Communication is paramount to any online education. Keeping faculty engaged through out the process is key.
This training provided me with practical tools on how to implement an effective monitoring system to determine best practices in an online instructional setting. Additionally,
I found myself re-thinking how we onboard and train new faculty members. Although I feel we do a good job, it seems to me we could be doing so in a more thoughtful, streamlined manner.
The institution should have a detailed, outlined training plan to ensure new faculty are trained fully to the institutions policies, regulations, and procedures.
Understanding the reasoning behind accreditation standards gives new faculty a great insight as to WHY they must follow the standards. Seeing and knowing what the standards are allows new faculty to ask any questions if they see something they might not understand.
Ensure faculty are thoroughly onboarded on all facets of their requirements, but spread out that onboarding over a period of time.
Online faculty need a robust orientation prior to teaching their first class in order to help them be successful.
The best way to orient new faculty is to utilize the LMS in their orientation. This will give them familiarity from the students perspective.
New faculty need lots of review for their courses to ensure that they are meeting the requirements of feedback for students and for graded online assignments.
Faculty onboarding for online courses requires consistent oversight to ensure faculty have successfully completed each aspect of training.
