computeruser Teaching Online
A Short Workshop for Faculty
Donna Reiss, Clemson University

Our short workshop reviews some key features of teaching either totally online or blended/hybrid classes, taking advantage of opportunities for interactivity afforded by the Internet and new technologies. An emphasis on small-group collaboration promotes a seminar approach, adaptable to most disciplines and to a variety of online environments. Online discussions in particular can support students' responsibility for their own learning, build a community of learners, strengthen students' communication abilities, and foster creativity and critical reflection while they learn the important content of their courses.

bullet-blue box What’s important in online classes

  1. Clarity of expectations for course as a whole and for each class activity
    • Detailed information about policies and procedures with special attention to online issues like participation/attendance, copyright and reproduction/dissemination, and academic honesty
    • Deadlines and regulations
    • Contact requirements and expectations
  2. Engagement with course content: varied and multimodal and multisensory using appropriate media
  3. Opportunities to participate in a community of learners
    • Exchange information and ideas with classmates and professor
    • Have student-directed informal discussion and questions
    • Share and collaborate on research
    • Publish thoughtful critical work as drafts and “final” versions
    • Connect with their university (library, helpdesk, distance education site)
  4. Prompt and appropriate feedback, individual and collective
  5. Awareness of online instructional environment for learning
    • Physical design and navigation for online, onscreen reading, listening, and viewing
    • Assignment design that gives students options to present their interests and talents as they demonstrate their learning
    • Use of online resources and multimedia to support instruction and research

bullet-blue box Managing the workload

  1. Have all policies and procedures reviewed by a colleague or two and, if possible, a student or two, before you publish them online.
  2. Have the semester’s schedule and all assignments ready in advance and be prepared to make changes as needed (I post updated schedules with revision dates and a notice stating “always evolving” – and I announce every change at BlackBoard).
  3. Avoid unnecessary email and encourage student-directed learning with a site for course-related questions, suggestions, and student-initiated topics of discussion; encourage students to respond to each other there (I call mine Cyberlounge). At the same time, be responsive to individual concerns that need personal attention.
  4. Whenever appropriate, provide collective feedback (I post a Feedback Letter or Letter to the Class after every assignment or at least once a week in fall and spring, twice a week in summer).

bullet-blue box Individual student posts
Writing to an audience of classmates (and others) as well as to their teachers encourages thoughtful writing and shared knowledge even when no interaction is required. Here are a few examples.

  • blinking eyesExperiment Results in a Psychology Class: Eye-blinks
  • M&MsExperiment Results in a Statistics Class: M&Ms
  • Brooklyn Bridge Research-Reflection in a Humanities Class: Al's Poem Post

bullet-blue box Group interactions
Reading classmates' writing and responding to classmates' writing as well as to teachers and to course material fosters community as well as thoughtful written discussion of content and issues.

bullet-blue box Multimedia and multimodal resources and assignments
Multiple media and modes such as audio, video, slides, and virtual worlds developed by faculty or linked to existing online resources engage students in course content. Inviting students to demonstrate their own learning in a variety of modes and media and to share their compositions online gives students a sense of belonging to a class community at the same time they are actively involved in research, development, composition, and publication.

bullet-blue box Why incorporate technology into teaching? “Six Kinds of Quality Learning with Technology” described by Randy Bass and others in Engines of Inquiry: Teaching, Technology, and Learner-Centered Approaches to Culture and History (Georgetown University,1995; 2nd ed. 2003). And more "by the numbers"....

  1. Distributive learning: access to knowledge and shared responsibility for learning
  2. Authentic tasks and complex inquiry: simulations, resources, multiple methods and media
  3. Dialogic learning: communication on complex issues
  4. Constructive learning: projects and products
  5. Public accountability: publishing to peers and others
  6. Reflective and critical thinking: “multiple kinds of literacies and evocative juxtapositions”

bullet-blue box Selected resources for faculty and students at Clemson tiger paw and beyond

  1. Clemson's Distance Education Website links to a wealth of support and resources for online students and faculty. Tell your students. For technology in general, see the Clemson Computing and Information Services site.
  2. Clemson University Library offers Electronic Resources with subject listings, alphabetical listings, and database collections—all available in library and on campus network, many available off-campus online.
    • Clemson's library offers online videos of selected plays and documentaries at Theatre in Video.
    • Tutorials for conducting literary research online developed especially for LitOnline by Camille Cooper and her coworkers: At Clemson University library E-guides page, scroll down to Literature and select either Finding Journal Articles Using Literature Resource Center or Finding Journal Articles Using the MLA International Bibliography.
    • Clemson's Ask a Librarian in person, by telephone, or by email is especially helpful for online students.
  3. Syllabus suggestions (a pdf file) including some special features for online classes
  4. Voice of the Shuttle Humanities Gateway: a substantial searchable database-reference tool for scholars—an excellent resource for faculty and students
  5. LibrarySpot.com: a vast gateway to libraries and to reference sources online.
  6. Penn State Online reports and faculty development resources for distance education
  7. Second Life educational resources for teaching with virtual worlds—Second Life homepage
  8. Webquest Internet Research Projects: a project-based model that emphasizes collaboration—although developed for elementary schools, the concept is adaptable for any level.
  9. Selected public bookmarks on education and elearning are online at dreissprof. You can establish your own online bookmarks and have your students do so—another way to share research
  10. Some additional resources for computer-mediated communication and online-blended learning activities and resources including educational discussion ideas, blogs, an online writing/project peer workshop model, and e-portfolios at Active Learning Online.
  11. Some examples of my online classes at Clemson, including syllabus policies and schedule, class assignments, group project details, electronic portfolio details, and other resources are online at my Clemson Faculty Website (see Past Classes link). Here are examples of a BlackBoard discussion board, end-of-semester survey, and feedback letter to an online class.
  12. WAC, CAC, and ECAC: a communication-intensive communication-across-the-curriculum approach applicable to distance education
  13. LitOnline Project: Clemson English Department's faculty development program for teaching sophomore literature online with links to literary and writers' resources at Clemson and elsewhere
 

launched ©May 2, 2008 for a Clemson University faculty workshop
modified and ©August 27, 2008 by D. Reiss
http://www.clemson.edu/resource/onlineworkshop.htm