scholarly journals Course management strategies for first time online instructors

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 2
Author(s):  
Regina Biggs
Keyword(s):  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Student Feedback ◽  
Course Management ◽  
Online Instructors ◽  
Problem Solving Skills ◽  
Teacher Presence

The presentation examines the practice of teacher presence from students’ perspectives.  It is based upon a comparison of student feedback from the first and second fully online deliveries of a required course entitled, Education Law.  While a review of the literature reveals that teacher presence is created through degrees of active engagement, instructors new to online teaching may misinterpret learners’ perceptions of what constitutes an acceptable degree of presence. Student feedback, from the first delivery, suggested the expectation for teacher presence was higher because the course design featured a number of collaborative, project based learning activities. Instructional planning that gives balanced attention to content mastery and course management by reframing the functions of the instructor’s role will assure that learners’ enthusiasm and engagement are not casualties of the context. A review of the course evaluations from the Summer 2015 semester revealed that an intentional contemplation of communication variables including timing, interpersonal and inter-group messaging must be purposefully planned to minimize the potential for confusion.  This suggests changes for the Summer 2016 semester, including the use of proactive course management strategies to increase student satisfaction, facilitate the display of metacognition, and extend creative problem solving skills to authentic applications.  Faculty will learn about how the initiation of these changes in course management impact students’ perceptions of teacher presence.

Strategies for Online Course Development to Promote Student Success

2014 ◽  
pp. 152-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaye Shelton ◽  
Diane Mason ◽  
Cindy Cummings
Keyword(s):  
Student Success ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Authentic Learning ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Course Development ◽  
Online Course Design ◽  
Online Student ◽  
Online Course Development

In spite of online teaching having existed for almost two decades, many courses still mirror the traditional objectivist classroom. However, the literature clearly validates that a different approach must be taken for online course design that includes a pedagogical shift to constructivist methods that encourage transference of learning such as mastery learning, problem-based and project-based learning, authentic learning and assessment, and collaboration. This chapter presents elements of constructivist course design for increased online student engagement that can support online student success.

scholarly journals Award-Winning Faculty Online Teaching Practices: Roles and Competencies

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Florence Martin ◽  
Kiran Budhrani ◽  
Swapna Kumar ◽  
Albert Ritzhaupt
Keyword(s):  
Online Teaching ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
The United States ◽  
Course Delivery ◽  
Online Faculty ◽  
Online Instructors ◽  
Award Winning ◽  
Online Spaces ◽  
Critical Competencies

Given the explosive growth of online learning in institutions of higher education, we are in dire need of guidelines for instructing new and continuing online instructors on how best to teach in online spaces.  The purpose of this study was to identify the roles of the online instructor and categorize critical competencies for online teaching based on a review of research, and the perspectives of award-winning online faculty. We interviewed eight award-winning online faculty members from across the United States. Based on interviews, it was found that online instructors were assuming five different roles: Facilitator, Course Designer, Course Delivery, Subject Matter Expert, and Mentor.  Participants’ common tasks when designing and teaching an online course fell in two areas, either Course Design or Teaching. This research has clear implications not only for the literature research base, but for our institutions as well as we continue to offer increasing numbers of effective online courses and programs to our students.

scholarly journals A comparison of student engagement in the online vs. face-to-face environment

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Brielmaier ◽  
Ying-Ying Kuo
Keyword(s):  
Student Engagement ◽  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Complete Analysis ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Face

Enhancing student engagement has been a goal of increasing importance in higher education.  This may be especially valuable in online courses, where face-to-face interactions and synchronous activities are often minimal or nonexistent. Students are thought to be engaged when they view course activities as meaningful, persist in the face of difficulties or obstacles, and wish to learn to achieve mastery of the material (Bomia et al., 1997; Schlecty, 1994). Given the importance of student engagement for effective teaching, it is important for instructors and course designers to understand the factors that foster engagement within the learning environment.The present study sought to measure and compare student satisfaction and engagement in online vs. face-to-face sections of Physiological Psychology taught in Spring and Fall 2015. An end of semester survey, adapted from the literature (Dixson, 2010; Ouimet & Smallwood, 2005), included 18 questions relevant to learner satisfaction, motivation and engagement.  The preliminary data analysis was based on Spring 2015 data collected from 56 students total (22 online, 34 face-to-face).  The findings indicated that there was no statistically significant difference between the online and face-to-face sections for student learning satisfaction and overall engagement levels. Results suggest that online teaching and learning can be comparable to the face-to-face environment on these parameters. More complete analysis of the data from the Spring, Summer, and Fall 2015 semesters, as well as a discussion of implications for course design, will be presented.  Faculty and course designers will learn about strategies for measuring and promoting student engagement within their own courses.

scholarly journals Award-winning faculty online teaching practices: Elements of award-winning courses

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Swapna Kumar ◽  
Florence Martin ◽  
Kiran Budhrani ◽  
Albert Ritzhaupt
Keyword(s):  
Online Teaching ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Professional Associations ◽  
The United States ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Online Instructors ◽  
Award Winning ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Teaching Awards ◽  
Using Data

