Teaching at
a Distance (Continued)
Prior
to Day No. 1
Developing and posting online a course
syllabus at least a week before the class helps students understand
what the course is about. Your syllabus should have the following information:
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Your contact information (name, phone, e-mail,
address).
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Technical and software requirements for the
course.
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Course goals and objectives.
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Outline of the course content (Topics or modules).
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Schedule for interaction sessions (chats,
discussions, forums).
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Any class "ground rules." (See Teaching Strategies
in this section.)
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Your expectations of the students for the
course.
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You may also wish to list course readings
and links to related Web sites.
In addition to a syllabus, you should develop
a welcome page, consisting of a few sentences. Tell the students
that you're glad they're participating. Reinforce the value the students
will receive for being in the course. Convey excitement about them contributing
to the course. Probably most important is to reassure them that they can
succeed, especially for those who have never taken a distance education
course.
It's also suggested that you rehearse your
presentation before the first day of class. If it's a totally online course,
you may want to walk through a trial discussion forum with some selected
students. Ask them for their input about how the interaction felt. For
a videoconference or videotape course, you may want to put yourself in
the videoconference classroom and practice your presentation to an empty
classroom. Instructional designers will assist you in your rehearsals.
First
Class Day
The first day of class is the most important
one for the course, regardless of which technology you will use as your
primary delivery medium (videoconference or online). A good first impression
goes a long way. If the first day goes well, you are off to a good start.
If it goes poorly, you have damage control. Of course, you can't control
the technical side if difficulties occur, but you can control how the content
is delivered. Here are some suggestions:
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Recap the course goals and objectives.
Begin by telling people what will happen in the course.
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Solve problems, as best you can. Direct
students to appropriate technical or administrative help. Students may
need help registering for the class, setting up e-mail accounts, or securing
course materials. Heading off problems on the first day does much to establish
a good first impression.
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Invite interaction immediately. As
soon as you can, invite your students to participate and contribute.
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Give them your best stuff. Don't wait
until the second week to start your presentation. Start off strong the
first week, so jump right into the content. The first module should be
as strong or stronger than the rest of the course.
Interaction
The best suggestion to encourage interaction
is to be encouraging. Whether in a chat session, bulletin
board discussion, or live videoconference, nothing brings out comments
more than a teacher who makes positive, encouraging comments to students.
Following are some specific techniques to encourage interaction in distance
education courses:
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Compliment students when they ask questions.
It's sometimes difficult for students to open up and ask questions online
or in a videoconference. When they do, tell them they did a good job.
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Allow others to respond to questions and
make comments. Keep the discussion moving; don't shut it off.
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Look for connections among comments. Try
to connect several students' comments or questions, citing similarities
or differences among them. This encourages conversation.
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Build confidence in insecure learners.
Don't be condescending. Instead keep the insecure student's desire
to learn alive.
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Offer rewards. It could be a positive
comment or an information "gift," such as a link to a new Web site. Rewards
should be positive reinforcements.
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Encourage shy students. In an online
environment, these shy students sometimes are called "lurkers." Some like
to be quiet and learn that way, but there are times when teachers must
draw out shy students, possibly through group assignments. One thing to
avoid here is embarrassing reserved, shy students.
Presenting
Content
Keep in mind that you have several methods
to present course content. Choose the best methods for you. A meeting with
an instructional designer may help you decide what's best. These techniques
can be used in online or videoconferencing environments:
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Written text. If you incorporate a
lot of writing, be sure break up the text as much as possible with graphics,
photographs, or just "blank" space.
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Visual graphics. Create pcttures, graphs,
and charts. Use clip art. Most people are visual learners. Let visuals
carry some of the content.
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Audio. A videoconference allows you
to talk with students. Students also can hear your voice with prerecorded
messages or lessons over the Web. Your students can listen again to specific
lessons they have downloaded.
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Video. Again, a videoconference provides
a forum for live interaction. Video also can be used to present information
through the use of videotapes and over the Web, through "streaming video."
Teaching
Strategies
Effective distance teaching requires enhancing
existing skills, rather than developing new abilities. Following are some
suggested teaching strategies for use in distance education:
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Lay down "ground rules" at the beginning
of the semester and follow them throughout the semester. For example, in
a videoconference a ground rule may be that participants state their name
and site each time before they speak. In a chat room, everyone should know
each others' online name before everyone starts chatting. In e-mail correspondence,
you may wish for students to have a descriptive "subject" line when you're
sent an e-mail message so you know exactly what the message is about before
opening it.
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Build in enough time for course materials
sent in the mail to get to their intended destinations. Not everything
can be done over videoconferencing or over the Internet. Make sure you
build in enough time for students to receive faxes and mailed items.
