Desire to Be Present in Your Online Courses ITeach November, 2005 Lesley Blicker

Most Common Myths of Online Courses That extreme amounts of streamed video are required That teaching online is similar as teaching in the traditional class Minimal amount of time is required to facilitate a course That you can put as much information as possible online, or upload Power Point slides and think it is enough That online courses have limited activities. Some material adapted from Jeffrey Feldberg’s presentation at Iteach, 2003 (Embanet)

Inviolable Self-Worth We want each student to be clear that he or she has inviolable self- worth, an essential value, one that need not be earned. From Inspiring Active Learning: A Handbook for Teachers by Merril Harmin, 1994.

Effort Needed A vibrant learning culture with teachers and students energetically participating in the learning process requires dedicated interaction between teacher and learner How much effort is needed?

Teaching Presence Teaching presence is the design, facilitation, and direction of cognitive and social processes for the purpose of realizing personally meaningful and educationally worthwhile learning outcomes. Teaching presence begins before the course commences as the teacher, acting as instructional designer, plans and prepares the course of studies, and it continues during the course, as the instructor facilitates the discourse and provides direct instruction when required. Assessing Teaching Presence in a Computer Conferencing Context, Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, The Sloan Consortium, September 2001

Teaching Presence Findings – p. 12 Health CourseEducation Course Instructional Design 22.3%37.5% Facilitating Discourse 43.2%75% Direct Instruction77%87.5%

How Present Are You?

Three Primary Means for Engaging Students Learner-to-Instructor Interactions Learner-to-Learner Interactions Learner-to-Content Interactions Michael G. Moore (1990). Recent Contributions to the Theory of Distance Education. Open Learning 5 (3),

7 Principles of Good Teaching 1. Promotes teacher-to- student interaction 2. Promotes student-to- student interaction 3. Encourages high expectations 4. Provides rich, rapid feedback 5. Promotes active learning 6. Facilitates time on task 7. Addresses different learning styles Chickering, A.W., & Gamson, Z.F. (1987) Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education. AAHE Bulleting 3, 3-7.

First Impressions: Finding Your Presentational Style Your introductory post Responding the first week by citing phrases and comments from the joining students Acknowledging the diversity of participants’ backgrounds and interests Clear, navigable instructions to the course, especially the first week. Consider an easy video (free Windows Movie Maker, or using voice in a power point slide)

Beyond First Impressions: During the Semester Infusing personality with tone, graphics, and humor qt/index.html qt/index.html Virtual treats Virtual field trips Class announcements Final class awards/graduation celebrations

Student Achievement Rosenshine (1971) found that large amounts of student-teacher interaction promotes student achievement Rosenshine, B. (1971). Teaching behaviors and student achievement. London: National Foundation for Educational Research in England and Wales.

Design a Regular, Manageable Feedback Loop Routine, private feedback between you and the student promotes ease of communication with respect to any performance issues that arise. It’s essential in keeping students from feeling isolated and frustrated Use or private journal space

Key Facilitator Roles in the Discussion Board Highlight comments that are on track Draw upon elements that are already in the dialogue to light the way forward Highlight tensions in the dialogue Help students connect learning experiences

Remember Skilled moderating is about serving the needs of a dialogue rather than participating in one. Guide-on-the-side does not mean being there by not being there! Encourage groups to moderate themselves

Respond to Process Questions Questions about assignments or how to proceed are time sensitive. Students may not be able to progress until they hear from you.

Be Observant: Listen in New Ways