Proximity in the Online Classroom:engagement, Relationships, and Personalization

Abstract

For those who have taught in the traditional classroom at any level, proximity is understood as a best practice in managing classroom behaviors. The farther away the teacher is from the student the is true, the closer the teacher is to the student the less likely the student will be off task. In its simplest form, proximity can be described in two ways: classroom arrangement and teacher mobility. In the perception of mobility by applying certain actions, that may impact the manner in which students perceive the proximal space within the classroom through various strategies to engage students, creating viable relationships with students, and personalizing the online classroom space. Appendix A outlines approaches and techniques to allow instructors to promote community, formative assessment, and critical thinking, and to clarify and create resources that close the proximal gap.

Exploring Student Perceptions of Flipgrid in Online Courses

“…While the type of interaction between students may look different based on the modality, the intention remains the same-have students engage with each other and the content in meaningful ways. Online instructors have explored different ways to recreate the types of interactions that take place in face-to-face classes-largely because interactive and engaging discussions have been linked to student satisfaction and learning in online courses (Dyer et al, 2018;Guo et al, 2019;Maddix, 2012;Mejia, 2020;Moore, 2014). One of the benefits of learning online is that instructors can leverage multimedia tools in ways that can help create interaction and engagement while also decreasing the transaction distance between learners (Mahmoudi & Gronseth, 2019;Martin, Wang, & Sadaf, 2018;Moore, 2014Moore, , 2016.…”

Procrastination and Delayed Assignment Submissions: Student and Faculty Perceptions of Late Point Policy and Grace

“…Arasaratnam-Smith and Northce (2017) also contend that it can be difficult to create a sense of community for online students. Furthermore, it can be challenging for instructors to maintain proximity and a strong social presence within an online asynchronous environment (Dyer, Aroz, & Larson, 2018). This is important as a sense of community and an in increase in instructor social presence can help aid in student retention (Sorensen & Donovan, 2017).…”

Factors affecting student behavioural engagement in an inquiry-based online learning environment

“…Additional media in the form of videos and animations were also utilised to introduce dynamic representations of concepts linked to text and embedded images. Such forms of technology integration in the online space can facilitate proximity between learners, teachers and learning contents and can in uence student engagement (Dyer et al, 2018). In addition, Miles, Mensinga, and Zuchowski (2018) argue that delivering educational materials in multiple forms can facilitate student engagement, support effective navigation and utilisation of the materials.…”