In this information I learned that in order to establish yourself as a credible instructor you should provide to your students a brief biography that showcases your accomplishments, credentials, education, professional development and even some personal information such as hobbies or intrests. It's also wise to ask your students about themselves and read their biography. This is a great way to establish connections.
Hi Instructor's presence in the class needs to be the driving force. He presents content as a subject matter expert and as a teacher who can convert complex knowledge into bite size pieces
Regards
Dr Ajmal
Asking for a bio and picture is a great way to meet your students.
Reply to Lisa Brown's post: It is imperative and effective way for an instructor to learn about the students and for the students to learn about each other by posting a short biography about them to shared with the rest of the class.
Projecting and maintaining your presence from a distance is important
Relationship building with your students/participants is key. It is also necessary to project authority to establish trust with students, and so that they feel more confident about being supported. To establish authority and to help students feel supported, it is good to introduce yourself and mention your credentials. Afterwards, encourage them to introduce themselves by writing a short bio, and respond to the bio to connect with students.
I think having a discussion forum where everyone in the class shares a little about themselves as well as reasons and expectations for the course helps the instructor connect with the learners and further will help the class connect. This all makes the support system that much greater while comforting the students, letting them know they are not alone while taking the course. Great Topic!
It's important to start establishing a relationship with your students as soon as possible. By sharing information of each other, we begin to build a sense of trust which will make students comfortable to address concerns or needs.
One of the most important things is to let students know that you are there to support them throughout the course and that you are committed to their success.
So, we have started doing a WELCOME letter for each term and incorporated a short bio for each instructor to give the students an opportunity to learn about our credentials, achievements (and some failures that we overcame) and our expectations as the instructor to each students. On day one, we do a verbal intro by each students so I know more about them and each student learns a bit about their peers, but, I like the idea of having them write/type it out because it might prompt them to dig a little deeper. We used this format years ago at a different school, but, this prompted me to pull that back and I really like this idea. Another suggestion would be to add a "Dear FUTURE ME" letter that the students writes to them selves either day one of the entire program or revises at each term/semester with updates on their goals, expectations, accomplishments, and maybe career path changes. Then at graduation or course completion, have them read it so they can fully grasp and appreciate their academic and personal growth.
I find student's stories and backgrounds interesting and so I naturally gravitate to wanting to hear about their lives. I try to ask about specifics in later discussions so each student knows that I read their bio and that I'm invested in their success in the class.
I learned that you do not have to throw out the baby with the bathwater or reinvent the wheel. I learned that we are able to incorporate strategies that we imploy in the classroom to the online environment.
Establishing a good rapport with students is important. Communication is key. I like the idea of students posting bios.
I have always done an introduction for the students, I never thought of writing out a short auntobiography for them. I will try this. I also feel having students write one will help me with my teaching. I will better understand the students and where they are coming from.
My online presence as the instructor is critical to the students feeling comfortable with the course.
I use a introduction of each other on the first day of a class on site, but I wil start using the posting of a short bio in the future, I like this wether online or in person.
I believe it is important to get to know students and their idiosyncrasies. But in post-high school, and in trade schools, that information is not generally able to be freely learned. Particularly, among students from a common area, who are likely to become competitors when out in the workforce, such as in the electrical trade. TMI can be a problem, especially where instructors may not have the qualifications necessary to deal with particulars unrelated to the immediate electrical subject/module, or even the electrical trade in general.
I feel the generalities EL102 covers miss the more specific particulars we face as Electrical Instructors preparing our students for the real world, demanding world of working in the electrical field. That is what I feel most qualified to do, and also what my understanding of what PCI hired me to do. I'm seeing students requiring way too much individual instructor input. These are not children, but young adults, certainly of an age to be beyond some of the Mother Robin neediness which detracts from the overall learning environment of all the students.
- Instructors can project their presence in the classroom by introducing yourself.
- Allowing students to introduce themselves.
- Sending group and individual e-mails / messages to students welcoming them and reassuring them of your presence.
Making it personal helps students (and me) feel more connected. Reaching out regularly is important.
As an instructor you need to make clear and maintain the expectation and rules of online just as if they were in class physically. But, you also need to bring the human side to it. To post a "tell me about yourself" not only shows how we are all from different areas and backgrounds, it shows just how much we may have in common as well. Students are also more likely to ask for help with something if they feel comfortable and connected.
