12 Course Delivery
In addition to good online course design, successful online teaching and learning requires quality course delivery. Successful course delivery, whether face-to-face or online, requires communication, ongoing assessment of learning, and student support, all of which depend upon Teacher Presence.
Presence
“Presence is the most important best practice for an online course” (Boettcher & Conrad, p. 81). It is introduced into an online course initially by how the course is designed, and it is maintained by the thoughtful facilitation of course activities and interactions.
Teaching Presence
Be mindful and intentional about how you introduce yourself to your students. You do this first through the design of your course and course materials, and next, you do this through your engagement and interaction with students. Guide class discussion with a well-placed question or comment, share current events and relevant news stories,
respond to questions promptly, etc. Students place very high value on their interactions with their instructors.
Student Presence
Provide opportunities for everyone to introduce their personal characteristics into the class (welcome videos, profile pictures, “Introductions” Discussion Boards where class members share personal interests and/or histories, etc.). This helps “humanize” the online environment, which can feel very isolated, and it helps to establish trust between class members.
Engagement
Online student engagement is key to successful online teaching and learning.
Look for ways to engage your students by:
- including course and unit level learning objectives to raise students’ awareness of their role as learners and to clarify your expectations of them;
- responding promptly and substantively to questions and submissions;
- providing multiple ways for students to interact with course content;
- helping students make connections between their learning and their lives;
- creating opportunities for forming learning relationships with others in the class, especially you.
In 2017, a learning community of BTC faculty, eLearning staff, Librarians and Accessibility staff conducted a year-long study of online student engagement. The following “Fab Five: course engagement tips from online students” resulted from that research.
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“Don’t waste my time!” “Avoid time-wasters!”
Students want relevant content, materials and activities that help them achieve the course learning objectives, not “fluffy” video and unrelated articles. They want to practice and apply what they learn.
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“Welcome to the 21st Century!” “Review before you publish!”
Students want modern technology that works and up-to-date materials. They want dates and instructions that correctly reflect the current quarter and instructor.
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“My learning needs to fit my life!” “Understand that life happens!”
Students want to meet their own learning needs for their busy lifestyles. They want flexible due dates, the option to work ahead on content as course objectives are met, and early access to materials.
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“I want to know what I’m supposed to be learning!” “Be clear!”
Students want their online courses consistently organized and easy to navigate. What will they learn and how will they achieve that learning? Content should be delivered in a variety of formats.
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“Hello, is anybody out there?” “Connect often!”
Students want to know their teachers and classmates are present.They want to know how to contact their instructors and how long they will wait for responses and feedback. They appreciate the diversity of their fellow students and thoughtful engagement of their classmates and instructor. Be sure you let your students know how and when to contact you with questions, as well as when they can expect your responses.
See the Fab 5 Infographic (print and keep handy). Review more of the Learning Community research on Online Student Engagement here.
Interaction
Regular and Substantive Interaction (RSI)
- RSI is direct interaction with a student initiated by the instructor in pursuit of a course learning outcome.
- RSI helps differentiate distance education from correspondence education. Correspondence courses are not eligible for financial aid, and are not currently offered at BTC.
- You may be required to provide evidence of RSI in your online and hybrid courses. At BTC, if a class is held 50% or more online, there should be evidence or documentation of RSI in the course.
- Maintain a log of regular academic interactions with students that occur outside the campus LMS in publisher-provided e-textbooks or in systems not integrated into Canvas.
More Information here. Also, see the R&SI Infographic (print and keep handy).
Quality Matters (QM) devotes Standard 5 to how to design course activities that encourage active learning and learner interaction. The annotation in section 5.4 states that a “clear explanation of the requirements for learner interaction helps learners plan and manage their class participation and is important for promoting learners’ active involvement…”