Posted on No Comments on Nurturing Effective Communication in Online Facilitation

Nurturing Effective Communication in Online Facilitation

While Belhaven’s online courses are pre-prepared, there are many ways our faculty can engage in effective communication to enhance the learning experiences of our students. It is this human element that you bring to your class and course that can have a profound impact on your students.  What strategies can you adopt to increase your communication skills and foster an environment of excellence within your virtual classroom?

Introduction and Availability:

Post a personalized introduction to the course, highlighting your availability to assist students. What is the best way for students to contact you?   Provide multiple ways for students to connect – can they best contact you via email, texts, comments in Canvas, or phone?  Let students know you are there to guide and support them as they move through your class.

Timely and Supportive Responses:

Respond promptly to student inquiries, providing clear, concise answers that address their concerns and keep them on track. Professors are to respond to student email requests within 24 hours of receiving that request and within 48 hours on weekends. It is highly recommended that you offer 1-3 live Zoom meetings during your course to help address student confusion and concerns as the issues arise.  Students can attend these sessions, and it is OK for you to offer a participation incentive by crediting participating students as having completed that week’s discussion assignment (they receive full points and don’t need to post anything!).

Guidance on Discussion Etiquette:

Offer guidance on respectful and constructive online discussion behavior, ensuring a positive and inclusive virtual classroom environment. Students can have differing viewpoints, but they must contribute respectful and constructive dialogue. Help guide the discussions towards a respectful exchange of thoughts.

Announcements and Reminders:

The minimum requirement for course announcements is to post one announcement per week. You are not limited to only one per week!  Post explanatory announcements if you have taught your course before and know where students typically struggle with the content.  You can share articles and supplemental materials through the announcement portal.  In your announcements, discuss the results of the previous week’s assignments.  Where did students show an overall strength or great insight?  Identify areas of weakness or misunderstanding that occurred throughout the class.  Offer words of encouragement when students appear to be struggling.

Virtual Office Hours:

Virtual office hours play a pivotal role in student success in the virtual classroom. Depending on your preference, you can establish set hours where you will be available to answer student questions or establish open hours where your students know you are available to help them.  My preference was to not have “official” office hours but to let students know to email me if they desired a phone conversation or Zoom meeting.  I know other professors prefer to establish a routine time when students can contact them.  The form your office hours take is up to you and your personal style, but virtual office hours are a “Must Do” for virtual instruction.

Feedback that Fosters Growth:

Provide feedback on assignments and discussions that highlight students’ strengths and suggest areas for improvement, fostering continuous learning. When working in SpeedGrader, please be aware of some limitations to students receiving your feedback.  Many, if not most, of your students rely on their phones and the Canvas app to keep up with their studies.  This practice makes much of your feedback ineffective because it is not read.  For example, many professors spend hours highlighting and posting comments within a student’s submitted paper.  These very helpful comments address content, construction of the paper, grammar and mechanics, formatting, etc.  But – these comments are not readily visible to students when they view their grades on the app, so they don’t read the comments.  The same is true when you post feedback within the assignment rubric.  Those comments are also not immediately visible to students.  BUT – if you post your feedback in the “Comments” box, that feedback is displayed along with the grade for the assignment, making it easy for students to view the feedback and hopefully understand why their grade is what it is.

Summarizing Discussions:

Summarize key points from online discussions to help students see their peers’ collective insights and contributions. But – do this as a course announcement, not a discussion post. Many students have told me that they just “check the box” for discussions and rarely go back to read what was said by their classmates.  By posting a summary of the class discussion as a course announcement, you can bring closure to the topic and highlight areas of insight or correct any misconceptions that arose within the discussion post.

Celebrating Milestones:

Acknowledge and celebrate student achievements, such as completing challenging assignments or engaging in thoughtful discussions.  While being careful not to publicly embarrass a student, let the class know when something was well done.  With the student’s permission, post an exemplary response, or present an insightful student’s idea or solution to a problem.  Milestones can also be non-academic.  When students share their personal achievements with you, with their permission, share these with the class.  Did someone recently complete a half-marathon?  Let others know!  New baby? Celebrate! Publicly recognizing student achievements elevates morale and helps develop a community mindset within your class.

To conclude, facilitating student engagement and maintaining clear and supportive communication can enhance the online learning experience and create a strong sense of community within your virtual classroom.

Posted on No Comments on Infographics as Team Projects – repost

Infographics as Team Projects – repost

I posted on this before but I still think it is an idea which could be useful.  Creating the infographic employs research skills around a topic, design skills for appropriately displaying the information, and communication skills to know what information will have the greatest impact.

Check out the original post: http://blogs.belhaven.edu/asfaculty/2014/12/03/infographics-as-team-projects/ 

There are some examples below.

