Several online colleges are introducing new apps for their school. These can be neat in that you can check in on the go from a tablet or smart board. However I find when students use these apps their quality of discussion posts goes WAY down. All of a sudden you see grammar and spelling errors and text speak start to slip in. I try to make it clear that expectations are the same for writing level for apps or posts made from web browsers but they jump into this more informal frame of mind. Does anyone else see this happening?

One of the hardest things I think to manage online is group projects. This is where students tend to get snarky or have an attitude if they feel they are doing more or people are not pulling their own weight. I usually have very few problems elsewhere on the discussions or within the class. Does anyone else find this to be the case?

I teach math classes that involve many tutorial math videos. From showing how to solve equations to using excel the videos are a powerful way to reach students when you cannot be there yourself. However I find just hosting these on youtube means the students don't use them, they don't want to sort through dozens of videos. Instead I have been sorting them all using a live binder, this free Web site allows you to sort things into categories (for shorter classes I tend to do each week) and place just the videos there for that week, then they can easily access them. This gives me a great way to communicate all of these external resources to my students.

What are Best Practices for enhancing the technical skills for those students who are not familiar with technology?

Are there any icebreakers available to help bridge the communication gap between baby boomers and millenials?

Is it appropriate for students to text the instructor? If so, what circumstances would a text be more appropriate than an email?

Since the University does not provide student ages, it’s difficult to identify student generation. I always include an introductions thread and sometimes students share some information that allows me to make a guess as to the age of the student. Also when reading students discussion participation and research papers I tend to get an idea as to the age of the student. This information becomes part of a spreadsheet that I create before the start of the course (i.e. student name, email, phone (if available), guessed age, level of course participation, comments (i.e. needs increasing discussion participation, always late with assignments, Turnitin high scores, will be late with assignments, etc…) How to you manage your communication tone (identify student age) when you have 100+ students per semester? What is your approach?

Once I make a commitment to facilitate online course, I am committed to 7-day course presence. I am an early person so my interaction is usually in the morning—I make sure to tell students. One way I interact with students is through the discussion threads. I usually take the initiative to start contributing to the discussions on Sundays (lessons starts on Mondays). I do not respond to each post students make, but rather every other post along with posting questions related course subject matter being discussed that week. Would be interested to know your approach to course discussions; what is your level of contribution.

One of the quiz questions was to call students via telephone to introduce myself (instructor) and to provide a course overview to student. Does anyone do take this approach? I personally never thought to do so since I facilitate 3-4 courses per term thus usually have an average of 100+ students (this would be impractical…) What is your view?

How do you engage students to distinguish between the importance of the number of responses and comments from the importance of the quality of the comment? Are there any circumstances where the quantity of responses should carry more weight than the quality of responses?

Should students be reminded of the rubric throughout the course?

What are some techniques that professors could utilize if they run into issues with students that believe they should be available 24/7.

What are some of the tactics that some of you utilize when dealing with a student that is abrasive?

Would creating a Facebook page give students the wrong impression regarding their instructors "professionialism"?

Each institution has an organization plan. How do your advisers assist you in retention and encouraging students to participate?

I construct a rubric that enforces the online institution policies, contains a quantitative aspect and contains a statement of a substantive response. How do you establish a balance between quantity and quality?

Should you allow students to use information from discussions as a legitimate source that can be posted in a reference list? Afterall the idea comes from a discussion, but do we use conversations in a social "bar-room" as a source of knowledge and ideas.

All-- How can we encourage students to trust their classmates in order to expand and enhance their online leaning experience? Group work can be tricky, but the payoffs at the end of a project can be great.

All-- In the online environment, we often teach non-traditional aged students? How can instructors quell the fears of unknown technology for our students?

All-- With the increased presence of social media and texting, many students are losing their ability to communicate in full and complete thoughts? How can online professors embrace technology while underscoring the importance of traditional writing and communication norms?