I agree. When I first started teaching online I was so concentrated on getting the content across I skipped right past adding pictures and videos to the different pages. After I took the time to go back and add these I found that students not only comment on them but they also helped them brainstorm ideas which significantly improved their discussion responses.
In many ways I think Erving Goffman's discussion of social interaction as being like theater applies. In the classroom you have a setting or stage, your visual presence, and the nuanced performance of your lectures and classroom interactions. These provide the overall impression that helps guide the students and prepare them for the class. It is not surprising that in an online classroom its visual look and navigational feel replace these features. It is the new "stage" that must both fit the "play" of the class.
Reid,
Simple can lead to a tremendous amount of learning, but not too simple as you will lose the interest of students.
Shelly Crider
That was correct. But I mean motivation for students to take the class serious and perform well. I think one of the motivation can be if the student is changing career.
Yes, keep it simple, direct, clear, colorful, and useful.
I do agree. I try to make all of my online courses similar in their appearance and navigation components. This familiarity reduces confusion as to the location of course sections and tasks. I would liken this to students in a classroom always picking the same seat for every course meeting. It's sort of a familiar frame from which to interact.
The look should provide hints to the functions that are available for student interactions. We use Moodle, and its three column look is similar to most websites. Students instinctively know to center their attention on the center column for course content.
Ted,
Good participation and feedback from the instructor makes the whole class feel like a class. Students will take more ownership.
Shelly Crider
mary,
Students will eventually quit reading and this is simply not what we as instructors want.
Shelly Crider
William,
First impressions are so imporant in various aspects of life!
Shelly Crider
Wells,
That is rather sad too. To have a class with awesome content and yet be too difficult is very sad!
Shelly Crider
Deborah,
There are times when the extras can slow down a student's computer which can be frustrating as well.
Shelly Crider
david,
Do all students participate in a face to face discussion as well? Many students who do not want to be in discussion will sit quietly and listen, tradional or online.
Shelly Crider
John,
So many people that come back to school already feel uncomfortable about technology. Good job!
Shelly Crider
Charles,
Motivation occurs in many forms. We as instructors need to know what the students are looking for.
Shelly Crider
Mahmoud,
It is a whole package education!
Shelly Crider
I would agree with this assessment. If the online course is not visually appealing, easy to follow, logical, etc. the student will become disengaged, bored, confused, etc. Hence the look and feel of the online course is very important.
You can add voice & also play music before you start your PPT & you can pre-record PPT's with audio to post in live chats or in classroom in Instructor files that students can download at their convenience.
I agree as first impression matter. How the online classroom looks with determine if the student will spent time there & invessigate what is there. PPT's are good for live chats & the use of whiteboards is a useful tool to explain a concept using student imput to answer material on that whiteboard such as a Punnett square in genetics. Adding live video of yourself as you do a live chat can make a student identify with you as a real person that they can see, move, and speak.
Posting current events in Annoucements related to your topic can show how your subject is relavent to the real world.
Ted, I would have to agree. There has to be a balance between the look/feel of the course and the quality of the content. Too much of either tends to negate the other and limit the course.
I absolutely agree. An online course can have the greatest content on the planet but if the online classroom is tough to navigate, confusing or way too busy the quality of the course content doesn't matter. The students, and at times even the instructors, cannot access the information because the classroom is so difficult and frustrating to navigate. Most students take online courses because they are independently motivated but also need some schedule flexibility. A course that is poorly designed or looks and feels difficult starts to diminish most of the intellectual returns.
