I still see zero use for this if you know how to manage an online discussion and tools within the LMS.

Maybe this is good for the younger generation, but to be honest for graduate students and those not into technology this sounds like a disaster waiting to happen.

With the free avail of tools such as Jing, Magisto, etc.. there are many other options where the content can be controlled within the LMS itself.

I have never been a fan of this in the class as anyone can make a fake account and hard to track the actual real student.

While the main goal for each student is to learn the fundamental course content, the specific content of the course may be forgotten. The acquisition of these necessary skills will continue to support the intellectual growth of the students long into the future.

I believe that my role as an educator is one of a guide, pointing students in the direction they will need to explore to find answers and solve problems. By instructors acting as mentors and friends to students, the students can begin to make professional contacts, find professors to aid in career plans and use for recommendations, and have an academic source to call upon when stresses of classes begin to be overwhelming.

Synchronous learning is a great element, but personally I do not think it should be a graded requirement as this contradicts the advantage of taking classes in an online environment and the flexibility that it offers.

When I first started teaching online it required a basic understanding of HTML to set up the online classroom. Now video is a common component and everything is done by simply clicking and dragging. Unfortunately some schools are complete missing the mark and going in reverse as they are changing the platform without first testing it, and leaving out the most important tool which is streaming video.

With my school that is requiring this training the classes are designed and reused (in my opinion to long) by the school and faculty development team. The framework means nothing to me as faculty have no say so once the course is developed.

Developing online courses take a lot more time than in class courses. One main reason I see when doing both is I know the content in a face to face and have 4 hours to replay it in real time. This can be done at the same time with PowerPoint, lectures, and hand outs. In an online class this must all be converted to a digital format and shared which takes more time and planning.