Category: Articles

“Faculty and adjuncts play an invaluable role in connecting students to the institution through communication and interaction with students” (Linardopoulos & Betts, 2011 p.43). Hopefully, you’ve already incorporated some of the tips from the previous tech talks in the introduction and have posted it on Canvas. So, as a new semester is about to begin, and most instructors will have a new group of students in their online classes, it is important to get to know your students by name instead of their ID numbers, and to communicate effectively with them often throughout the semester.  Apart from engaging students through orientation, academic advising and student support services it is critical for online programs to develop and integrate effective communication strategies to connect students to peers, faculty, and the campus (Linardopoulos & Betts, 2011). Constant interaction between the instructor and the students and having interactive communication throughout the semester can alleviate the issue of not being face-to-face. Interactive communication is where the instructor and the students exchange information. It is having an active two-way dialogue that encourages community-building. So, throughout the semester remember to:   Set clear expectations early in the semester.  Create a schedule for interactive involvement.  Respond to students within 48 hours and include some “warmth” in your responses. For example, start by saying “thank you for your email, voice message, […]

Let’s be honest, starting a new semester can be an anxious time for all course participants- including instructors. So, it is necessary to create a trusting, warm, and welcoming environment online to make students feel comfortable and willing to communicate with you and their peers. Student engagement is critical in online courses. It is highly important that instructors be visible and communicate regularly with their students. Savery (2005) mentioned that instructors need to be VOCAL that is: visible, organized, compassionate, analytical and a leader by example. Storytelling- Creating an initial icebreaker discussion board activity is sometimes overlooked, but it really is a great way to “break the ice.” Introduce yourself and ask students to do likewise. This may enable students to feel more comfortable communicating with you and their peers. Tell your story but maintain boundaries that are comfortable for you. Let the students know that you are human and that you were once a student. Apart from your accomplishments, let students know that you are a real person. Record a video of yourself sharing your story of some challenges or struggles that you have experienced. Describe what projects you are working on, books you are currently reading or have read, your […]

We all know that our cars need an alignment service once in a while. But have you thought about the alignment of your course?  Ensuring online course alignment means that all critical course components work together to confirm that your students achieve the stated learning outcomes. You will want to be sure that you have aligned critical course components such as teaching materials, learning activities, assessments, other learning tools. Teaching materials contribute to the learning objectives; Learning activities promote the learning objectives; learning tools support the learning objectives.   Learning objectives form the basis of your course. When you begin the process of creating your online course, the first step is to define learning objectives for the course and then for the Modules, Units or Weeks, depending on how the course is set up. Keep the Learning Objectives Student-Centered  Learning objectives should focus on what students will be able to do, rather than on what the instructor will teach. The learning objectives need to be precisely and clearly stated using concrete and measurable verbs. Objectives that are written with words like “understand”, “know”, “learn”, “realize” are hard to measure. Rather than “understand” we can expect the student to be able to “Interpret”. Instead of asking a student to “know”, we can ask students to “Describe”. These verbs can be measured and require a higher order of thinking on […]

Collecting course materials for set learning objectives is rather straightforward: Chapter readings, Lectures, PowerPoint highlights or notes, Reference Videos and Reference Links. Passive content is necessary, but how are you engaging students? Have you developed points for students to apply what they’ve learned and grow before being assessed, or does your course consist of passive content followed by quizzes and exams? Student engagement and active learning are important for several reasons; not just to keep students involved, but also to help assess where a student’s knowledge lies at a given point in your course, and whether they have met the objectives set for the content. Engagement and active learning are even more important in online environments where there is little to no direct classroom interaction with students. Active learning facilitates: Engaging students, creating excitement around learning content Teacher to Student feedback, Student to Teacher communication and Student to Student interaction Targeting a variety of learning styles Improved assessment of student progress throughout the course Consider using some of the following methods to build Student Engagement and promote Active Learning, particularly after introducing some passive content in your course: Discussion Boards encourage student to student interactions, debate and critical thinking. Instructor involvement […]

In the digital world we are besieged with news reports almost as soon as they occur. Consuming information online is simple, and we have become accustomed to whipping out our smartphones to swipe, scroll, or click our way through to any desired topic of interest. However, some online searches may not provide credible sources of information. Since the coined term “fake news” has made its way into our common vernacular, it has become critical that learners not only understand the influencing powers of video, but to also use critical thinking skills to recognize the difference between what may be true or misleading in the media. Digital literacy is the ability to use technology to create or analyze information. Digital literacies and informational fluency are skills that students of all ages must learn to be successful in college and at work. Instructors can help learners to think critically about the videos they consume through video assignments.  Please click on the button below to reveal a couple of ways to incorporate video as an assignment through SharkMedia and Canvas. Even though many students today may already be comfortable with producing videos, they could still benefit from honing their productions skills by learning […]

Whether you are developing a new course or using a trustworthy template, you can always look for ways to improve course design and course content. The Course Readiness Checklist is a great guide if you are just getting started to ensure your course includes everything it needs. In addition to the Course Readiness Checklist, this Tech Talk will cover some best practices for Course Design and Course Content. Course Design Ease of Navigation Keep access to content or coursework as simple as possible. Ideally a user should be able to get to any content in 3 clicks or less. Keep your content broken down into small, manageable units or modules. Content should be well organized and easy to navigate. Categorizing your content can help avoid clutter. Content folders could include: Reading Assignments Lecture Materials Supporting websites or activities Links to discussion board threads Assessments Clear Instructions Provide students with clear instructions on how to navigate throughout the course. A first time user should be able to enter your course and immediately see an introduction on navigating course content. The instructions, or a link to these instructions, should be available from the start page. Ideally, a link is also included as a menu […]

The discussion board is a tool for sharing thoughts and ideas about class materials. Depending on how you set up your course, you access the discussion board from either the course menu or a course area, such as a content area, learning module, lesson plan, or folder. The main Discussion Board page displays a list of available discussion forums. A forum is an area where users discuss a topic or a group of related topics. Within each forum, users can create multiple threads. A thread includes the initial post and any replies to it. When creating a forum, instructors have the option of allowing or not allowing students to start threads. A moderated, graded forum used to evaluate student performance will be tightly controlled, and you cannot create threads. Other forums are designed for students to share opinions and thoughts on course topics. Course groups can have their own discussion boards that members create using the groups tool. Group discussion boards are available only to users who are members of the group. If a group discussion board is available, students can access it from the groups link in the course menu or in the My Groups area. Here are some […]