After teaching 100% online over the past two years, there is some practicality to using all of the online sources. It can become overwhelming to have so much information to determine what is right for your classrom. How do you pic the right resources, software platforms and community building tools? How do you mirror face to face instruction? Will the students be engaged and complete work?
Online learning has taught me first and foremost, to choose my resources, software platform and community building tools that mirrored my face-to-face teaching style. If you are using journaling for example, find a journaling application like SeeSaw, Google Forms, Microsoft Forms, etc. that will mirror what you already do. Keep it simple, don't reinvent yourself! However, you do need to communicate, communicate, communicate! Feedback is probably the most important and overlooked element of online instruction.
I found that I had to communicate more frequently than I ever had. I needed to slow down and think through every statement I would write, asking myself - how does it sound? Curt? Harsh? Welcoming? Kind? This was the one area that smacked me in the face when I first started 100% online teaching. I had to communicate 3-4 times more frequently than in a face-to-face classroom environment. I had to make myself real to my students and vice versa, them real to me.
I found I had to provide feedback in a minumum of four ways to students. I use a standards based rubric, written feedback on students papers, verbal and/or one-on-one feedback via voice recorder or zoom and a comment of where to view, listen or read my feedback. Consistency is the KEY!! I keep a Word document open with common exemplary comments and critical feedback statements for each assignment. This way each student is hearing the same consistent message.
When COVID hit, I sent out a SPARK video of encouragement with pictures of my soon to be certified therapy dog as an announcement to class. This was one of the biggest hits of my semester. I have now encorporated those every two weeks of the semester to keep students upbeat and motivated. I also now use zoom video meeting for all of my office hours. I purchased a green screen and I put pictures of different places around the world. At least one student asks me the location each week. This opens up personal conversations to determine how my students are doing.
Using community building strategies is vital the first two weeks of teaching.
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