1. Experiencing Online Classes as Student vs. Instructor: A Case Study Linda Alexander

2. OVERVIEW The Case Study of “E” as Student and Teacher The Grad Student The Community College Student: Survey Results Social vs. Independent Learning? The Online Class: A Focus on the Social

3. E’s Likes/Dislikes As Both Student and Teacher Likes: Flexible schedule; not place-bound Dislike: Online discussions often not impactful

4. A Teacher’s Perspective: “Lost in Translation” “In a classroom it is obvious for an instructor when they are giving directions if the students are not understanding something. It is clear on their faces, yet online the instructor does not know if the students are not understanding the directions until they submit the assignment. Then the instructor has to fix things.”

5. A Teacher’s Perspective “I think that both the instructor and the students are at a disadvantage because they are not able to get to know each other and understand each others’ needs and personalities. This means for the instructor they never know the students’ passions and what they really need to work on. For the students they do not know the instructor, the instructors strengths and how they could help them in life”

6. A Student’s Perspective “Lack of relationships. Students do not really build relationships with each other.”

7. A (Grad) Student’s Perspective “I appreciate the convenience of having all the materials for the class in front of me. With classes that don't have any online components, if we are given handouts, it is easy to forget them at home or lose them. With online classes, it is very easy to refer back.”

8. A (Grad) Student’s Perspective “It seems like teaching online always privileges the visual components rather than audial or kinesthetic learning styles. While I am not sure what type of learner I am, it becomes a bit boring to only be reading notes and different literature. Very rarely do teachers go outside that form. So while some teachers have posted audio recordings to listen to, most do not. Also, because of the format, there are very few activities for us to engage in.”

9. Community College Students: Asked and Answered (n = 17) Average number of online classes taken: 2.1 (excluded the response of one student who reported a total of 20 online classes)

10. What do community college students like about online classes? Flexibility/Convenience (12) Structure (5) Avoid Traffic (4) Online Discussions (4) Less Stress (3)

11. Online Discussions Foster Participation “I also like the ability to read other peoples discussion topics and get their opinions on various topics. The online forum allows me to correspond with them very easily and I feel more comfortable sharing my opinions online versus raising my hand in class.”

12. What do community college students dislike about online classes? Miss interacting and building relationships with teacher and classmates (12) Hard to remember deadlines (7) Tech issues (7)

13. “Social vs. Independent Learning” How can social (cooperative) learning be increased in an online class?

14. Online Discussions! Conversational Moves Strategies that students can use to engage more with discussion topics and each other (Brookfield and Presskill, 2005) Guidance for follow-up discussion posts

15. Live Chat Guided chat with the entire class A lot like herding cats (but can be very productive)

16. Summary The Case Study of “E” as Student and Teacher Grad Student’s Perspective The Community College Student: Survey Results Social vs. Independent Learning

17. A Final Thought Social Learning is Possible (Better?) in an Online Class