11 Teaching Remotely vs. Teaching Face-to-Face
jordanepp
Developing a complete remote course is a lot of work and if you’ve gotten to this point you know that to be true. When we’re so focused on developing the materials and activities for an online course it’s easy to forget about the role of the instructor as the term begins and the course goes live. Let’s look at some things you can do to be prepared for teaching in a remote environment.
Technical Proficiency
Be sure that you are familiar with all aspects of your online learning environment.
- Be familiar with the navigation so you can guide lost students
- Proficiency with the technologies you use should be a given so practice with WebEx, Discussions, Panopto, and any other technology you’re using in the class before it starts. Students will ask you first, so you should have some ability to facilitate their technology questions. IT Support is always there for students’ questions that go beyond your basic proficiency.
- Know how you plan to communicate with students.
- How to send announcements
- How to facilitate discussions
- Email students individually
- Offer virtual office hours in WebEx at regular times
- Proficient use of Grading and feedback features
Here is a checklist for Planned Remote Teaching that might be helpful
Continued Presence
Communicating with your students is the number one way to keep them on track and engaged in the topics of your course. But when the physical classroom is not an option how do we keep the lines of communication open between the instructor, the students, and their peers?
Remember that your number one role as a teacher is to be present.
- Plan time into your schedule each day for checking in on your course activities like discussions. Read and reply to a handful of these each day to avoid the discussions becoming overwhelming. You don’t need to read or reply to everything, but remember that you’re there to guide discussions and encourage new ideas.
- Send announcements regularly even if it’s just an encouraging note about class activities or a reminder about submission deadlines or workflows.
- Provide feedback through video or audio tools to enhance your presence in the course.
Here’s some more ideas for connecting with students throughout the term and staying present as their instructor.
