Teaching Online is Different
When teaching online you will be able to draw upon your experiences teaching in a classroom. There are many experiences that will be similar to what you already know, and then some things will be entirely new or different. Whichever modality you teach in can be a rewarding experience, both for you and your students.
- Administrative responsibilities: Faculty who teach online or partially online courses have many of the same administrative responsibilities as those teaching in a face-to-face classroom. You will develop curriculum, choose textbooks, verify course rosters, add and drop students, enter grades at the prescribed times, and create and upload course syllabi.
- Course design: If you're teaching synchronous online classes, much of the in-person classroom experience can be replicated using Zoom. If you're teaching an asynchronous online course, you'll want to ensure that you have developed most, if not all of your course content and activities before the semester begins.
- Accessibility: In an online course, you may have no idea the different types of learning abilities of your students. It is critical to ensure your course is accessible and use universal design strategies throughout your curriculum.
- Grading and feedback: Providing and receiving constructive, timely feedback is important for online and in-person courses. Your syllabus should state your policy and expected turn-around time for grading student work. Students may feel challenged by not feeling the human presence in the online environment – so individualized and prompt feedback can be especially important.
- Assessment: Both online and in-person courses require authentic assessments. Whether you're teaching online or in-person, using Canvas can be a great way for students to turn in their assignments. Consider using a Canvas shell for all course modalities to facilitate learning and student understanding.
- Interaction: The online environment requires intentionality in how you consider interaction with and between students. In whatever modality you teach, maintaining regular and substantive interaction with your students is required. You will need to create activities and spaces for three types of interaction: instructor-to-student, student-to-instructor, and student-to-student. You will actively build community online through activities that may include ice-breakers, academically-oriented threaded discussions, group work, and peer review. Faculty often set aside specific days/times to respond to online students and student work as well as for office hours or availability in real-time through Zoom, Pronto, chat, or other such modalities.
- Student Success: Time management is a critical skill exercised in all online learning modalities. Online learning, and particularly asynchronous online learning, requires students to be more self-directed and disciplined in order to review online course content and complete coursework on time. Additionally, it can be more difficult to identify and support students who are experiencing either instructional or technical difficulties in the course - you must be proactive. Seek ways to humanize your course and let students know they can reach out to you. Incorporating information about college services and utilizing available resources such as early alert systems may also help students connect to the support services and greater college community. As with all courses, it is essential to keep equity and inclusion at the forefront when considering selection and presentation of content, design of course activities and assessments, as well as resources and technology.