Posted on No Comments on Irreducible Minimum meets Collaborative Learning Strategy

Irreducible Minimum meets Collaborative Learning Strategy

When these two concepts intersect, powerful learning can occur.  However, for there to even be an intersection, the Instructor must accept a few basic premises:

  1. That student learning is different than teaching.  I have heard it said that “teaching is an art.”  I can believe that, but what makes it an art is whether or not learning occurs.  Teaching experiences designed without consideration of how or even if it impacts student learning are empty experiences, which can be equally frustrating for Instructor and student.
  2. That adults learn differently than traditional age college students.  Because of their life experiences the studies show they are better at synthesizing material, particularly if it is presented in a way that allows them to grasp relevance.
  3. That there is more than one way to “skin a cat” as my Mom used to say, i.e. there are other ways to teach besides lecture.
  4. Finally, that there are some things about any subject which are more important than others and which are crucial to mastery of the whole (this is the irreducible minimum c.f. The Seven Laws of the Learner by Bruce Wilkinson).

When these premises are accepted, the Instructor can look at the material to be covered for the class session and, because of experience and education, determine which topics are crucial.  With that knowledge, it is easy to arrange the class session to focus on the crucial topics first, before moving on to the other topics, which are still important but don’t qualify as crucial.

Once the irreducible minimum has been identified, now comes the choice of how to present the material, i.e. what learning strategies will you employ to insure these crucial topics are not just taught but learned.  While those activities include lecture, it is probably the most over used  and least effective technique employed by Instructors.  There are other articles in this blog which talk about collaborative learning activities and any search engine will turn up hundreds if not thousands of ideas, so I won’t include those in this blog post.    Suffice it to say, to contemplate what it will take to achieve student learning will require more time and energy as well as some creativity.  It will mean becoming comfortable with a certain amount of creative chaos in the classroom, something may Instructors find uncomfortable.  On the plus side, this intersection of Irreducible Minimum and Collaborative Learning Strategy will dramatically improve the learning of the students in your class and may have an unexpected consequence of re-invigorating you love for the “art” of teaching.

Originally posted November, 2014

Posted on No Comments on Classroom Activity

Classroom Activity

Incorporating collaborative classroom activities which are both instructive and engaging can be challenging. One way to do that is to use an activity similar to the one I describe below.

I use an RSS feed to pull together posts from various blogs across the internet that I find interesting.  One of those is from Lolly Daskal. She usually posts interesting material, but it is often light on application.  One of her more recent posts was titled: 10 Vital Traits to Look for in People You Hire. As you can imagine, the points she lists are accurate but too shallow to make an application.  As a classroom activity, however, I could use this list in a couple of ways:

  1. I could emphasize the importance to setting up an RSS feed (I use Bloglovin but there are many which do the same thing and almost all are free) and to pull together some favorite blogs for collection. This promotes self-development and ongoing-learning, a skill that will be vital for everyone in the days ahead. Check out this post about these feeders.
  2. I would use a specific post like the one above and parcel it out to groups in the class and ask them to explain how to determine whether or not a trait exists in a job candidate. For instance, one of her 10 vital traits was that the individual must have a growth mindset. You may be aware of the book Mindset in which Carol Dweck explains the virtues of the growth mindset and the differences and advantages over the fixed mindset (excellent book and I highly recommend it). I would challenge the group with this assignment to find out about the growth mindset, if they don’t already know, and then determine ways in an interview to discover if the candidate had a growth mindset.
  3. Alternately, you could post large pages of paper around the room and list the 10 traits on per page and have the groups rotate from page to page every couple of minutes adding their thoughts to how to find out if that trait is present.

There are a LOT of good resources available to draw upon to enrich your class and engage your students.  If you would like to know more or have questions, please contact me (rupchurch@belhaven.edu) or Dr, Kim Priesmeyer, Dean of the Center for Teaching and Learning (kpriesmeyer@belhaven.edu).

Posted on No Comments on Zoom Video Conference – Why and How

Zoom Video Conference – Why and How

You probably are already aware that you have access to a powerful video conference tool from inside Canvas, titled Zoom.  I’ve included a picture of the link.  Zoom is very easy to use and intuitive, meaning that you should be able to use it with only a little trial and error. Below I’m going to discuss Why you might want to use Zoom, and How to set it up and use it.

WHY

I’m going to list several scenarios in which you might benefit from using Zoom:

  • As “office hour(s)” – Designate a time each week when you know you’ll be at your computer and start a zoom conference, posting the link in an announcement on the course-site in Canvas.  One of the things I love about Zoom is that if
    you minimize it, a small window stays active in the upper corner of your screen and you can easily see if anyone joins the conference and you can maximize Zoom.  You can also post an announcement that “Office hours” are by appointment and set up your Zoom specific to any student who schedules an appointment
  • To record a presentation or tutorial.  Zoom is perfect for recording a presentation or tutorial of some computer application.  Whatever you can see on your desktop can be shown through Zoom and recorded and made available to students.  This might be particularly useful for some of the trickier formulas or math related problems.
  • To set up an optional (strictly voluntary) class meeting relative to a specific event, e.g. you could set up a Zoom to discuss political debates following the debates while everyone is still fresh.
  • To bring in a guest lecturer to your class session.  While you would still need to let the Dean know and get approval, this is a perfect way to bring someone into your class that you know can bring some specialized knowledge or a powerful story to connect with your students. This way your guest could be literally anywhere in the world and still present in your classroom.
  • These are only a few ideas, but I’m sure you are getting the idea.

