McLynda Batterman

Ask students every 3-4 weeks what is working for them.  What should the instructor change? Keep? Feedback is good to understand if the information is being learned and retained by those you are teaching.

The instructor should direct and provide guidance but not feel obligated to comment on everything--let the students form their own discussions based upon an instructor provided topic. Keep them on point if the subject strays. Allow the students a certain amount of ownership of their own education.

Be clear in outlining expectations and rules for the students. I have taken online courses myself and the ones that had clear goals and time frames were the best. Provide feedback promptly and often or students will become frustrated. Make sure you set aside time to maintain work life balance (I am perhaps the most guilty in this--giving my students more of my time because I feel obligated). Setting goals along the way instead of deadlines just at the end should help streamline grading.

Organization and avoiding distractions seems to be key. Does anyone else find that having a "busy" computer screen or multiple locations for information, etc distracting? To me, having a multitude of links and menus is NOT organized and in itself is distracting.