1.2.1 Online teaching materials

All universities, whether online or at a campus, provide learning and teaching materials/resources for students online, for example, through a virtual learning environment or learning management system. The difference with online universities is that these online resources become the focus for your studies, and it is likely that the core materials for your course will be presented online. You should be able to access course materials on your smartphone or tablet, as well as on your laptop or PC. This makes it easier to study wherever you are.

Some online libraries you might want to try out are:

• Ministry of Education Student & Teacher e-Library [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)]
• Burma/ Myanmar library
• Ministry of Education online library.

In addition, you should have access to online resources such as podcasts, videos, computer software and interactive teaching materials; and many courses will have a dedicated website. You can also communicate with your tutor and other students through forums, email and online conferencing. Online libraries can make thousands of online journals, ebooks, databases and multimedia resources available for you to tap into, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, whenever you need them and wherever you are.

Think about the way you search and use information online and the learning that you already do. How much information do you read online and how do you communicate with your friends? When you are learning formally online, you will need to consider how best to engage with the materials you are provided with, and how you should look up information and communicate with others. Look at the following examples of activities associated with formal online learning. What type of hardware (laptop/computer, tablet, smartphone) do you think will best suit the type of learning you might be doing?

• reading and engaging with course material
• reading a journal article
• looking up definitions and technical terms
• keeping up with your study timetable
• chatting with other students online
• contacting your tutor
• posting ideas to an online tutorial.