Online Teaching Best Practices These Best Practices are aimed particularly at facilitating a discussion forum. However, they can apply to many activities or group work in an online environment. We have pulled these practices primarily from the panel discussion entitled, “Designing and Facilitating Effective Online Discussion” (John Langford, Tim Hopper, and Catherine Caws) at last year’s Moodle Showcase. You can listen to them in full (and/or view their slides) at http://elearning.uvic.ca/showcase/moodle/highlights.php Where do students seem to improve most in good online discussion?
• • •
How best does an instructor use his/her time on this activity?
• • • •
General writing skills Critical analysis Collaboration skills
Teaching in little pieces, not large chunks Being a facilitator, not "expert on the throne" Providing direct instruction when necessary Summation, direction, summation
“Online inquiry may stall at the exploration stage, not going to resolution.” Garrison and Vaughan, p. 43 Define Learning Expectations, Outcomes and Rules How?
•
Building the Framework How? How? Build community first (introductions, picturesencourage personal interaction) Build open communication Groups <15 Choose best tool for assignment Explain (repeatedly) how it is to be used
•
Weekly Practices
Measurable (in multiple ways) How?
•
• • • •
Good introductions, expectations, assessment criteria Discussion board participation guidelines, rules of engagement Open communication Multiple references Measurable assignment criteria Grade participation
•
• • • •
• • • •
•
Keep contact constant (weekly dialogue, instructor messages, hot topics) Focus learning on questions Build from student postings Intervene regularly, introduce new questions Shift from open communication to purposeful response and reflection Provide personal feedback early and regularly
• • • • •
Self-assessment quizzes Participation points Reflection pieces Read post progressions (see improvement?) Logs, reports, time on task
Prepared by Scott Gerrity, UVic Learning Systems