Online professor, writer, editor, instructional designer, course reviewer, academic success coach
3/09/2015
End of Winter!!
Hopefully we've seen the end of winter! Spring is on the way. I'll be updating blog posts regularly within the next few weeks. See ya then!
11/10/2014
It's that time again -- Be Nice to Your Prof Day
What is ONE thing your students could do for you that would make your day?
Mine? Start work early in the course and stay one step ahead instead of five steps behind for 8 weeks!!
Mine? Start work early in the course and stay one step ahead instead of five steps behind for 8 weeks!!
11/06/2014
Managing discussion in LARGE online classes without losing your sanity
Here are a few ideas to get started with:
Request that students change the subject lines of all discussion messages so you can clearly see what messages are postings and responses for each student. For example, initial posts can include the poster's first name followed by the topic of the post. Responses can include the words "reply to" followed by the classmate's name to whom the response is being made. You would be amazed at how organized and easy to read the discussions can be. Students find this helpful when navigating discussions during the week. When grading, discussion messages can be organized by author. This type of discussion board organization and labeling cuts down on grading time. I just pull up a list of each student's work for the week and scroll through, make notes, and put the comments and grade in the gradebook.
Another idea is to use creative grouping, which has really worked great for my classes with 40 or more students. Not like group projects -- but more like discussion teams, just like we do in a f2f classroom. It works great online too.
Request that students change the subject lines of all discussion messages so you can clearly see what messages are postings and responses for each student. For example, initial posts can include the poster's first name followed by the topic of the post. Responses can include the words "reply to" followed by the classmate's name to whom the response is being made. You would be amazed at how organized and easy to read the discussions can be. Students find this helpful when navigating discussions during the week. When grading, discussion messages can be organized by author. This type of discussion board organization and labeling cuts down on grading time. I just pull up a list of each student's work for the week and scroll through, make notes, and put the comments and grade in the gradebook.
Another idea is to use creative grouping, which has really worked great for my classes with 40 or more students. Not like group projects -- but more like discussion teams, just like we do in a f2f classroom. It works great online too.
Find out more time-saving tips from Online
Teaching for Adjunct Faculty: How to Manage Workload, Students, and Multiple
Schools
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