Consistency and fluency in course construction is paramount to success.
It is important to understand that linear progression through the course is not effective add or can be in face to face courses. Online courses must be organized in ways most effective to the medium.
Being organized is important. Also trying to just turn all of your f2f curriculum into online is not a wise choice.
It is essential in an online classroom to engage students as early as possible by sending a welcome email and introducing yourself to the class. The more engaged a student is the more successful they will be in the class.
There are a lot of things to consider when exploring an online environment.
I learned about feedback and evaluation of the course, and the role of the online administrator.
I learned about the importance of being organized.
When creating online content, a teacher should continually improve the content.
It is important to be organized with all assignments and communications. The instructor need to be consistent to help with the understanding of material. Guidance and feedback are essential also.
Online consistency to ensure student is engaging and understanding concepts
Test the activity for the online class out on a colleague who will give you honest deedback. Do you get enough bang for your buck?
It is important to convey the structure and time required for online courses. Often times the online course may take the same or even more time then a face to face course. The structure is important for the class ro run well.
In the Teaching and Organizing a Virtual Learning Environment class module four, I learned the importance of identifying delivery methods when creating an online class. Being consistent throughout the online class is also important as students will then be able to anticipate what will happen next in a class. Evaluating the class and modifying the class is an ongoing process. Lastly, a significant aspect to a good online class is related to student engagement. The instructor needs to ensure that student engagement is optimal and that requires the teacher to be actively involved in the engagement process.
This module contained a lot of good, solid information about moving (or transferring) a course from a F2F to an online environment. Certainly there is a lot to consider and transforming the classroom materials from something like ordinary classroom PowerPoints, pics and reading materials into something that works better and cleaner online is certainly an important point. The key point is to develop / migrate the classroom materials into something that will inspire student interest and active participation - resulting in a far better online learning experience.
Just like designing a good weebstie or app, clean and good functional (course) design, links that have been tested (and work reliably) along with content that has been tested multiple time (by peers and potential students) combined with intuititive site navigation and ease of access to materials are all keys to making sure the transition from a classroom envronment to an online environment is a success!
I think the layout is extremely important to the course so the students can find everything they need quick and easy.
Many seasoned teachers have strategies and methods which they know work in a F2F classroom. Although years of experience is good, each online course may require a teacher to start over by using various technology vehicles for students to learn content. These same teachers whom have listened to students over the years in F2F classrooms, will need to learn new technology to impart content. They will remain successful if they listen to students and provide what is needed to have success with learning outcomes.
Being consistent in your course layout will make it easier for students to find the materials they need. Students need to be able to find information quickly and easily. It will also make editing and updating content easier for you.
Teachers need to take a lot into account when creating online courses.
One thing that stands out is that one cannot take a F2F course and then transfer over all components to an online course. Care and preparation has to be taken to make sure the course is organized, and that students are engaging in the online environment.
A quality course needs to be organized and easy to navigate.
