Timing in an online class

In an online class there is the question of timing. Should the class be kept to a schedule? Can students work ahead? What happens if the student’s work is late and handed in at the last minute?

In considering this question we need to consider if this is an independent study class or if students will learn from not only the material, but also from each other. Will we strive to form an academic community? Learning communities do foster collaboration, cooperation and community http://frank.mtsu.edu/~itconf/proceed01/19.htmlhttp://frank.mtsu.edu/~itconf/proceed01/19.html  and unless there is a compelling reason to allow students to work at their own pace it is worthwhile to have them engage in discussions. To do this we must require that students be in the same time frame.

Students need to know this at the start of the class. There is no guarantee that merely noting this requirement in the Syllabus will result in students realizing it. A quiz or a “Scavenger Hunt” can engage students in reading the Syllabus.  In my undergraduate online course I require students to return to me a “Letter of Agreement” in which they acknowledge that the assignments are time sensitive and that credit will be deducted if late. Those strategies usually take care of most lateness. Of course, once in a course the student may have a problem, and if they contact me I usually work with them, but only once.

What about the students who want to work ahead? I will usually allow this but I will not grade their work until the due date. I explain to students that I like to grade all homework assignment together because I believe I can be more objective when I do. In the very first assignment if students submit before the due date I usually acknowledge the receipt of the assignment because I want the student to know that it is in the right place. 

What about discussions? In online discussions I require two separate dates. I usually pick Wednesday for the first response and Sunday for the replies. I do have the discussion available on the previous Saturday so if students want to submit their work early they may. I realize some students do not want to do any work on the weekends, and having the discussions up early allows them to post on Monday, and usually they can reply to others before the weekend. The Sunday date for replies is problematic because I recently had one student reply at Sunday midnight and of course by that time the class had gone on to the next discussion. I am thinking of changing the deadline for replies until Sunday at 3 PM.

Handling Online Discussions

I have just finished reading: “Imagine: How Creativity Works” by Johan Lehrer http://www.jonahlehrer.com/books/imagine/  In the chapter titled: “The Power of Q” Lehrer discusses the importance of having people come together in a space where constructive criticism can occur in a safe manner. I immediately thought of discussions in an online class. If structured correctly students can work with people they would normally not interact with. 

Fostering discussions that increase learning is the initial responsibility of the teacher. Students should feel safe and feel heard.

 Students can feel safe when the instructor immediately sets the ground rules and models them.

Students can feel heard when a teacher is active in the discussions, but does not dominate them. Not replying to any discussion post makes the students wonder if the teacher is reading. When a teacher replies, students feel heard. One online student commented: “I really like when I see a professor's post under mine, it makes me feel like all the work I am doing is getting noticed.” However, it is a balance. Commenting on every post is overwhelming. I tend to reply to every first post in the discussion and then let the discussion ensue. 

Once the climate is established the teacher then needs to design the discussion questions so they do not have only one answer. If a teacher, for example, asks the students to define something whose definition is in the text, then the first person in the discussion copies the text and the only response is “Yes, I agree.”  Questions should be phrased so that alternate points of view can be expressed, and, especially in mature students, life experiences can play a part. 

The instructor can model responses by using the sandwich approach

• ·         Affirm the poster: “That is an interesting perspective I have not considered.”
• ·         Ask the poster a question or ask for class input: “would you consider….” “Class, what would you think about that?”
• ·         End on a positive note. “Thanks Joe for giving us your perspective.”

Finally, have clear rubrics and grade quickly.

Technology Skills We Hope Students Have at the Start of an Online Class and How to Help Them

We would like to believe our students know how to use the computer and navigate the Course Management System but we cannot be sure of that unless we teach in a class that is beyond beginner level in an institution with many online courses. We may need to help students by explicitly stating where to find information in our courses. Some teachers have a “Treasure  Hunt” or “Scavenger Hunt” so that students will know where material is located. Others find that a required, low stakes, short quiz on the Syllabus is necessary.

It is a good idea for online teachers to TAKE an online class before they teach one. Being a student gives teachers a good idea of what student face. Teachers should be prepared to help students with class navigation, but any institution with online courses should have technical help, and this help should be staffed fully the first few weeks of classes. 

We hope students can compose, spell check and save files in a Word Processor.  They may not all use Word, however, and may need help in learning to save in .rtf format. We might expect them, depending on the class, to be able to open PowerPoint files and, if they do not have PowerPoint to be able to download the PowerPoint viewer. Some classes require students to use a Spreadsheet. If this is a requirement the students need to know at the start of the class.

Any special software used in the class should be explained to the students before they register for the class. It is not fair to the students to sign into a class and find they need to purchase an expensive piece of software.  

We hope our students realize that a college class is formal learning and the language in the class is academic writing. They may not know this and need to be told. They may also need to be reminded that discussions in the course require respect for others. They may also need to be reminded of the institution’s policy on plagiarism and cheating. Just because the class is online this policy does not change.

To help students succeed we need to give them the information that they need and assume nothing.

               Bandura's Social Learning Theory and the Online Classroom

                                            

Bandura’s theory of observational learning states that we learn from one another by observation, imitation and modeling. I think this is true in an online course and the theory has implications for how the course is taught. 

The primary model is the teacher. If we want students to respect and listen to each other then we must respect and listen to them. I think a teacher should post in the class early and model responses in the Introductions discussion.

I have noticed in discussions that students respond to those who respond to them. This can be positive because small communities form, but it also may leave some students feeling left out of the conversation. In that case the teacher must model responses by asking the class questions about the posts of those with few or no replies.