Reporting

In Week 9, T127 was online and asynchronous, with no required whole-class meeting, although participants could choose on-ground learning if they preferred. All the week’s content was organized into nine numbered tabs on the Canvas course website. We navigated the materials by sequentially clicking each tab and completing the corresponding assignments. Additionally, the professor and teaching team provided a detailed checklist outlining learning suggestions and the estimated time required for each step.

Despite the change, my personal study schedule for the week remained largely unaffected. Previously, I attended the course sessions every Thursday from 13:30 to 16:15, and our project team would meet on weekends to discuss the design of our final project — the iteration of the How People Learn (HPL) course. During this past week, we simply swapped the timing of these two activities: our project meeting took place during the regular class time, and I completed the weekly coursework on my own over the weekend. However, I found myself significantly less motivated when engaging in self-directed online learning, which required much more time and energy compared with my usual in-person classroom experience. This less satisfactory experience prompted me to reflect more deeply on the effectiveness of online learning.

Responding

Honestly, this was not the first time I felt frustrated with online learning. Back in June, the online foundational course for graduate students, HPL, became my first real “nightmare” after beginning my academic journey at the Harvard Graduate School of Education (HGSE). Throughout the six-week course, I spent over 20 hours each week watching lecture videos, reading course materials, attending online meetings, and completing assignments. The weekly assignments were typically due by Tuesday midnight. Because of the 12-hour time difference between the United States and China at that time, I had to submit them by Wednesday noon, which often meant sleepless nights on both Tuesday and Wednesday. Each week, after clicking the “Submit” button right before noon, I would feel an overwhelming sense of relief—then immediately fall asleep for the next 12 hours. This exhausting cycle repeated itself week after week until the course finally ended.

In fact, I was genuinely interested in the course content. During my undergraduate studies, I had explored subjects such as pedagogy, learning theories, and education, which had already provided me with foundational knowledge in learner development and learning environment design. I could only imagine how fulfilling it would have been to take this course in person, engaging in meaningful discussions with other HGSE students—some of the most insightful education majors from around the world. Unfortunately, the online learning mode diminished my enthusiasm and turned what could have been an inspiring experience into a rather painful one. These contrasting learning experiences have therefore prompted me to reflect on what went wrong in the transition from in-person to online learning.

Relating

According to the University of Illinois Springfield, educators around the world approach online learning with varying degrees of enthusiasm and concern. While some teaching practitioners hold optimistic views about its potential, others remain skeptical of its effectiveness.

On the one hand, there are several reasons why online programs have become an increasingly popular form of learning in higher education. One major advantage of asynchronous online learning is its ability to provide high-quality educational experiences when geographical distance or scheduling conflicts make in-person learning difficult—or even impossible. Students can access their courses at any time of day, enjoying continuous access to lectures, materials, and discussions. Moreover, online learning environments can foster dynamic interactions between instructors and students, as well as among peers. This format also encourages innovative instructional approaches—such as multimedia lectures, online forums, and AI-assisted learning tools—that enrich learners’ experiences. Consequently, online learning is often praised for its flexibility, interactivity, and creative potential.

On the other hand, despite these strengths and the unprecedented accessibility online education provides, there are inherent limitations that may threaten the success of such programs. First, students must have reliable access to the online learning environment; economic and logistical barriers can easily exclude otherwise capable learners. In addition, both students and instructors must possess at least a basic level of digital literacy to navigate the online space effectively. Furthermore, successful on-ground instruction does not automatically translate into effective online teaching. Without proper training in online pedagogy and delivery methods, instructors may struggle to engage students meaningfully. Therefore, addressing issues related to the digital divide, technological competence, and professional training for online educators is crucial for improving the quality and effectiveness of online learning.

Reasoning

However, in my case, the situation was somewhat different. While online learning can serve as a highly effective alternative mode of education for mature and self-disciplined students, it may not be as suitable for more dependent learners like me. In other words, success in online environments requires students to be well-organized, intrinsically motivated, and capable of managing their time efficiently in order to keep pace with the course demands. Unfortunately, many learners—including myself at times—struggle with maintaining self-motivation and often fall into patterns of procrastination.

Meanwhile, one of the most promising potentials of online learning lies in the high level of synergy that can be achieved through active dialogue among participants—an essential source of learning in virtual classrooms. However, in large-scale courses such as How People Learn, which enroll hundreds of online learners, this synergy tends to diminish along the learning continuum until the experience becomes more akin to independent study. At that point, opportunities for dialogue and interaction between participants and instructors become limited, preventing the medium from being utilized to its fullest potential.

Reconstructing

Building on the previous reflections, it might be wiser for compulsory courses to offer both online and on-campus learning options, as T127 did during Week 9. With such flexibility, learners like me—who are aware of their challenges with online learning—could choose in-person participation instead of struggling through an entirely online format. Moreover, for large-scale online courses, particularly those with hundreds of participants, it is essential to divide learners into smaller groups of fewer than twenty and implement effective classroom management and administrative structures. Only in this way can online courses become meaningful rather than exhausting learning experiences for students.

Inspired by these reflections, our final project in T127 aims to provide learners with both on-ground and online learning tracks, even though our current focus is on designing the online component. We also plan to adopt a small-class teaching model when constructing the learning environment. By making these small yet significant adjustments—and by thoughtfully weighing the strengths and limitations of online learning—we, as learning designers, can be better equipped to navigate the challenges of this emerging educational landscape while embracing the new opportunities it presents.