Educators are increasingly incorporating online platforms into the learning system. This is to break from the traditional teaching methods and also to provide better education. Students can now receive the same quality of learning, whether they are at home or at school. They can go through individual modules at their own pace since all the units and quizzes are online.
Different online platforms have various features, which makes the choosing process difficult and time-consuming. An excellent online education platform should cater to the students, instructors, and any other desired third party, such as the guardian. It should make the teaching process more manageable. When choosing, here are some features that a platform should provide.
1. User-Friendliness
How easily can learners and instructors log in to the platforms? For example, when college students research on queries like, do my essay for me, they expect immediate and fast solutions for their papers. Similarly, when students input their login details, they should have easy access to online resources without depending on the tech team. The navigation system on the platform needs to be easy to understand. Students should have simple access to the learning resources, and instructors should moderate learning with just a few clicks. For assurance, you can test run the platform before picking or include a tutorial section on the forum for guidance.
2. Diverse Learning Methods
The main goal of getting an online education platform is to diversify learning methods. If the online platform you are using offers limited resources, it defeats the objective. With the advanced educational technology in the modern world, you should have an online platform with high performing training management systems. There should be very few limits to the engagement with learners. Instructors should have a wide choice. They can choose to do face to face sessions, upload videos, audios, images, among other teaching methods.
3. Collaboration Tools
Apart from offering courses and quizzes, an online education platform should promote social learning. This involves group discussion, live video chats, and other learning methods that involve interactions among learners or educators. Interaction enriches the learning process as they can learn from each other’s strengths. Such platforms encourage teamwork since students learn to take collective responsibility. They solve tasks together, make mistakes, and share their insights. Tools such as message boards allow students and teachers to have real-time interactions. Other collaboration tools include shared tables, video conferencing, team rooms, group calendars, shared screens, etc.
4. Responsiveness
Access to eLearning should be through various electronic devices and not limited to computers. Learners and instructors should have access to other screen sizes like in mobile phones and tablets. The orientation of the platform should change to suit the needs of every device. For example, images may resize automatically to fit the small screen of a mobile phone or enlarge when one logs in using a computer. Having a responsive design saves on the need to have varying layouts for different devices. It also ensures continuous learning.
5. Security Standards
Content that educators work hard to put on online platforms should be secure. It is intellectual property; thus, they have all the rights to it. Therefore, there should be limitations on access. One way to ensure this is to ensure only students and teachers can log in to the platform. The platform should have numerous backup systems for online resources. Information on the students and instructors also needs backup. You can also insist on a two-factor authentication system since most people have the same login details for numerous platforms. When a hacker has the login details, they need a unique code, which is sent to the mobile phone for access. This makes user logins alone useless.
6. Adaptability
How applicable is the online education platform in the future? You may get hung up on finding the perfect venue for your current needs and forget about the future. Find out if it is scalable in the case of functionality and the number of users. Ask about the provider’s development game plan to know if they can grow with you. In terms of functionality, consider the resources provided and the projected improvements.
Conclusion
Needs can vary depending on the attributes of the instructors, learners, and institution. For example, the needs of a kindergarten pupil will differ vastly from those of a university student. Students with disabilities such as the visually impaired also have special needs. Thus, put their requirements in mind and pick the best learning interface. It’s not a works for all situation. The most basic need is ease of use. It is impractical to have a platform where you take half of the lesson time to add pupils to the class. Carry out many tests before making the vital decision since most contracts bind you for about 12 months or more before you can switch.
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