Mitigating technical and interaction difficulties in online learning environment

KIT502 Web Development was originally designed for face-to-face teaching within a conversion master program. The unit is focused on implementing a fully functional website requiring technical skills based on the client-server platform. The urgent transition to emergency remote teaching the online delivery mode, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, has challenged usage of the local UTAS server in other countries due to an unstable network connection. To alleviate the challenge, we adopted an open server platform to provide a stable environment for the off-shore students with a concise manual provided. Demonstration videos for practical exercises were made to enhance the understanding of what the open server platform required. It worked as a quick solution; however, we observed reduced student engagement and participation. It was difficult to encourage students to participate fully and interact with peer and teaching staff. We focused on providing the technical support and neglected to attain engagement and participation so that they could learn and go beyond the given. To encourage the students’ interaction and participation in class, we planned to adopt pair programming instead of individual programming for practical exercise. It could enable a more interactive session, and the students could participate fully to broaden their knowledge and experience with the course material [1]. Pair programming allows students to collaborate in solving programming tasks so that they can better engage in the learning experience and develop interpersonal and social skills [2]. Virtual pair programming also can be achieved through the university’s learning management system by sharing their ideas.