To maximize online instructional effectiveness, faculty must do three things: 1) create an efficient online classroom; 2) manage teaching time more effectively; and 3) invest available time to the teaching activities with the greatest impact. Presentation highlights tools and techniques for maximizing impact with minimal time.
The good news for faculty teaching online is that there is a growing body of research that provides insight into best practices for online instruction. New studies are published daily that outline instructional approaches shown to positively impact students’ online learning experiences. Yet, despite a clear awareness of the value and relevance of creating an engaging, personalized, interactive online learning experience, many faculty fail to implement instructional best practices into their own classroom. This gap between what online instructors should do and what online instructors actually do is largely a function of time (Cavanaugh, 2005; Concieção, 2006; Easton, 2003; Graham, Cagiltay, Craner, Lim & Duffy, 2000; Mandernach, Gonzales & Garrett, 2006; Mandernach, Hudson & Wise, 2013; Mandernach, 2013; Sheridan, 2006; Van De Vord, Pogue, 2012; Worley & Tesdell, 2009). The reality of teaching is that each instructor only has a limited amount of time available to devote to each class; this time must be divided between all instructional, organizational and communication tasks (course development, technical challenges, interaction, course administration, grading and feedback, etc.). To maximize teaching time, faculty must do three things: 1) create an efficient online classroom; 2) manage teaching time more effectively; and 3) invest available time to the teaching activities with the greatest impact.
In this workshop, faculty will learn about tools and techniques that allow them to leverage available online teaching time to be more productive and have a greater impact on the student learning experience. Specifically, instructors will learn about relevant technologies that allow them to:
- Prioritize instructional tasks with the greatest impact and manage their time to focus on key activities
- Manage online teaching time to be more productive
- Create an online course outline that integrates active learning strategies that require minimal ongoing instructional time
- Streamline instructional activities to prioritize interaction
- Automate repetitive instructional tasks
- Integrate a combination of one-to-one and one-to-many instructional strategies
- Implement manageable peer-to-peer approaches
- Personalizing the online learning experience
- Provide individualized feedback in a more efficient manner
In this express workshop, participants will:
- Create an instructional priority calendar
- Experiment with time management applications
- Utilize Web 2.0 tools to personalize online learning
- Integrate audio and video instructional supplements to enhance student engagement
- Create automated feedback banks to manage assignment feedback