Online classes
I am preparing to teach an online class, and am faced with the challenge of getting to know my students without meeting with them face to face. We do have discussion boards that students are required to participate in, but it seems that every week they do the "bare minimum" that is required by the course and I would like for them to be more involved. Any ideas?
Hi Melissa,
Isn't sad when a role model in our field turns out to be a negative one. Your professor gave you a very clear understanding of how not to be a caring and supportive instructor. The learning point from this is that you are going to be a better instructor as a result of this experience.
I wish you much success with your students.
Gary
I teach both online and on-ground and they are drastically different, yet have similarities. Some students want interaction and some do not. Live chat (lecture) sessions are great if students are in the room. Yet, if no one is in attendance, the class may seem dull for the students viewing the archive. I found from student feedback that they enjoy that I change the tone of my voice frequently and they feel as if I am incorporating my personality into the chat sessions with this simple method. By paying attention to my voice and not falling into the monotonic “lecture†style, I can demonstrate enthusiasm of the subject matter. Posing and fielding questions during the chat session is crucial according to the feedback. Many online instructors have the student wait until after the lecture to take questions (at least this was my experience with my Professors in my online Master’s program), this does not work because the student usually forgets their question; decides that the question was not worth asking; and/or there is not enough time left in the session for the Q & A. I once had an online professor that recorded his lectures and not knowing this I attended the first session live and the only “live†time I had with my instructor was when he told me to hit play to watch his recording. I was so disappointed and to me this displayed laziness and disrespect for the students. I sure did learn something from this particular professor; I learned what not to do.
Hi Amy,
I commend you for your efforts to keep all students fully engaged. Many of them like to "hide" especially in online courses or just "mail it in" as you mentioned. Drawing them in and helping them to become engaged is a critical part of being a good instructor.
Gary
I agree that posing a question (in response to a student contribution) is a great way to increase involvement. I have often seen that student then "take ownership" of the thread and become an active monitor of the conversation for the entire class.
I also find it helpful to give students from the start (and then often a little reminder about halfway through the course) guidance regarding HOW to learn through a discussion forum. I provide them with a simple rule when reading the discussion board: A contribution should be a question, a statement of agreement WITH A SUPPORTING COMMENT/STORY as to why you agree or a statement of disagreement with the supporting comment/story. For some instructors this initially feels cumbersome and unnecessary, but I noticed improved quality of conversation with these guidelines (and reminders).
Also, don't be afraid to email someone if they are "mailing it in." I have sent emails to several students commenting on how interesting their background/job/other comments are and that I need to see more of those examples and experiences in their online contributions.
Getting the students to focus their discussion threads to the subject area of discussion through regular postings does help increase interaction.
Christine, in a effort to increase student particiapation and involvement, some online learning platforms have live meeting tools that instructors can use. I do not know if your system has such a tool, i have found that having live meetings with students atleast once every two weeks increases their involvement in class activities.
I have found it useful to interact with students occasionally on the discussion boards by posing a question, sometimes to steer the discussion in the intended direction. Sometimes asking the student their personal opinion engages them much better, as most people want to express what they think or feel. For example, if I were to throw in a brief question about the new healthcare reform in an appropriate class setting, most students have an opinion they want to express. As they interact with one another in a controlled environment, a degree of student bonding and sense of community also develops online.
Hi Christine,
Depending on the content you are teaching you might be able to use case studies or specific projects to keep the students engaged. I have found that they do the minimum with the general assignments but will work harder and do more on individual projects and case studies.
Gary
