SELECT THE RIGHT TOOL WHEN YOU CONSTRUCT AN ONLINE CLASS

Every Learning Management (LMS) has options to facilitate student/teacher private conversation. The tools have different functions and if you are designing an online class be sure know which is the most appropriate for you purpose.

               The assignment tool is for an essay or paper. This tool is poorly named, because there are many things we, as teachers, consider assignments. However, in many LMS, this tool is exclusively used for written work submitted for grading.

               The quiz usually is for short answer questions. It can be formative or summative. If it is formative you should allow students to retake at least once.  Most LMS allow teachers to include short answers or fill in the blanks in the quiz. However, that means the teacher must go in and correct, which is usually not the purpose, especially of a formative quiz, where students are checking whether they have mastered the concepts. Also, "fill in the Blanks" causes problems because it is often impossible to anticipate every response.

               The questionnaire or survey is for responses that can be anonymous. The default option is viewing only by the teacher/mentor, unless the teacher elects the option to show results to the class. It is mainly used to get feedback on the class.  Presently the survey option in Moodle requires that you select one of the preloaded surveys. The Questionnaire allows you to add your own questions.

               The journal is for teachers/student interaction in short paragraphs. Teachers can comment within the text. This tool is often used for reflections.

               Use of the right tool will make your life easier as a teacher and save you time too. 

Skills We Hope Student Have at the Start of Our Online Classes

Helping Students to Succeed

We would like to believe our students know how to navigate the Learning 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.

It is a good idea for online teachers to TAKE an online class that uses the required Learning Management System before they online. 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.  Even today, 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.

If the class requires citing work students need to know which format is used: APA.MLS. Turabian, Chicago Style. They may need online resources to help them learn or review how to do this.  

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 discussion in 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.

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

acultights

  Intellectual Property Agreements at Institutions of Higher Learning

The intellectual property agreements of our institutions affect all faculty. It is often interesting to compare agreements.

For faculty, the main issues are whether the college can use the materials faculty create and give them to another instructor who will teach the course and whether faculty can take those materials and develop the same or similar courses for other institutions. This gets complicated if the faculty has been paid to develop the course materials. In this case a contract should clearly spell out rights.

My concern is that in the future faculty may NOT be asked to design new courses, and that function will be delegated to the Information Technologists only. I think that there should be collaboration between the teacher, the IT professionals and the librarians, but faculty should develop and teach the courses. 

Wikis

Students often hate group work and one of the many reasons is that they have problems working on one final document for project completion. As files are passed back and forth they are corrupted. If students are instructed to use their group in the  discussion board they can attach files back and forth, HOWEVER, while one person is editing file 1 another person is also editing file 1, and there are two versions of the same file.

The solution is a wiki. A wiki is a document that can be edited by a group, BUT it has record locking. If  one person is working on a file and another person wants to edit it the second person will be locked out. This keeps the latest version of the file. When the first person is finished and saves, then the second person can edit the CURRENT DOCUMENT. There is no need to pass files back and forth.

A problem can be that if students make a mistake or delete information that should not be deleted then their final changes stay in the document. To stop this problem good wikis have a history function so that the owner of the wiki (usually the instructor/mentor) can revert the material to the previous edit. There is a trail of all the edits made and my whom.

Most of us a familiar with Wikipedia, but now wikis are part of many Learning Management  Systems.  The final file can be submitted by the group as the culmination of group project.

This site has an excellent graphic illustrating the differences between a wiki, a blog and a discussion. We need to use the right tool for the right purpose!

The University of Adlaide. (ND). Differences between Discussion Boards, Blogs and Wikis. http://www.adelaide.edu.au/myuni/staff/resources/tutorials/content/Differences_between_Discussion_Boards__Blogs_and_Wikis.html

Games and simulations in an online class

I think we will see more games and simulations in future online classes. Of course there can be concerns:

·        If the games/simulations are on the Internet, will they continue to be available? I have seen great games that have disappeared.

·        Are they age appropriate?

·        Are they created by a reputable source?

·        Do they provide accurate information?

·        Are the games optional for students or required?

·        How do we know that the games attained their objective?

These questions are very good ones. Sometimes the games themselves give a certificate, a badge, or a score at the end that the student can submit showing that they have accomplished the objective. Some faculty use games as the basic for discussions. Some faculty provide the games as optional for students who may need drill and practice.

I believe that games/simulations have a place after the concepts are first explored/discussed in the class. Game sites  can be shared with students for the purposed of review AND remediation We all know that material taught is often not retained. However, if the students then participate in a simulation or a game then the instant reinforcement can help "cement" learning. I found myself, and maybe you did to, spending time in some of the games. That is what we want to happen with our students. Dawn also reminded us that we can create our own simulations by using Case Studies, which are very effective. 

