Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

About me

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt currently serves as the Vice President of Academic Affairs for the College of Health Care Professions based in Houston, Texas. Prior to this post he worked as an e-Learning consultant for companies across the USA. His primary research focus over the past four years has been the development of online learning Engagement Metrics. Dr. Vaillancourt’s 27 years of service in education includes multiple levels of experience in both private and public educational institutions. His professional positions include Online Campus President for Virginia College, National Dean of ITT's Online Division, Director of Education for Ultimate Medical Academy, President of a two-campus allied health college in Utah, Certified Cisco Academy Instructor, Master Certified Novell Instructor, and K-12 public school science teacher.

Dr. Vaillancourt’s BS and MS in Education were earned from Samford University in 1983 and 1989, respectively. He completed his Ed.D. in Instructional Technology and Distance Education from Nova Southeastern University in May 2004. Dr. Vaillancourt designed, founded and chaired the non-profit National Math Bee (2006-2011), which provided an online learning community for over 15,000 elementary school mathematics students in 37 states across the country. He was a US Army soldier prior to his career in education.

Activity

Discussion Comment

Faculty Expectations

Hello Edward, Confirmation, timely feedback, proactive announcements and the like, continue to provide higher student success than when they are not present. Most instructors know there is no one best solution, except maybe, an alert professional instructor who has a myriad of instructional approaches to address a variety of student types in the same class. Nevertheless, consistency with the 'old reliables' almost always has a positive impact, though not 100%. Thank you for your insights.

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

Discussion Comment

Instructor Presence

Edward, Excellent approach! The audio/video components of the online classroom can 'personalize' online instruction far beyond the usual text-based class. The advancement of technology is a key component to enhancing the online classroom experience. Additionally, the technological analyses that will be avaialble promise to add an analytic component to instruction that has not been available before. As many teachers agree, teaching is both an art and a science. The future of academic analytics may help bolster the 'science' side of that equation, as we increase our utilization of computer technology as an instructional medium.

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

Discussion Comment

Faculty Expectations

Hi Jeremy, The old addage "They don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care," is true with many students in the postsecondary online classroom today. Sometimes the expectations statement is most useful for reference and reminders than the initial starting point. It is also a good idea for faculty to remind, with emails and pop-ups, the importance of reading the announcements and the benefit it provides the student in reduction of frustration, etc. Also, very good point about the teacher leading by example. Modeling the behavior that is expected is the best way to get… >>>

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

Discussion Comment

Will Online Learning Replace the Traditional Classroom?

Tipton, I believe I understand - and agree wholeheartedly with - your position on the value of human engagement/interactivity in the overall learning process. However, with today's technology (and likely future technologies) what "interaction of fellow students" do you see that may not be able to be accommodated and is critical to learning intellectual content? Thank you for your contribution.

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

Discussion Comment

Providing Feedback

Jerrianne, Your real-time, verbal outreach to Mike would likely enliven the his engagement with the content. With Kathy, the Socratic (questioning) approach is a proven technique for drawing out adult students and getting them to take more responsibility for their learning. Additionally, making the topic relative to 'real life' is very strong for adult instruction. These are good approaches for both students. Thank you for your insights.

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

Discussion Comment

Instructor Presence

Jerrianne, Your outreach to students, especially those who don't 'raise their hand' for help, is a critical factor for some students. Keep up the consistent outreach. I expect there will be a few of those "You made a difference" letters from graduates, when you least expect it.

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

Discussion Comment

The Optimal Online Student-Instructor Ratio

Amir, Good point concerning the need for more focus on beginning classes in a program. Research provides solid evidence the highest attrition is during those firt terms and that individualized attention can ameliorate this to some degree.

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

Discussion Comment

The Optimal Online Student-Instructor Ratio

Hi Jerrianne, Consistent and frequent contact with each student in your class is an important motivator. A larger student count per section can make this difficult to acheive. As you say, this outreach to students usually has the effect of reducing attrition. Nice job.

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

Discussion Comment

The Optimal Online Student-Instructor Ratio

Hello Amir, Your 35:1 example clearly states the circumstance being considered. Also, your indication that "it is probably better to have a smaller student-teacher ratio" for many classes, agrees with most experienced instructors. Some research indicates the optimal range is somewhere in the 20s.

Dr. S. David Vaillancourt

Discussion Comment

Managing Learner Behaviors - 2

Cecelia, Very good response plan. The individualized attention with useful tips can make all the difference for students in this frame of mind. Making sure the student is aware of your availability for one-to-one discussions can be powerful for many learners.

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