James,
Great post! You make a great point about evaluating and updating. That is a point that is not often thought about.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Anthony,
You are right. You have to have both clear guidelines and communication. Feedback is also important in determining the success of a student.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Dwayne,
Yes, that is correct. Routine and consistent communication will give students the confidence in the instructor and in their own online learning.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Dwayne,
You must communicate your learning outcomes and consistently remind students. Great point.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Clear and concise guidelines
Effective feedback and communication
Darakshan,
You are right, clear communications are so important. You have to do that in multiple ways.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Hello,
I think the following 2 items are extremely important in establishing a pattern of teaching:
1: Clarity and consistency -- ensure the informatin you are providing is delivered in a cnsistent format each week and in a way that i easy to access and understand by the student.
2: Evaluation and Updating of the pattern -- determine a metric (such as the number of questions, grades on each unit's work, etc.) to determine if your information is working and effective. If so, keep using it -- if not, make corrections to he information/pattern.
Thanks, Jim
Perry,
I agree with your comments and believe that it is imporant for the instructor to establish a clear pattern of behavior that students can learn and rely upon throughout the course.
Thank you,
Dwayne Roark
I believe it is very important to have clear and consistent learning outcomes and that communication is also extremely important. You must communicate with your students and keep them engaged.
Thank you,
Dwayne Roark
The two important things to consider are
1. Clearly communicating to the students the expectations, assignments and projects.
2. Decide on how to deliver the course content to the student.
-Darakshan
John,
That is true, but you do have to consider your workload. Do you have a answer policy in your syllabus such as I will answer questions during the workweek within 24 hours and during weekend within 48 hours? This can help develop a pattern.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Frequent contact with uplifting encouragement is important since the student can feel very alone in the learning process.
Timely follow up on questions and comments that are asked. When a student asks a question, they are troubled right then. A response two days later usually will not make much difference to them.
Eric,
A great post. You are right. The design of the content is such an important part of an online course.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Greetings.
This is an interesting question. I believe that the assignments should map nicely to the course objective/outcomes. All assignments should well written (user-friendly) and contain a clear rubric. Providing students with detailed assignment related information will help them to succeed.
Best, Eric Freeman
Penelope,
Agreed. You have to adapt to the different styles that students use. It is also useful to ease students to different ways of learning so they can be adaptable life long learners.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Although it is imperative to include rubrics, it is of great importance to always be consistent in teaching methods while keeping an eye open for any different learning styles that might not be making the connection. Sometimes students need the human touch and sometimes they prefer text communication. Each student is different and needs to be observed and accessed as to what their learning styles are.
Mekia,
True. You also have to remind students regularly about the goals. Students can get offtrack.
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
Frank,
You are right. Keeping students abreast of expectations continually is so important. I also agree with the degree of communication you need to keep students plugged into the learning. Nice job!
Dr. Kelly Wilkinson
The two most important things to consider when establishing a pattern of teaching are:
1. Make sure all expectations are clear and attainable
2. Ensure that evaluations are fair and follow previously provided grading rubrics/guidelines
If students are aware of the goal they are trying to achieve, they are more likely to be able to reach it. If the instructor has a clear set of guidelines, it makes grading coursework in a fair manner much easier to do.
When establishing a teaching pattern I believe that it is important to consistently provide grading rubrics for students so that they clearly understand the assignment expectations. I also think it is important to have a consistent pattern of communication during classroom time so that students understand when they can ask questions and when it is expected that they will participate in the discussions.
Frank Nolan