Games and simulations in an online class

I think we will see more games and simulations in future online classes. Of course there can be concerns:

·        If the games/simulations are on the Internet, will they continue to be available? I have seen great games that have disappeared.

·        Are they age appropriate?

·        Are they created by a reputable source?

·        Do they provide accurate information?

·        Are the games optional for students or required?

·        How do we know that the games attained their objective?

These questions are very good ones. Sometimes the games themselves give a certificate, a badge, or a score at the end that the student can submit showing that they have accomplished the objective. Some faculty use games as the basic for discussions. Some faculty provide the games as optional for students who may need drill and practice.

I believe that games/simulations have a place after the concepts are first explored/discussed in the class. Game sites  can be shared with students for the purposed of review AND remediation We all know that material taught is often not retained. However, if the students then participate in a simulation or a game then the instant reinforcement can help "cement" learning. I found myself, and maybe you did to, spending time in some of the games. That is what we want to happen with our students. Dawn also reminded us that we can create our own simulations by using Case Studies, which are very effective. 

I found the following game/simulation very interesting: "Cell Division and Cancer" produced by APBI, which is a  Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry. (APBI).  It is recommended for students 14-16 but I did the exercises and thought they were well done.
http://www.abpischools.org.uk/page/modules/celldiv_cancer/index.cfm?age=Age%20Range%2014-16&subject=Biology They have many materials for students and teachers. At the end of each section there is a SELF QUIZ, with immediate feedback. That, to me, is the big plus of simulations/games. If students get immediate feedback and can redo then learning has a good chance of taking place

I  believe that students do not cheat more in online classes than in traditional classes, and research would seem to indicate that is true.

Do Students Cheat More in the Digital Age? http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/spring131/watson131.html

However, I think plagiarism has increased, mainly because it is so easy now.  To help you and your students avoid plagiarism many institutions have linked with plagiarism detection sites.

·        Turnitin: in order to avoid any FERPA issues many institutions require that students submit their papers to TurnItIn, not faculty. The report can then be included in a paper.

·        Smart Thinking:  A site that can help students with papers – not content but format.

Of course, the best way to deter cheating is to design assignments that make it difficult to cheat  http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/spring131/watson131.html 

http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/fall53/olt53.html

What can YOU do?

1.     Giving information to students on the rationale behind the assignments

2.     Designing good assignments that require critical thinking, not memory, and changing them slightly every term so that students cannot look at the files of previous students in the class.

3.     Using check points along the way for major papers – don’t wait until the last minute.

4.     Narrow the time frame for taking tests.

5.     Scramble questions, question order and use alternate questions.

6.     In the directions make clear to the students what constitutes plagiarism.

7.     Having a rubric, and making sure the students know that you will be using it.

8.     If a major product, consider giving examples of past projects that were well done.  

It takes TIME to Teach an Online class and do it Right.

Teachers who teach online because it is easy to read/test and not participate in the class are doing a disservice to the students and to the material. If you do it correctly it takes time to teach online classes. 

 

My time:

I try to log into the class at least twice a day every day. That isn't necessary but it works for me. I hate to get behind. My classes all have discussions, and I believe that is important for online classes. Students do learn from each other.

It  is important to grade on time and to help me I make notes during week so I don’t have to go back at the end and look at the posts. When I started teaching online these notes were in pencil and paper but now I use a Word table and I copy my notes for each student into the grade book. Luckily most Learning Management System have logs and they are very, very, useful because you can tell how many discussion posts a student looked at, how many they posted to, and how many they responded to.  Be sure to find and use the logs if your class has a discussion.

At the suggestion of many online teachers, I started using Dragon’s voice to text software http://www.nuance.com/dragon/index.htm  to do the weekly summaries. It does take a little training of the software but I find it to be quite accurate and also a big time saver. Usually they have special deals for faculty.  However, as much as I liked it I found it slowed down my computer and I removed it. Now that I have my new computer I will probably install it again. 

I do agree that family time IS very important, and I do take time each day to be with my family. I realize my situation is unusual in that I am no longer working full time. When I first “retired” I got “greedy” and taught for four institutions. I have now cut down to two. I find if I do more than two online classes at a time I cannot live the way I want to. 

Students:

As for students, I don’t insist that they log onto the class more than two times a week, I always do have two due dates during the week and I have found that I also need to separate the date for the first discussion posting from the date of the reply. It is important to have consistent dates – in the undergraduate class I taught I had something (an assignment, a quiz or a discussion) due every Tuesday and Friday. I told the class: “If you wake up in the morning and it is Tuesday or Friday you know something will be due for this class.” In my graduate classes I make the dates Wednesday/Sunday. Because graduate classes are almost all discussions I’ve moved the reply date back to Sunday at 3 PM instead of Sunday midnight because I have found any post that is entered Sunday midnight will not be looked at and will not be responded to.

