It's important for instructors to know their students learning preferences and needs early in an online course in order to provide the best possible learning environment. One way to get to know your students is ...
Most online faculty know that discussion is one of the biggest advantages of online education. The increased think-time afforded by the asynchronous environment, coupled with the absence of public speaking fears, produces far deeper discussion ...
One of the challenges of preventing student plagiarism is that students often are not entirely clear on what constitutes plagiarism, so educating them about plagiarism is an important step.
The dynamics involved in each online student group working toward its goal of an A-worthy project are complex. So many components must mesh smoothly, and because of this each group is ripe for any number ...
There are three types of interaction in online courses: learner-to-content, learner-to-instructor, and learner-to-learner. Each contributes to student retention and motivation. This article elaborates on these types of interaction and suggests which technologies can facilitate each ...
Christy Hawkins, director of continuing and professional education at Thomas Nelson Community College, offers the following recommendations to help retain online learners:
A teacher must grab the student's attention right away to motivate the learning, and nothing grabs interest as quickly and easily as animation. It may sound exotic, but new (and cheap) software has made animation simple ...
Teddi Fishman, director of the International Center for Academic Integrity at Clemson University, advocates an instructional design/community-building approach to academic integrity rather than an adversarial approach. Her stint as a police officer informs this stance. ...
The group or collaborative project is becoming de rigueur in many online courses. Its purpose is not simply to have students work together for a joint grade and end project but also to develop essential ...
This article presents online instructional strategies that address career management objectives in science and engineering courses that may improve student interest in STEM occupations and participation in science-related careers.
It's important for instructors to know their students learning preferences and needs early in an online course in order to provide the best possible learning environment. One way to get to know your students is to conduct a survey at the beginning of the course, asking students about their preferences and experience with the subject matter and the online learning environment.
In addition to providing useful information that can help you adapt the course to improve the learning experience, such a survey also can be a great way to find out if you any students who need accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
However, regardless of ADA requirements, students appreciate options when it comes to learning. For example, one way to offer options would be to provide lectures in multiple formats: text (available as a Word document or PDF), audio/video, and audio only. This is something Andy Stanfield, director of the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence at Florida Institute of Technology, did this in a recent course so that students could choose the best way for them to take in the information.