead, where a teacher is writing something about the subject being taught on a large board.
You've probably lived through the experience described in the previous paragraph, whether as a child, in high school, or even at university. But what about the experience of having lessons at home, at work, on the bus, or on the subway, directly from a computer screen or a cell phone?
Little by little, the figure of the traditional teacher is being complemented by that of an online teacher. This doesn't mean that teaching as we know it is ending or will end, just that distance learning is occupying a very important place in the country's education.
With the demands of an increasingly competitive job market and people's fast-paced routines, online teaching presents itself as a very suitable alternative for new studies, training, and specializations. That's why online teachers can find a new and fertile market to exploit in this traditional area of education.
An online teacher is very similar to a traditional teacher in that their responsibility is to pass on knowledge to their students.
The difference is that the traditional teacher gives their lessons in physical classrooms and the online teacher uses the resources of the Internet to give lessons without being physically present in the same environment as their students.
What kind of content does the online teacher teach?
Alluding to the classroom as we have known and experienced it for so long, it may seem that the distance teacher is restricted only to the classic subjects, such as English, Mathematics, Geography, and Biology, but it is possible for any type of knowledge to be shared, not just that learned on a university course.
Of course, educational institutions, especially those in higher education, can benefit greatly from distance learning, but many professionals can launch themselves into this market by exploiting the potential of free courses.
The Internet has made it possible to break down various barriers to facilitate the sharing of content and information. To be an online teacher, all you need is a thorough knowledge of the content, a desire to spread your knowledge, and find people who are interested in what you have to share.
Free courses
In general, free courses are shorter courses that focus on more specific learning. They aim to train specific skills and are therefore quite varied in terms of the topics available. You can find free courses ranging from languages to crafts. That's why, from a market point of view, they have so much potential.
Are you thinking of working with your passion and knowledge?
How to be a good online teacher?
Just as a good teacher in the traditional teaching model is extremely fundamental to students' learning, a good online teacher will be one of those responsible for the success of your distance-learning students!
Even with all the advances in technology, the online teacher still has the main role when it comes to teaching, after all, it is they who will pass on their knowledge and be the gateway for students to get into the content proposed by the course.
We've already said that with the will, the content to teach, and a bit of practice, anyone has the potential to be an online teacher. If you want to teach what you know to other people and work with your knowledge, here are some tips on how to be a successful online teacher.
1. Know your students' needs
In the face-to-face model, a good teacher can pay attention to their student's behavior, notice if they are experiencing any difficulties, if they are afraid to speak up in class to ask a question, or if they have the knowledge they need to advance in the content.
The same competence is important for distance learning teachers. You need to be aware of how students are coping in class because a student isn't always able to explain exactly what their difficulties are. Only then will you be able to help your students, regardless of the situation.
2. Review your method
Just as it's important to look at your students, it's also important to look at yourself. Make it a constant task to analyze yourself, review your methodologies, and strive to be an ever-better professional.
Think about the way you teach and try to see if your method achieves the goals you have set for yourself. Also, try to be open to receiving feedback from your students so that you can improve over time. After all, more than anyone, a teacher must understand that learning is constant, it never ends.
3. Plan your lessons
To achieve any goal, you need to plan! The same is true in the classroom because remember that your main objective is to get your students to learn the subject content.
You must have a good plan for the content you're going to teach during the course, to ensure that deadlines are met and that students learn better. What's more, with an initial plan, it will be easier to follow the first step of understanding your students and their difficulties and making adaptations to the plan if necessary.
And not just for the course as a whole, lesson-by-lesson planning is essential to the success of your methodology. Drawing up a lesson plan is a task that every teacher should carry out before each lesson.
After all, it is this document that will guide you in the process of preparing lessons, during the lesson and even afterward, to measure whether the objectives set have been achieved.
4. Be open to talking to your students.
As well as building a good relationship with your students, being open to listening to them and talking to them can bring several other advantages!
We've already talked about the importance of knowing how to listen to feedback, learn from it, and evolve, right? By making space to talk to your students, this feedback will come much more naturally and positively!
You can't force anyone to talk if you're not genuinely interested, so your role is simply to make it clear that you're available to students and that they can come to you to talk openly about the lessons, their expectations of the course, and other issues that are relevant to the success of the course.
3 advantages of being an online teacher:
Being an online teacher can have several advantages. Here are some of them:
1. Flexibility
Online teachers have flexibility in two main aspects: flexibility of schedule and flexibility of location. This is because professionals who teach virtual classes can work from wherever they want and at whatever time they prefer.
As the lessons will be recorded, it is possible to make the recordings at any time of the day and from anywhere in the world, so it is less complicated to organize the schedule, get used to imposed timetables, and even the need to move from one place to another every day no longer exists.
2. Scalable profits
An online teacher's lessons are broadcast over the internet, which allows for more scalable profitability.
This scalability comes about because, as the lessons are distributed virtually, more people can have access, giving volume, and at a faster hiring rate, increasing speed.
Classes are usually recorded and made available on an online platform, so anyone can take an interest in your content and acquire it in a few clicks.
3. Do what you love!
Perhaps one of the greatest advantages of being an online teacher is being able to talk about a subject you know and love. Who wouldn't want to work with what they love every day? What's more, you can pass on content so that more people can learn and find out about a particular subject.
Remember that there will always be interested people. That's why an online teacher can talk about any subject! From financial investment lessons to cooking, drawing, or gardening classes, for example.
3 disadvantages of being an online teacher:
We've already talked about the main advantages of being an online teacher, but as with almost everything in life, there are also disadvantages. You'll have to weigh all the factors in the balance and then it will be easier to decide whether or not you want to follow in the footsteps of this type of teacher.
1. Leaving the job market
This is perhaps the biggest fear of people who have a formal job and want to work online: the fear of losing ground in the job market.
As an online teacher, you won't have the advantages that a conventional, salaried job offers. However, you have to bear in mind that even if you work online and not in a classroom, you will be a source of knowledge for many people.
What's more, it's not because you're working in distance learning that you'll stop practicing a profession, as this type of activity is increasingly common for many professionals.
2. Learning new tools
Advantages for some, and disadvantages for others, either way, as an online teacher, you will need to be able to deal with new tools and constantly keep up to date.
You will need to familiarize yourself with the tools available to create your course and bear in mind that these tools will change from time to time, bringing with them more and more new features. You therefore need to study and test new features as they appear.
3. Loss of contact with other professionals
In a traditional job, contact with other professionals is more recurrent and even routine, since in a school or even an office, you are surrounded by other people working in the same environment as you.
When you start a job on the Internet, contact with other professionals is lost if you don't seek it out. The tip here is to be proactive, talk to other people who are in the same situation as you, and thus continue to maintain a powerful cycle of contacts.
The Internet has made our interactions much easier. – our interactions. Nowadays, we can share content with people from different parts of the world at any time of the day. This is very positive and can be used to help people in every corner of the planet.
Conclusion
Have you ever imagined that the knowledge you have inside you could be useful to someone else?
How about venturing into this world and becoming an online teacher? As well as sharing knowledge, you can also turn it into a source of income, you know?
Do you have questions or suggestions? You can leave them in the comments!
Share this post to help spread the word!