Engage Differently
A big part of the reason I became a college professor is for the classroom experience. The classroom can be a very personable environment and when student relationships are fostered classes are energizing co-inspirational. With a shift to online classes it’s important that we, as educators, be creative in our approach to teaching to ensure there is still opportunity to connect with students at a personal level. This why this passage from “A few Strategies to Promote Productive Online Student Behaviours” by Jessica O’Reilly resonates with me:
“There are many examples of “bad” online courses which are basically correspondence courses that use email. Students have been conditioning to blow through the online course, paying attention only to activities that are mandatory and assessed, and ignoring the rest.”
The value that instructors add is the ability to get to know their students and to challenge them to think beyond the assessments and make connections to their life or other academic disciplines. To add more value in an online course the instructor needs to be active and creative in engaging students. Students will only be as active in the course as the instructor. If the instructor isn’t making an effort why would the student? With the availability of online tools let’s be sure to challenge ourselves to engage in ways we never have before to ensure that students know there is somebody willing to support them on the other side of their online class.
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