One of the most important learner-instructor interactions occurs when instructors leave feedback. Online students need communication and feedback on their assignments. … [Read more...]
Mining Course Evaluations
While you are teaching a course or, perhaps more often, as a course wraps up, you have thoughts about how you might change or improve your course for the next offering. … [Read more...]
Universal Design for Learning
Universal Design for Learning (UDL), which is a model for developing content that is accessible by as many people as possible regardless of age, ability, or situation. … [Read more...]
Overcommunicate with Skill
Said it once? Said it twice? Say it again! Overcommunication is especially important in an online course. Communicate using multiple methods (e.g., announcements, … [Read more...]
Welcome them with a Note
Imagine you are taking an online course for the very first time. You get logged in and you enter the course, now what do you do? When you logged into this course for … [Read more...]
The Importance of Announcements
Announcements are a primary means of establishing instructor presence in a course. This is the place where you can bring in your teaching expertise--your personal … [Read more...]
Using Multimedia with Announcements
Got your attention with that image, didn’t I? What would a rock concert be without the special lighting, smoke machines, dancing, and other elements designed to draw the … [Read more...]
Discussions and Instructor Presence
There is a lot of variation in how the instructor participates in discussions—especially small group discussions. Here we will discuss some of our most common types of … [Read more...]
Quick Tip: Managing Group Enrollments
Small groups are great for online courses, but they do require a little babysitting on the part of the instructor. There are two types of group enrollments: auto enroll … [Read more...]
Making the Most of Your First Few Weeks
It's that time of year again! Eager students are figuring out who you are and what they're going to learn in your course. You're reading and meaningfully responding their … [Read more...]