Jayson Angell

One of my favorite aspects of teahing is being able to get the student feedback at the end of the course.  The most dificult is being able to apply many of the suggestions that are presented by the students.  I have not taken much thought about getting the course evaluated by more than just the students, but it is important that the course be evaluated by several different audiences.  This gives more perspectives into the set up and design of the course.

One of the key takeaways from this section is the importance of feedback.  Being certain to connect the feedback to the learning objectives.  Many times I have considered that the rubric is the feedback, but the rubric is just the justification of the grade.  Feedback should be in addition to the grade from the rubric.  Also feedback needs to be individualized and specific, and tied to the learning objective so that the learner has a clear idea on how to improve.

Key takeaways from this section are the importance of clear and consice directions when it comes to comunication and discussions.  Also the importance of the instructor involvement in discussion posts for an online course.  From personal experiences, I know how important it is for the instructor to be actively involved in the learning of the students.  One of my favorite instructors of an online course went out of his way to check in iwth his students.  Because of the instructors presence in the course, it felt less like a typical online course, and more like an inperson course.

Things that I have learned from this module so far, and want to take away:

1) Making certain that the design of each module is consistent

2) Creating a Database where all of the learning objects and templates are stored for subsequent use.

3) The importance of Cyclical testing to ensure that the course is ready before publishing it.

I have worked with several co-workers that were very limited in their understanding of technology, and their fears kept them from utilyzing many programs that would have been beneficial to them.  As teachers it is helpful to the students to allow them to practice using technology since it is very useful in everything we do, and it will allow them to be more productive.

I struggle with making the time to reinforce these necessary skills in my classrooms.  I get so focused on trying to cover the course content, that I do not make time to help the students to think critically about good problems.  Another struggle is being able to find those good problems that are at an appropriate level of difficulty that the students can achieve without getting frustrated, or that take so long that we spend the entire class period focusing on just the one problem.  There is no question that this is a crucial topic that needs to be addressed.

Communication is always key to any successful teaching.  The students need to know that you are available to help answer questions, and the first week of the course is the most crucial to establish the accessibility for the students to be able to communicate with the instructor as well as eachother.

I really enjoyed the distinction between asynchronous, and synchronous discussions.  This also applies to in person learning, a lot of teachers while teaching employ a synchronous discussion with the entire class, which isn't the most effective method.  The same disadvatages shared with the synchronous discusison such as the students that are slower will not be able to keep up, and will also apply with in an inperson lecture.

I greatly underestimated the importance of having a biography posted for the students to get to know me at the beginning of a course.  In the online courses that I have taken previously, I have just glanced through the teachers' biography, and never really payed attention to it.  In the courses that I currently teach, I feel that it is important to make this initial connection with the studnets.

There is no question that in an online course students need to know that their questions will be answered.  There is nothing more frustrating than being stuck in an online course, and being unable to reach the instructor to get clarification.  As an instructor, it is vital that our students know that we will be there for them to help answer their questions in a timely manner.