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Develop strategies for student reinforcement.
In a videoconference class, use several minutes at the beginning of
class to review material from the previous week, and use electronic mail
as a reinforcement tool. For a Web-based or WebCT course, you may include
materials that reinforce content you've gone over.
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Organize content. Because of the logistics
involved, content presented at a distance must be organized. You may have
been able to do last-second preparation for a face-to-face lecture once
or twice, but you don't have that luxury or flexibility in a distance education
environment. The content should be structured so that students know exactly
what you're going to cover and where the course is going.
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"Chunk" it. Teach in "chunks." (This
concept is similar to the "module" design of the content.) In a videoconference
setting, don't spend more than 15 minutes lecturing without some type of
break, such as showing a short segment from a videotape, using computer
graphics, having a panel discussion, or initiating a question-and-answer
period. Breaks allow students to process what they have just been exposed
to.
|
"Chunking"
also is important when using video on the Web (streaming video). Here's
how Dr. Rick Rudd "chunks" his Web course.
Watch Video |
In a chat room or bulletin
board environment, here are some tips:
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Keep your comments short. A good rule
is six to eight lines of text in a written comment.
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Include only one thought per comment.
Don't string thoughts. Keep each comment focused.
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Get it out. Don't worry about developing
a well-constructed paragraph online or checking your spelling. Get out
your ideas.
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Use highlighting techniques, such as
boldface, different colors, and underlining to place emphasis on certain
words and phrases.
Marketing
Strategies
Probably the area that's thought about
the least in a distance education production is marketing. But without
some marketing plan, a distance education program is destined to have low
enrollment. How do you get the word out about the program?
Please keep in mind, though, that IFAS
Communication Services and the College of Agricultural and Life
Sciences have information about distance education courses on the Web
at http://disted.ifas.ufl.edu/info/info.htm.
You should contact ICS and the Distance Education Coordinator as you market
your distance education course.
The consideration of marketing a program
should come on the very heels of the idea for the program itself. When
identifying the audience, you should think how you can inform your target
audience about the distance education program. The first question you should
ask yourself is "Who cares? Who wants this content?" The answer will direct
you to the group or groups who would be most willing to take your course
or attend your instructional program. By answering, "Who cares?" you'll
be on your way to focusing where you should spend time and money advertising
the program. Courses must be advertised so people will know what's offered
and how it will benefit them.
Advertising for distance education means
letting the people who care about the content know about the instructional
program. Here are some ways to do that:
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Word of mouth/direct contact -- Sometimes
the direct way is the best way. Ask people to spread the word. Call people
who meet the criteria of your target audience.
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Industry/trade magazines and newspapers
-- These usually have a "What's Up?" section that you can get your
course or program advertised in. Make sure the program you're trying to
promote fits in some way with the overall scope of the industry magazine
or newspaper.
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Partners -- If you're partnering with
other organizations on a distance education program, ask them to help advertise.
Let information be distributed to the organizations' members.
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Paid advertising -- If there's a budget
for paid advertising, you may want to buy time on radio or television stations
or space in magazines and newspapers.
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Newsletters and fliers -- Newsletters
and fliers can be effective means of getting out information to a specific
audience. If there's a special-interest group, there's a newsletter for
it. Get on mailing lists. Find out about their readers. Ask to advertise
your course or program.
What are some ways
you could get out the word to your audience? Be as specific as possible.
List such items as the names of magazines that reach your target audience,
persons you could contact directly, and media you could use. (Print
a .pdf version of this section's questions.)
_____________________________________________________________________
Last Items
Finally, here are some parting words of
advice, a few do's and don'ts as you work on your distance
education course:
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Ask colleagues who have done distance education
courses what their successes and problems have been. It's important to
build a network of people who have taught with distance education technologies
and who can serve as mentors. Do your homework.
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Avoid waiting until the last minute. Prepare
way in advance. This can't be emphasized enough. Professors
say that this is the one area that affects them the most. A person needs
several weeks or months to prepare a successful distance education course.
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Learn what resources (information, library,
online) are available to you. Find out who are the professional expertise
of educational technologists and instructional designers. And then use
these resources.
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Make arrangements for textbooks and other
course materials to be provided at college bookstores at remote sites.
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Make yourself available for "virtual" office
hours. Allow students to call you during regularly scheduled blocks of
time at your office.
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Be prepared for technical glitches. Have a
backup plan in case something goes wrong.
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Incorporate several media into your presentations
(pcttures, video, audio, chat rooms, electronic bulletin boards, e-mail).
And then take these same materials to your regular classroom when you're
done.
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Pause more than in a traditional class. Give
the distant students time to ask questions.
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Rehearse the class before it's taught.
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Plan interactive techniques and encourage
interaction.
CD
Index