1. The Importance of Facilitation in the High School Online Environment Presented by: Jessica Fowler, LEARN NC

2. LEARN NC, a program of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Education, is a statewide network of educators using the power of the Internet to improve K–12 education in North Carolina. Background: LEARN NC

3. Background: LEARN NC’s High School Online Courses LEARN NC began offering online high school courses in 2002. LEARN NC online courses give students access to AP courses and other courses not offered in every brick & mortar school in North Carolina. LEARN NC currently offers 32 online courses to over 120 schools and approx. 2000 students. LEARN NC courses are taught asynchronously. This means that the teacher and students do not have to be online at the same time.

4. All schools enrolling students in LEARN NC’s online courses must provide a facilitator. Facilitators: Critical for Success

5. What is a Facilitator? The facilitator is a responsible adult who acts as the “eyes and ears” of the instructor who is not physically present in the classroom. Facilitators are a powerful advocate for both the student and instructor. Facilitators can be anyone: –Media Specialists –Teachers on their planning period –Teaching Assistants –School bus drivers –Parent Volunteers

6. Characteristics of a model facilitator –assertive –maintains classroom discipline –interacts comfortably with the online instructor and students –gives encouragement –helps the students stay on track –contacts the instructor when needed

7. Facilitators are expected to: Be present through the entirety of every class for the duration of the course. Promptly report any technical problems to the LEARN NC Help Desk. Closely monitor students during exams. Stay in frequent contact with the instructor. Promptly report school delays, absences, and inclement weather to the instructor. Securely store any hard copies of class materials that may be sent to them by the instructor. Promptly report academic infractions to the LEARN NC Grievance Officer and the instructor. Check email every 24 hours for last minute announcements and class materials to be distributed. Encourage students to keep a hard copy of all assignments they submit through Blackboard.

8. Schools Participating in LEARN NC’s Online Courses

9. How does LEARN NC manage over 120 facilitators? The Online Learning Specialist acts as the Program Manager for facilitators at participating schools. Online Learning Specialist responsibilities: –Help facilitators during registration periods (Spring, Summer, Fall), answer facilitator questions. –Provide a technical help desk available to facilitators 7am-9pm during the week. –Develop FAQ materials to support the facilitators throughout the year. –Send monthly emails to keep facilitators informed of new updates. –Collect grades from online instructors and distribute to facilitators at each site. –Act as the liaison between facilitators and online instructors during the school day. Most LEARN NC online instructors teach at a brick & mortar school during the instructional day. Therefore, the Online Learning Specialist acts as the liaison between the online instructor and facilitators during these hours. –Continuously update the LEARN NC Facilitator Resource Center.

10. What is the LEARN NC Facilitator Resource Center? A place for facilitator: –Announcements –Handouts –FAQ’s –Discussion –Help Desk Contact Information

11. FRC: Announcements

12. FRC: Handouts

13. FRC: Discussion

14. FRC: Fostering an Online Community

15. Top Five Lessons Learned 1.Do not assume facilitators know the basics. Provide facilitators with information about your online program. Provide facilitators with drop/add information at the beginning of the course. Provide facilitators with FAQ documents on how to use Blackboard. Provide facilitators with checklists  1 st Ten Days checklist  Daily checklist  Yearly checklist 2.Require facilitators to indicate their school name in the subject line of their email requests. 3.Provide facilitators with a way to communicate with each other throughout the year. 4.Make facilitators sign contract at the beginning of the school year. 5.During down time, contact facilitators by phone and make sure things are running smoothly.

16. Thank You! Jessica Fowler Online Learning Specialist, LEARN NC jfowler@learnnc.org