Hello everyone,

I just completed the EL 103 course and this course provides great insight to constructing and online course. I was very pleased with the content and concise material shared. The course answered areas I had questions about and confirmed the latest development in curricular design.

After this course we have implemented a distance education certificate program that utilized much of the pedgagogy covered in the course. I felt much more prepared to be at the helm of this new venture.

Much of what I have learned was knowledge that I developed during the 7 years I have been teaching in the online environment. Perhaps this information would have been most beneficial "before" I started teaching online rather than after 7-8 years of teaching online. This material merely reinforced what I have experienced.

One tip I use often is that when I get a question from student I add it to a Frequenlty Asked Question list when I expect other student to have the same question.  Then I email that list to all students.  This helps the students signifcantly since it lets them be aware of issues with the class they may have.

Darren Tennyuk

As an online instructor, I have the privilege of helper others achieve their goals and dreams.

It is often very helpful for the instructor to provide recorded tutorials on each assignment. These deal with the specific aspects of the assignment. They may be recorded during office hours with students in attendance to provide feedback. Once recorded they are available 24/7 in the classroom to help tutor students. At the end of each session students are encouraged to contact the instructor with more questions if needed. Dr. James F. De Bouno Jr., ND, PhD

I am really excited about the things I learned in this course. I feel that it will be better prepare me to be an online instructor. I can take the same kind of enthusiam and excitement that I have in my on-ground classes and bring them into an online setting. I feel that with the values taught on this evening, I can now step out of my comfort zone and pursue online teaching.

Lisa Thomas

I usaually use the 5-1 method. When 5 students post I post something in response by asking open-ended questions. 

I have noticed when I teach at other schools, if I have students who are always active in class that they love receiving an email from me telling them that they are doing a great job. In addition, students who are not so active typically will get a message as well. Some of them will respond with a thank you for reminding me message, or they will let me know that they will be completing the assignments soon.

Just as it happens in the brick and morta classrooms, so too does conflict happen in the online classes. Emotions can be transmitted acrosss thousands and thousands of miles. I have had online instructors who were very rude and whose personality comes off all wrong. Respect is nessary for good rapport. I have had students in my classes who were intimidators, but I had to maintain my emotional intelligene and be the unflinching leader I need to be, while at the same responding respectfully to the intimidators. The human entitity is always a challenge.  

I completed serveral on-line courses to acquire my undergraduate degree.  This being said, as an on-liner student it allowed me the insight that I need to be able to facilitate an on-line course. 

You need to practice what you will eventally teach.  It  Helphs.

EL 103 was a good reinforcement of main elements of online course development; quizzes were challanging!

While facilitation is the overall goal, keeping a close eye on individual student progress is also key, as some students may treat your online course as a static CBT, not time-bound and essential to their learning.  Periodic feedback and encouragement will help bridge this concern.

I guess this is an example of asynchronous learning. I have actually completed a degree online. I had one professor who did everything we just read about. It was the worst learning expereince I ever had.

This course has increased my knowledge in building rapport with students.  It has allowed me to self-evaulate and explore ideas that will help me to be more effective in the classroom environment. 

Online learners may only have access to higher education through online learning.  This may be their only experience with any sort of college or higher education.  I feel this should be kept in mind when communicating with them.  Going the extra mile or providing greater detailed or more indepth information may be critical to keep them engaged, active and on the right track.

I have always found that humor is an important factor in any classroom. While I always keep things focused on te task at hand, I like to inject humor whenever possible. Students tend to feel more at ease, and I find that they often remember much more of the material presented. Sometimes I tell funny anecdotes related to the material, or I poke fun at myself when I accidentally make a mistake. Whatever the method, it is the fastest way I have found to grab their attention, and keep it. Here is a great article related to this subject:

http://www.nea.org/tools/52165.htm… >>>

What a wonderful course. I can honestly say I learned more in this course than in most of the others as I can apply so much of it to my classes oniine.

This course will provide you with a basic overview of the background and history of the popular instructional method called active learning. This method differs greatly from traditional educational methods such as the lecture model. Active learning has a definite place in American higher education especially in the online learning environments. It is used to support teaching outcomes like critical thinking skills, interpersonal skills and knowledge acquisition that… >>>

When we started our online program, there was alot of uncertainty. Not only was it new for us as instructors but it was a totally new approach for the students. It started out very complex and not so user friendly. The students needed codes that only worked half the time and it became a real challenge. We took the bull by the horns so to speak, and totally reformatted our program. Now the students no longer have the need for codes, and the entire program is really easy to access. We have seen more students signing up and more instructors… >>>

After taking this course, I will certainly strive to introduce into my curriculun some form of gamification.  I think it would be fun and competitive for the students to learn culinary objectives in a new way.  Our class time is my only limitation,  since lectures on new material is  essential to classroom material along with power points and "production time".  I will certainlt do my best to include some form of gamification into my learning style.  if any culinary teachers are out there and have sugestions, I am all ears.