Communicationa and Engagement
One item noted from teaching online for some time, an instructor needs to actively communicate and collaborate with the online learning environment. It is without saying that communication technologies can potentially engage learners as long as the professor is communicating as well. Institutions and educators should promote the use of communication tools to help students participate and boost engagement.
Kevin,
You use a lot of communication tools and I think that's great because you are reaching out to all students in a variety of ways. You are right - this affects course completion and retention which are two key elements!
My experience is similar. I have taught in 5 or 6 different platforms, and those that make communication an integral part of the environment tend to be the most successful. In my current environment, I communicate the phone, email, IM, announcements, intra-assignment messages, and Adobe connect meetings.
We use so many approaches because we know that many students do not participate as heavily as we would like, and we know that getting that message across successfully highly increases the chances of course completion and longer-term retention.
Kevin
Doris,
Love the key words you have used - actively communicate, engage learners, boost engagement, etc. Nice job. Thanks for your input.