Technology:

I like to do a discussion summary each week.   Some mentors do this as a video.  Since all videos require text equivalents I'm not sure this saves time. I have thought about an audio summary. Of course that would require a text equivalent too. In class I recently taught one student had self identified as Deaf, and I suspect, from the subject taught, that another student in the class may have been also. 

Students can also be assigned to do the weekly summary also, which is a good idea. This could rotate from week to week. 

Faculty creation of the summaries are time consuming the first time the class is taught, however, I keep these from semester to semester. Each term the summary will have differences but there usually are many things that will be common. The initial saving of the summary of discussions help me remember things that were mentioned in previous classes and also allow me to add things that were mentioned in the current class. 

I have a folder on my computer for each class. Often I am asked for references and I like to go back and check the class folder for my notes. I am always surprised that more people don’t use folders. I have a folder for each institution, and inside that I have a folder for each class. I feel that stops my having to search for the file. I have a PC and can use the Search button in the Start menu if a file is misplaced. I have learned from bitter experience that I need to make sure I look at where I save the file before I press enter. 

1.     I also have mastered copy and paste and simple html - and I hot keys. For example, bold, B,

2.     Undo Z,  (I use this one a LOT!)

3.     Copy C

4.     Paste V

5.     Cut X,

6.     Select all A

7.     Underline U

8.     Undo Z I use this one a lot also!

There are about 10 of them that I use frequently.  If you do not use a PC the control keys may be slightly different but they should be there.

  For papers you can use the "Track Changes" feature in Word for feedback. I change the color of my changes from red to green ink for my comments. 

Reference:

Van de Vord, R. & Pogue, K.  (2012).  Teaching time investment:  Does online really take more time than face-to-face?  International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 13(3), 132-146. Retrieved from http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/article/view/1190/2212

This is very interesting because they found the answer is it doesn't take more time to teach online. 

Finally, remember you don't have to get dressed, get in your car or take a train or bus, find a parking place or walk to your destination, go to your office, etc. I think that teacher of hybrid courses have the most consuming job because they have to travel AND work online.

Moving Beyond Read/Test in Online Learning

MOVING BEYOND THE  READ/TEST MODEL of ONLINE TEACHING

Online classes do not have to be read/test nor should they be. There are many activities that online teacher/mentors should think about incorporating into their online teaching, provided that they increase student learning. Don't add just for "glitz."

I think every organization that offers online classes should have an IT department whose major job is helping teachers add alternate material to their classes. I don't think the teachers should be expected to have the time, or to have the professional capability, to do this. While we can be great teachers in the classroom that does not mean we are media professionals.

I think that teacher presence MORE important than multimedia. Yes, we should use multimedia when appropriate, but it is important for the students to know the teacher is there. Some teachers prefer not to participate in the discussions, but then give targeted, extensive feedback in the weekly grade. It really is a balance - as mentors we want to be present but we don't want to overwhelm the discussion.

A self-check (really a quiz) is a good way for students to test themselves. This is referred to as a “formative evaluation” in educational jargon. I especially like to do a “self check” on the Syllabus because I think that it clears up a lot of problems. In most Learning Management Systems (LMS) the Quiz function is robust and allows the teacher/mentor to select either “highest grade counts” or “first grade counts” or “average grade counts.” If you really want students to know the material, then I select “highest grade counts” and give feedback on every question and allow for multiple retakes.

There is some disagreement about posting model answers, but I am all for it. I think students deserve to see what we are looking for..

Online discussions are, to me a must to develop community in online.Whatever activities the teacher/mentor selects we must be careful to allow the students to preserve their personal privacy.

Online classes do not have to be read/test nor should they be!

Tips to Help Students of All Learning Styles Succeed

 

TIPS TO HELP ONLINE STUDENTS OF ALL LEARNING STYLES SUCCEED

All learners need to know when feedback will be given and where it is in the class. Grading should be done quickly and feedback included. It doesn’t have to be a long statement, but there should be some words in the grades to let students know why they have received it.

Students will benefit if you break down lengthy assignments and check each step.  There is nothing so discouraging to a student as having completed a major project, handing it in, and then finding it is not what the teacher wanted.

Remind students that if an  emergency arises and they cannot make the normal deadline then they  should let you know as soon as possible. If you have an emergency send the students a note so they won’t worry.

Most Learning Management Systems like Moodle and Blackboard have a message feature that makes it easy to give private feedback. You can point out what was done well, and then offer help.

Visual representations to help students include a printable calendar, concept maps (either faculty or student developed), graphic organizers, video clips from reliable sources. Sometimes a chart helps. We don’t have to draw on the board as we do in a face-to-face class. There are many diagrams already on the web, and there are also drawing tools that we can use. Sometimes a picture can make a concept much clearer.