Developing, Implementing and Managing a Mandatory Online Learning Readiness Course Linda Wareck and Kerry Daniel, Instructional Technologists Oakland Community College, June 23, 2017

Course Description & Overview- Online Learning Readiness Course For Fall 2016 registration as a new course – DIST 1000 Prerequisite for all students taking Online or Hybrid Courses at OCC No cost associated with this non-credit course All year course – students can register at any time for immediate or future Online/Hybrid Course registration Developed by ATG Instructional Technologists – emphasizes skills necessary to become successful online learners Monitored and Supported – focus is to provide the best student experience for online learning

What We Were Doing Face-to-face student drop-in orientations Individual class orientations Self-enroll orientation in D2L – text heavy, help document format, optional

Why We Needed to Change Students unpreparedness and unrealistic expectations of online courses causing retention and completion issues Focus on student experience – more interactivity/practice needed to simulate real experiences HLC

Challenges Lack of standardization in course sites (initially) – committee created standards How to handle registration and prerequisite status technically (requires intergroup work – IT/Enrollment Services) Faculty concerns about enrollment – All year registration eased concerns Communication of major change in online/hybrid course registration process

Design and Development of Course Authoring tool search (Storyboard vs. Lectora) Design document Lectora development D2L buildout

Pilot Phase In tandem with working on “mandatory” processes and procedures Two semesters Several sections of various online courses (reached out to faculty) manually enrolled in course by system administrator Feedback used for fine tuning prior to launch

Launch of Mandatory Course Available in June 2016 For Fall 2016 Registration Required much communication Successful

Communication to OCC Community Variety of channels, including: OCC Website OCC Intranet Flyer by Marketing D2L News Widget ATG Digital Download FAQs OCC Counselors and Student Support Reps./Staff

Demo of Registration Process MyOCC

Course Demo D2L

Course Enrollments and Stats Increase in Course Enrollments between 2016 to 2017 In 2016 – Course opened for one semester, including July to end of Aug. for Summer Semester In 2017 – Course opened for almost one year, including Fall, Winter and half of Summer Semester Course Start/End Dates - open from Aug. 30, 2016, to Sept. 10, 2017 Course Year Offered Total Course Enrollments Passing Final Grades 2017 3,396 2,278 2016 2,585 1,645

Supporting Students Training for Student Support Representatives/Staff at OCC Facilitated training for enrollment services reps. – first point of contact resolution FAQs for Students - Online Learning Readiness Course Meeting with Communication Specialists at OCC – incoming phone calls Instructional Technologists Support Students directly for DIST 1000 - email and phone Onlineready Mailbox – monitored by Instructional Technologists Automatic Reply set up to respond in timely manner Support Responding to Students - professional yet personal tone

Course Management Monitoring Course on weekly basis by Instructional Technologists Recording notes on enrollments and passing or no passing scores on quizzes Checking for any issues students may be experiencing taking the course Posting of Passing DIST 1000 Grades semi – automated Gradebook back up daily IT Programmers involved in process Coordinated by Manager of Online Learning Technologies Full automation of Grades Posting – Targeted for Winter 2019

Support Challenges ATG new target audience is online students - previous focus on faculty contact Outreach to staff in departments that support students Resources for training to support OCC staff and reps. – front line support with our students Keeping everyone involved updated on information in a timely manner – remaining flexible as changes occur Monitoring Onlineready mailbox during peak registration times for online courses Identifying common questions asked by students relating to DIST 1000 – providing solutions before Qs asked Addressing general questions from potential online students – referring to counselors who advise students

Student Feedback End of Course Student Feedback – 2017 DIST 1000 for HLC Report

Going Forward New instance must be launched each year due to AY course designation in colleges information system Updates made prior to new launch based on feedback and review Currently under redesign for greater accessibility Will need to do further updating with upcoming D2L interface change Create templates for support when responding to students’ frequently asked questions

Wrap Up: Q & A Let’s continue the discussion . . . Questions? Presenter Contact Information: Linda Wareck, Instructional Technologist, email: lswareck@oaklandcc.edu Kerry Daniel, Instructional Technologist, email: kldaniel@oaklandcc.edu