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. 

Find out more time-saving tips from Online Teaching for Adjunct Faculty: How to Manage Workload, Students, and Multiple Schools  

 

 

Why do online faculty work 7 days a week?

I've always wondered why online faculty are expected to work 7 days a week. On-campus faculty don't work 7 days week. Why is teaching online a 7-day a week job? For most of us it has certainly turned out that way. Of all the schools I've taught for over the years, only two do not require 7-day a week availability. Those two state to online students that faculty will answer questions (in the class or via email) within 48 hours during the business week, NOT counting weekends and holidays. The rest of the schools tell students that online faculty WILL respond within 24-48 hours to any email or class questions, including weekends and holidays.

Working at home is usually feast or famine. Some days are boring, without much to do. Other days are so hectic that work can begin before the sun comes up and continue long after night falls. Too bad we can't schedule the slow days to coincide with times when we would like to take off from work for 2-3 days in a row.

Since I started teaching 100% online, I can't close the door, walk out, and forget it until tomorrow. There are no weekends or holidays off. The grading, emails, and questions are heavier on the weekends than during the week because most online programs have Sunday midnight due dates each week. And let's face it - most online students do the bulk of their work on the weekends.  

The last time I took a weekend off was our 34th anniversary (4 years ago) and I was determined to take off two days from work. I told my students early in the week that I would not be online Sat or Sun. And I didn't get online at all from COB Friday until noon on Monday. When I got online on Monday at noon, the sh**  had hit the fan. I should have known better than to try putting off work for two days. What was I thinking?

The fact is that schools are all on different schedules and so there are never any days during the year when all my schools are off at the same time. I even teach for one school that runs classes from the Monday after Thanksgiving through the end of January with NO break for any holidays. Another school schedule is set up so that one term ends the Sunday of Thanksgiving and another term ends the Sunday after Christmas.

Online students and teachers don't get holidays off. We just do our school work around the festivities and travel or whatever. I would like to be able to take a weekend off a couple of times a year for special occasions. Honestly though, it's just not worth having to play catch up after a couple of days off.

What I have found is that taking off Tuesday and Wednesday works out quite nicely. My grading is finished and returned by Monday night and, since discussion postings are not due until Wednesday night, students rarely post anything before Wednesday. I check emails for 30 minutes first thing in the morning and then that's it. The rest of those days belongs to me. It works out fairly well for the most part.

What days do you take off every week?

If you want to find out how to finish grading (my grading is 2-4 Eng Comp classes, both undergrad and grad) by Monday night, check out my books Grading and Adjunct Faculty: How to Manage Workload, Students, and Multiple Schools.