Doing detective work to know WHY a student is acting a certain way or wanting to quit. Look beyond the assignments (or lack of) to see the root of the troubles.
Participation can include affirmative and interrogative posts to help engage learners.
The idea of getting a short bio from the students to give a path in to opening discussions when conflicts arrive was particularly useful.
I learned reasons why students leave a program and how to encourage them to stay. I've had more than a few students who wanted to drop out because they had technological difficulties.
I gained knowledge on various types of learners and traits which may hinder the learning process.
Also red flags which can derail the learning process and the importance to learn what policies
and procedures to use to manage these instances in the university handbook.
One takeaway I have from this module is to provide a pre-course survey to evaluate technical issues/understanding students may have to prepare to assist in any way we can.
I enjoyed learning about the different types of learners, their attributess, and arreas they might have difficulties in the online classroom.
Online courses require more time and effort by the students. Communicating with them about this might help them set up a schedule they can use to manage their time for course work and personal time or work related matters.
I have been teaching online for nearly 20 years and this is the first time I have been introduced to different types of students/participation. I had never heard of noisy students, etc. Super interesting.
This module presented valualbe information regarding proper and effective communication with students. The importance of record keeping and how to counsel via email. The suggestions for how to handle the different types of learners was helpful. It was good to hear ways to reduce attrition. I will be using the ideas for record keeping. Very good and helpful module.
I should be mindful of possible technical and personal issues, and reach out to students who may be struggling
Thinking of attrition as something I can help with as an instructor is very intersting. Excessive workload being one of the top reasons of attrition is a real eye opener!
Some criteria for classifying personal e-mail messages are:
- Confidential.
- Public.
- Urgent.
- Junk.
Treat all personal e-mail messages with the degree of confidentiality they deserve.
- Remind learners to review the questions and answers in the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) area before they post their questions in the designated common area.
- Ask learners to wait for at least 24 hours. If by that time they have not received a satisfactory answer to their question from other learners, they should forward the question to you.
Being vigilant to those students who are out of line and being able to approuch them in an appropriate way and documenting everything correctly.
I have had experience as an online instructor for a few years now. Many students have competing responsiblities (e.g., family, job) that don't allow them the time to complete assignments and exams (assessments) on time.
You should create a file that is readily available retaining to e-mail and chat room disscussions with students. I need to know when conflicts arise online and how to properly engage students in resolving the issues.
E learning requires the instructor to spend more time to prepare than with traditional learning. Promoting participation in asynchronous discussions is important for critical course information. it is useful to have so many ways to improve on this.
Attrition can be caused by various factors. Instructors will need to be supportive of the e-learner and have strategies to counteract those factors when identified. Reminding students of available technical assistance and offering time management tips in relation to the level of commitment for the course. This type of support could potentially reduce the level of attrition. Application of frequent communication and sharing of interventions with e- learners is definitely a great strategy moving forward.
Record-keeping systems are so important when teaching online classes.
Managing the online enviornment can be more challenging than managing a traditional classroom in the fact that literally everything you do is written down in an email, text transcript,video recording, discussion board, assignment feedback. It can be scrutinized and needs to be professional, direct but empathetic, firm but sensitive. Never responsd to a student with a negative emotional response, as this is a documented conversation. That being said, because we do interact with students in a written manner, keeping records, emails, assignments etc if an issue arises is a smart idea. Just like documentating a patient assessment is imperative for the nurse, as is documenting in the online classroom setting.