The purpose of this study was to explore award-winning instructors’ insights on elements of their course design that were “award-winning” and the differences between expert and novice online instructors. Interviews were conducted with eight award-winning online faculty members from across the United States who had received online teaching awards from one of three professional associations. The five main areas that emerged from the data analysis were, a) authentic and relevant course materials that connect to practice, b) the use of multimedia resources c) student creation of digital content individually and collaboratively d) students’ reflection on learning and e) the instructor’s explanation of the purpose of activities, technologies and assessments in the online course. Additionally, award-winning faculty emphasized the importance of using data and evaluation practices and reflecting on course offerings in the development of an excellent online course. Award-wining faculty described expert online instructors as being experienced and comfortable in the online environment, using a wide range of strategies, being willing to learn, using data and analytics, and engaged in continuous improvement. The findings add to the literature on best practices and what constitutes excellence in online courses.

scholarly journals Project-Based Learning and Traditional Online Teaching of Research Methods During COVID-19: An Investigation of Research Self-Efficacy and Student Satisfaction

2021 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melissa Randazzo ◽  
Ryan Priefer ◽  
Reem Khamis-Dakwar
Keyword(s):  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Online Teaching ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Discussion Forums ◽  
Methods Courses ◽  
Instructional Format ◽  
Before And After

Research methods courses are a critical component of teaching the applications of evidence based practice in the health professions. With the shift to online learning during the Covid-19 pandemic, new possibilities for teaching research methods have emerged. This case study compares two 5-week asynchronous online graduate level research methods courses in the field of Communication Sciences and Disorders. One online section of the course used traditional methods (TDL) common in face-to-face courses with recorded slide-based lectures, written discussion forums, and a final presentation. The other online section of the course used project-based learning (PBL), which consisted of weekly projects that forced students to engage with the literature and work both collaboratively and autonomously. We measured students’ research self-efficacy and course satisfaction before and after their courses. Overall, research self-efficacy was higher for the TDL class at both time points. However, the PBL class showed a higher percent increase in research self-efficacy, specifically for more difficult and unfamiliar tasks like statistical analysis. Students in both courses were equally satisfied with their course and instructor; however, students in the PBL class reported a greater workload and level of difficulty. We interpret the results as showing benefits of PBL in facilitating greater engagement with the research literature and course content; while TDL had advantages in students’ confidence with the course, likely due to familiarity with the instructional format.

scholarly journals Project-Based Learning in a Transinstitutional Research Setting: Case Study on the Development of Sustainable Food Products

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hartmut Derler ◽  
Simon Berner ◽  
Daniela Grach ◽  
Alfred Posch ◽  
Ulrike Seebacher
Keyword(s):  
Secondary School ◽  
Food Products ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Project Based Learning ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Research Setting ◽  
School Students ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Problem Solving Skills

Project-based learning (PBL) has been thoroughly integrated in university sustainable development curricula, but has not been well-established in curricula used at pre-university educational levels. Integrating real-world settings into the teaching of secondary school students can help to promote problem-solving skills and competencies at younger ages, which is a crucial task in sustainability education. Therefore, in this article we describe the results of a case study on the development of sustainable food products that involved a university and two secondary schools in Austria. The methods used in this case study were drawn from the transdisciplinary case study (TCS) and the PBL literature. Data were collected by carrying out participatory research methods such as photovoice, focus group discussions, food diaries, student evaluations, and surveys. We divided the study design into three phases: (1) exploration, (2) product ideation, and (3) product prototyping and optimisation. The case study illustrates that the use of PBL research approaches by students at different levels of education provides promising results, if the research process is clearly structured and managed. When a demand for learning is encountered by students, secondary school teachers and university researchers must provide the students with additional sources of information. The establishment and management of a transinstitutional research setting is a promising, yet time-consuming endeavour.

scholarly journals ON THE NATURE AND DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIAL PRESENCE IN ONLINE COURSE DISCUSSIONS

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Swan ◽  
Li Fang Shih
Keyword(s):  
Student Satisfaction ◽  
Social Presence ◽  
Course Design ◽  
Online Courses ◽  
Computer Mediated Communication ◽  
Online Discussions ◽  
Influential Factor ◽  
Online Course ◽  
Mediated Communication ◽  
Quantitative Results

“Social presence,” the degree to which participants in computer-mediated communication feel affectively connected one to another, has been shown to be an important factor in student satisfaction and success in online courses. This mixed methods study built on previous research to explore in greater depth the nature of social presence and how it develops in online course discussions. The study combined quantitative analyses of survey results from students enrolled in four online graduate courses, and qualitative comparisons of students with the highest and lowest perceptions of social presence. Quantitative results revealed significant correlations between perceived social presence and satisfaction with online discussions, and teased apart the respective influences of the perceived presence of instructors and peers. The findings indicate that the perceived presence of instructors may be a more influential factor in determining student satisfaction than the perceived presence of peers. Correlations with other course and learner characteristics suggest that course design may also significantly affect the development of social presence. Qualitative findings support the quantitative results. In addition, they provide evidence that students perceiving the highest social presence also projected themselves more into online discussions,and reveal meaningful differences in perceptions of the usefulness and purpose of online discussion between students perceiving high and low social presence.

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