John Yarbrough

What happens with software development also happens with the development of online courses.  That is the revision cycle.  There are changes that will often be necessary, whether it's how the information is presented or what type of information is added, changed, or deleted.  Using multiple forms of qualitative and quantitative feedback from students and from peers also help make the results of the revision cycle that much more effective and successful.

Whether in the workplace or the learning environment, feedback is a tool to help foster improvement.  This feedback should be constructive in such a manner that it encourages more of the good practices and disccourages the bad practices.  The use of a rubric helps provide structure to the quality assessment of an assigment submitted by the student.  Providing this rubric beforehand gives advance notice of how the student will be evaluated and graded.  This same rubric can be provided again to the student with a breakdown of points awarded, any comments, and the grade total.  Using feedback methods that are… >>>

Though the advent of the internet ushered in a new era of learning from distance, structure is still necessary to keep the online learner engaged and on track.  The syllabus should be dynamic and flexible to change as necessary.  Since humans use the internet, the human touch and presence is important.  This is true for both the student and the instructor.  When developing an online learning environment, in addition to the instructor using technology already available for use, the prior knowledge of students may also help with the learning process.  The technique is known as scaffolding, and it can help… >>>

The role of an instructor requires the same trait desired of other people in leadership roles.  Whether it's a teacher, a professor, a manager,  or a company executive, consistency is expected.  In terms of providing adequate training, particularly with an online learning environment, consistency helps the student as well as the faculty and the institution.  Visual cues can be used to serve as reminders of key points.  Using different styles of fonts can provide the right amount of emphasis on certain pieces of information.  Even different font types and sizes can provide cues, whether or not htey are used in… >>>

Though I have yet to deal with as much conflict in the online learning environment as I did with students at a physical campus, there are similar methods to deal with disruptive students.  The worst thing I have seen so far from my online students has been plagiarism.  Of the three I caught recently, and yes, I did mention three, all were dealt with to varying degrees since all were separate incidents.  One student ended up being suspended until the pending meeting with the judicial review board because this student had committed plagiarism multiple times in the past in other… >>>

The very fact that my students are not in a classroom, but rather scattered across the country, and even the world, suggests that synchronous learning is ineffective.  Rather, asynchronous learning should be used.  This means employing other techniques and strategies to deliver content and provide feedback to students.  In the physical classroom setting, for example, I was used to hearing students laugh at my jokes.  Now, I have to just trust that someone found my material to be funny.  That challenge is also shared with my students.  Therefore, I take advantage of my talking head in the video class sessions… >>>

Though we may be separated from our students by distance, there is still a way to provide the personal touch to let them know they are not taking classes taught by a robot.  This is achieved through a combination of asserting authority and giving everyone a chance to know one another through their biographies.  These techniques help give the student more of a sense of a distance learning environment that is supportive.

The online learning environment presents its own share of challenges that have to be overcome in order to provide the same education one would receive from a physical class setting.  Though no two faculty members may present the same material the same way, these same two faculty members need to be on board with the objective and the mission for delivering a learning experience from virtually anywhere that is of high quality.  Whether it's technology issues or a student who just needs a little nudge in the right direction, the online faculty member has a unique role in online learning… >>>