Time Commitment for Teaching Online Classes
I am new to online classes and I thought that taking these courses would prepare me if I ever received the chance to teach online. I am concerned about underestimating the amount of time it takes daily or weekly to successfully manage an online class. I would like feedback and any suggestions on how professors are able to manage it while working a full-time job elsewhere.
Absolutely, Dale. It's all about getting the footwork down. Creating new courses is always going to be time consuming, whether online or on-ground, but once you have the hang of expectations, it gets faster and easier to manage. Great advice.
Brian,
Thank you for your post. Our school will be going to an online format in January. I am looking forward to the challenge. However, my main concern is how to manage my time and how to determine if hours spent with the on-line course will far exceed those spent with a ground-based course. Staying a week ahead of the syllabus sounds like great advice. In regard to your statement about student maturity and experience not being any different than ground-based instruction, it appears (at least as I perceive it at this point) that students will need to be more accountable as the format of the on-line course is strict in terms of specific times for them to log in for synchronous discussions etc. They have to do more than just "show up" for class.
I agree. It is all about managing time and spreading things out. If you do things daily it is far more manageable.
Leah,
Excellent recommendation. Most teachers are very happy to share.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
The first time you teach a class you can expect a huge time commitment, you are essentially starting from scratch for resources. One thing you might consider is your colleagues, who else is teaching the class, what are they willing to share with you? Even if you don't use their resources directly in the classroom it will give you an idea of what students need to be successful from a veteran so you don't spend time creating resources they will not use.
Rebekah,
Thank you for your generous reply. This is excellent advice.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
You are correct in that it is an individual approach. The key to successful Online faciliting is Time Management. The first course is the hardest because you are not only learning the process you are developing your skill set. While there are similarities between onground facilitation and online facilitation there are many differences. The amount of time you interact with the students will be dependent upon two things, personal style and the requirements from the University. Each University has their own requirements. I was hesitant to move to the Online platform because I loved Onground so much - however, because of the convenience and flexibility the Online platform offers, I now love it. Again, develop your own best practices list and pay attention to the end of course surveys for information from the students' as just like the onground arena, the goal is student learning. Best of luck to you.
Lauren, the online time commitment rolls out easy if you dive in and do a little bit each day, i.e., an announcement, commenting on a discussion post, and grading/feedback. You will build unnecessary stress and feel the time crunch if you put off going into all the action for even a couple days. I would say you can successfully facilitate a course by putting in at least an hour a day.
All the best,
Dr. Dave Hinkes, DBA, DBA
Wells,
Very good additional information. Thank you for sharing your expertise.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
Hi Lauren, I agree with the facilitator. Dale gives some good advice. Having a well built set of common documents and file folders helps you get and stay organized.
Beyond that, the best advice I can give you, after teaching in both in-residence and online classes, is to get into a routine. Here are some examples: (1) I like to login at least every other and post in the discussion board and interact with students. (2) I start the grading process each week as early on as I can. Procrastination is the enemy. (3) I try to dedicate at least a couple hours on one specific day of the week to prepare for the coming week. Once you get your routine down things should run pretty smooth.
The only recommendation I would make would be to have back up file for nearly everything on an external hard drive in case your computer crashes. This makes for a much easier time rebuilding the class requirements should technology betray you. I'm going through that right now. Thought I had everything backed up. Figuring out now, a few weeks after my hard drive had to be replaced that I DID NOT back up about half my files.
Dale,
Thank you for sharing your expert experience and insights.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
Thank you sir. It is a best practice that I figured out some time ago.
Dale,
This is excellent advice, especially when teaching the same course in subsequent sections. Good point.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
Lauren,
After doing this for almost 10 years, I find that it gets easier as you hone your time management skill. In addition you will start to create some files that you can use over and over.
Melissa,
This is terrific to 'hear.' I applaud you and your institution for transitioning. People worked mostly from home 200 years ago. Then the inductrial revolution and cities created the norm for 'going to work.' Now technology is allowing at least a portion of folks to work and educate from home. I really enjoy working from home as a consultant and online instructor. Congratulations on your new endeavor - at home, more. ;-]
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
Dr. Vaillancourt,
This is very true. I currently am the Dental Assisting Education Supervisor of my department, My instructors and I LOVE what we do and often times we work well over 40 hours. If you love what you do, it doesn't seem like work. And you're right. It is a lifestyle choice. Our school is slowing transitioning into offering some of our courses online, and as a new mom, I am loving the idea because I can be home more with our son and still do what I love.
Astrid,
True. It will differ among insturctors, online and traditional. Good point.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
it is an individualized approach and thus differs from one instructional style to another
Brian,
You identified some very pertinent points. Your rationale is sound for everything you identified. One area where you might find more difference than expected might be the institutional requirements for the instructor when students do not exhibit the maturity and experience it would be desirable. Your general proactive approach is a powerful tool in the online teaching. Good post.
Dr. S. David Vaillancourt
