The 2 most effective teaching patterns would be communication and question and answer. Communication done well will enable students to grasp the course content and their expectations. Questions and answers will allow students to reach out to the instructor, form an academic relationship with them, enhance their understanding, and feel a part of the virtual impersonal classroom.

Hi Everyone!! When deciding which of the multitude of virtual online classroom enhancers to include in your classrooms - it might be helpful to think about your student demographics. Not all students who enroll in online classes have the latest technologies or latest programming in their computers. They may not be able to access or utilize these technical gadgets! Ask me how I know.... :-) Marti Kessack

I am strongly inclined to support the claim that teaching in an online environment is much more demanding than teaching in a traditional classroom environment, the primary reason being that,as Instructors, we have to perform our duties from a distance.

We all see messages from students who have intense personal situations and we have to assume that there are plenty of students who prefer to keep those personal situations to themselves, rather that share with an instructor. That said, sometimes what a student needs is an offer of help in a different form.

I beleive that if you send a welcome email before the first course starts giving them ways to contafct you and making yourself available no matter what time zone they are in. I believe that if they know and understand that they cna contact you anythime it gives them a sense of comfort.

Agreed on all points, James. The didactic learning component can be taught in an online environment; however, online instruction cannot yield the desired results for high risk situations, examples of which you have mentioned. Another example would be operation and maintenance of military systems.

Make a good first impression

use technology to improve your students way of teaching.

Resolving conflicts in the online environment can be an easy or taxing job, depending on the issue. I have learned that having policies in place can sometimes put out fires quickly and promptly. I have also seen even when policies are clearly stated that you cannot come to a quick compromise. Sometimes it has to go up to higher administration to help resolve, but knowing what the policies are up front can help aide in everyone remaining professional and operating in the best interest of the student and the institution. Monique

I find both avenues rewarding and provide a benefit to all students. It provides a chance to speak what may be difficult to write and write what may be difficult to speak. Both avenues shape the students and aid in their development and growth. Thank you for your feedback and thoughts. Monique

I think that when working on-line it is important to respond to each and every student in a timely fashion. Communication is key and we(instructors) have to be aware that we can lose the student without it.

I use the Rubrics grading system with my online students. Its much easier to give them feedback on what area of their learning skills they need to focus on. With each student it is different. I like to keep a hardcopy of the rubrics system per student not only to give them feedback but also show them what they are improving on as well.

Making sure organization of the syllabus as well as being articulate in presenting the syllabus in a very understanding manner to the class is crucial. If the student understands his/her tools needed to complete the courses at hand as well as understanding what their assignments are, they will feel comfortable and confident in completing their course work. When a student feels confident and comfortable they put forth the effort needed, hence, advancing their skills.

As we all know, it is important not only to be able to build an online course for our students, but making sure the students are understanding the delivery of the content and what is needed for our students to learn. Organization along with course content I feel is not only very important to our delivery but also very important to the students on the recieving end, making sure the students understand how to navigate the online course as well as understanding the ease of the content and the assignments is crutial to their learning process. Therefore, organization along with understandable content to the students is also very beneficial.

I have had many "noisey students" in my classrooms. They seem to always think they know more than anyone else and try to correct others in the discussion forums. It is important to redirect these students and make sure they don't try to take away from what the other students say. Emailing them privately works well and having them answer additional questions is also helpful. Thanks, Denise

I have had a difficult time having student attend my chats on a weekly basis. And when they do come it usually is to ask for an extension for an assignment. I wonder if having a specific topic to talk about each week would help. However, I don't want students to think they can't talk about anything else in the forum. What do you think? Thanks, Denise

This module showed me a great deal about establishing authority. I had no idea that my biography concering my education and experience would provide this. I always thought this was a way for students to connect with me and not a way to show authority. Thank you for the information. Mrs. Haynes

I really like the online teaching environment because I believe it provides more people the opportunity to go to school and achieve success. However, it is important for students to understand the demands of the online environment and have to be self-directed and motivated to complete their courses.

I have to say that I did not think about peer assessments or self assessments for my students. I had tunnel vision for my students online and I think I will implement these 2 assessments in future classes.

Plagiarism is a policy that I strongly believe in. I clearly state the Plagiarism policies in my announcements. I even go the extra mile by telling the students that I check and report all offenders. In one of my classes, on the very first week there is a “Piracy” assignment that can be found at Yahoo answers. Still with these warnings I get a paper each new class with the information, word for word. The worst part of it all is that the opinion is incorrect. I have a complete rebuttal for the wrong answer. I have even had a student ask me if she could do extra credit for the “Zero” she earned. That has never worked so far. I do understand if a student has some information that is missing a citation. In these cases I will ask the students to give me the citation.