HOW

Starting a Zoom is very easy, all you will need is your Belhaven login and password.  Once you click on the Zoom link you will want to “Host” a meeting after you enter your credentials.  To invite others, either email them the link or post the link in an announcement on your course site.  I’ve included a video below which walks you through the process.

Let me know how it works for you.

 

Posted on No Comments on Poll Everywhere – What, Why, How

Poll Everywhere – What, Why, How

WHAT?

Poll Everywhere is a web-based tool which easily builds into powerpoint presentations to allow students to respond from their mobile devices. It presents the results in real time, allowing for evaluation of knowledge, or as a prompt for discussion.

Here is a short video which demonstrates it’s use.

https://youtu.be/QzX2ZtjhSwY

WHY?

Using Polleverywhere is relatively simple and can definitely liven up a presentation.  It also allows individuals who rarely speak in class to contribute in a low threat environment. Using this type of tool makes the discussion more relevant and students experience a greater sense of understanding the material

HOW?

The video above describes the process pretty clearly, but here is an article which also goes into detail about how to use Poll Everywhere:

Great ways to use Poll Everywhere in the classroom

Posted on No Comments on Test Review???

Test Review???

I posted this initially in April of 2017 but I thought I’d share it again since I believe it can be an exceptionally good way to review for tests, not to mention reinforcing information in a way that engages the students and creates a little fun along the way:

I know you are always on the lookout for an activity to use after 9:00 that will actively engage students and make that last hour meaningful.

Here is one activity that will do that. Kahoot.  Kahoot is a classroom engagement software that is free to instructors and provides an interesting way to engage students in content.  I’ve included some links to a couple of tutorials about how to use Kahoot below.

It will involve you setting up the activity in advance but on the plus side, it can be used over and over again as you teach the class.  This would make a great test-review session and could spark some interesting discussion as well.  Don’t be put off that the tutorials are based on secondary education models – this will work just as well for adults in that last hour of class.  I’ve been in a session when this was used and I can personally vouch for how effective it is.

Please post a reply to this if you use it and let me know how it went.

Kahoot! Demo for Teachers

How to Use Kahoot! in the Classroom

Posted on 1 Comment on Using clips from 60 Minutes in your class

Using clips from 60 Minutes in your class

I attended a faculty workshop at Jackson where one of the librarians from Belhaven’s Library shared how to access their database of clips from 60 Minutes to use in class.  This is a great way to start a discussion and present different perspectives.  Here is the process:

  1. From the Belhaven homepage, click on Library under Academics
  2. Scroll down and click on Databases (in the gold box)
  3. Scroll down to the bottom of the list of databases and click on 60 Minutes: 1997-2014.  It’s the last database listed.
  4. You will have to enter your Belhaven credentials to access the material

Here are some of the searchable categories:

Subjects

This is a great way to augment your class – give it a try and let me know how it goes.

Posted on No Comments on 4 Square Instructor

4 Square Instructor

At each of the faculty workshops I visited, or sent video to, for the Fall 2018 rotation for Belhaven University, I challenged the faculty to become a “4 Square Instructor.” When this idea first came my way from an article by Neil Haave, titled “Teaching Squares Bring Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives” I thought there might be something there which could be used to help overcome the chronic problem every teacher faces: becoming trapped in their own pedagogical ruts. After discussing this with the Deans at Belhaven’s Regional Campuses in our Summit in August, we decided on a model that provides an interesting option for improving or refreshing their practice of teaching.  The 4 Square Instructor model below is the result.

Instructors who have been through the approval process for Belhaven can become 4 Square Instructors by:

  1. Visit 3 other classes outside your normal course assignments or discipline for a couple of hours to find new teaching ideas (this is not for critique, but to find new ways to make the subject material come alive).
  2. Implement at least one new idea into a class you are teaching.
  3. Write up summary, at least 2 pages, including which classes you visited, what you learned, what you tried and how it worked. Don’t be afraid to describe failures as they can be an excellent source of learning.
  4. Present at an upcoming faculty workshop as called upon by the Dean at that Regional site.
  5. Receive a 4 Square Instructor Polo shirt for that year
  6. Repeat every year.

Not everyone will do this, or even be able to, but I see the possibility of some interesting cross-pollination of ideas which will definitely benefit our students.  Note, there may be some variation from one site to another so check with your Dean for specifics.

Give it some thought. If you want suggestions on which classes to visit, contact the Dean at your campus.