Entering the Lion's Den

The importance of face-to-face interactions in a classroom between student-and-student and teacher-and-student cannot be overstated. Creating a positive learning environment often depends on the use of nonverbal expressions – simple eye-contact, tapping on a student’s desk to signal inappropriate behavior, use of hand gestures to emphasize a point, etc. As a high school teacher and university adjunct instructor, I rely on these communicative tools to see/understand how my students are feeling, who is comprehending the material and who is lost, who is having a bad day and who is elated, and even to assess my own instructional effectiveness. Accordingly, shifting from a physical classroom setting to an online setting will have its challenges.

The readings from this week, however, reduced some of my anxieties about teaching in this format. More specifically, I understand my role as an online instructor. I like the premise of thinking of an online instructor as a “tour guide”, guiding students through their online learning experiences (Bull, 2013). In the physical classroom, teachers share a similar responsibility of guiding students through their learning process via modeling, scaffolding, and social-emotional support. It is also important for online instructors to act as a support system, encouraging students and providing positive messages. Bull (2013) expresses how online learning can be “lonely and impersonal” – consequently, one of our primary roles is to make the course feel like a community where every voice is heard and valued. This can be accomplished by establishing (group) activities that encourage communication and cooperation among students (Bart, 2010; Dreon, 2013).

The readings from this week also allowed me to put myself in the shoes of an online student. If I was a student enrolled in an online course one of my fears would be the lack of communication and support from the instructor: “Is the instructor going to answer my emails?” “What if I don’t understand an assignment?” “Who do I contact for help?” “Is the instructor aware of my personal needs?” Dreon (2013) provided several meaningful suggestions to alleviate the anxieties of online students, including providing prompt feedback, communicating high expectations, and respecting the diversity of student learners.


Becoming an effective online instructor can take decades – possibly a lifetime. I am not expecting to be the best or the most efficient in my first year*, but I am hoping to gain experience and learn from my mistakes. 

*This is my first year at Trinity; teaching online Educational Psychology

Comments

  1. Diane MullerMay 16, 2017 at 1:15 PM

    I love your title! This, too, is my first year teaching an online class with Trinity. I've stood in front of 8th graders for 16 years and have no problems at all speaking, getting them to laugh, quieting them down, etc. But I'm very nervous for the online class as instructor. I want to make sure I have everything prepared so I'm not bombarded by questions. I want to provide them feedback in a timely manor. I just want everything to "work" correctly! I know the first class will not be my best, nor will the next few times I teach online. But I'm hoping to learn how to make my online presence and class better.

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    Replies
    1. UnknownMay 19, 2017 at 10:19 AM

      "Bombarded with questions"...yes! This is a concern of mine, too. When rolling out a new tool, I make sure to demo, explain, and send them with written instructions. Even so, we're bound to get questions from students who truly don't understand, or those who didn't make use of the demo/instructions to try to find an answer for themselves, first. I'm happy to help that first group, but it's the second group that will stretch me. :) It's great that we're going through the process as students, first. And imagine, our students may have a handful of classes, each with an online element, and a variety of instructors who have different expectations!

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  2. TrollgeekMay 20, 2017 at 6:44 AM

    Steve, you hit on one of the most important ideas in online learning - that the role of the instructor is not the same as in the face-to-face classroom. Students need to take more responsibility for their own learning, and in fact, even in the learning of their classmates. I have the luxury of being able to meet physically with my ed. psych students before we begin the online course, so when we meet, I emphasize how their role is a much more active one, while mine is essentially to guide them in their learning. If I didn't have these meetings, I think I would do more orienting activities to make clear to them how they need to carve out their own learning time and stay on top of it. I would also emphasize that their contributions and perspectives are important to help the other students see and understand concepts more clearly. I have had students tell me that continually reading (and seeing video of) their classmates' perspectives gave them a lot more insight into the concepts of the course.

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