Effective Communication
It is very easy for a student to feel isolated in a face-to-face classroom, despite being surrounded by 20+ students at a time, so you can only imagine how this could be heightened in an online environment. It is necessary, then, to establish a strong online presence (for the instructor and peers). This helps students feel as though the instructor and classmates are right there with them, guiding them along the way in a safe environment where they can feel free to share their thoughts. Students can learn from each other without being judged or criticized in a negative way.
Although the instructor is not physically present in the online portion of a course, implementing the following techniques can improve a sense of presence for your students:
Let your students get to know you and incorporate your own personality where appropriate. You might record an introductory video for the first week of the course introducing yourself, your teaching style, student expectations and goals for the course, or start off each week with a personalized announcement detailing your learning objectives and what assignments or tasks need to be done for the week. Here is a video introduction example from Professor Valeria Delmar, from the Bilingual Professional Writing Certificate (BPWC).
You can, of course, even ask them to do the same thing. Use the following How to create an Introduction Video Handout
as instructions for your students (click to download).
- You also want to show your presence by checking in to your LMS as often as possible and leave timely "evidence" that you have been there such as posting new announcements or discussion board postings. If you only post every other week, the students may feel that the LMS has been "abandoned." Being silent is the equivalent to being invisible for both faculty and students.
- Rapport and faculty presence can be further established through the Discussion Board. You don't have to respond to every student, but you can, for example, summarize the discussion postings every week, while adding your analysis and connection to the learning goals of the class. Model how you would want students to respond to you and each other. And, yes, it can be enjoyable to use a quick video now and again to liven up the discussion from time to time.
Ultimately, studies consistently show that the most common indicators for student satisfaction and perceived learning are instructor presence and constant communication.
Blackboard Collaborate Ultra is our video conferencing tool that uses strong communication platform, rich in features, that focuses on collaboration and communication. The Blackboard Collaborate ultra interface provides a unique learning and teaching tool, capturing the essence of a "face-to-face" session.
The moderator and participants (and guests) log in using a computer (PC or Mac) with an Internet connection (DSL or cable recommended). The Blackboard Collaborate ultra interface requires the user to use either a headset with built-in microphone or a separate microphone and speakers. Users participate in interactive Web Conferencing sessions by talking, text messaging, listening and (optionally) video.
UTEP faculty are using Blackboard Collaborate Ultra in many different ways. Some use it to record short lectures or to have students give online presentations, while others use it to hold online office hours. This is what the interface looks like:
Session Menu
This area: provide details about the session, manage recording, use your phone for audio, report issues and provide support.
Media Space
This is the area where all interaction will occur. Here is where participants will see the material you share with them, where they will be able to draw, write and answer questions.
Collaborative Pannel
Under this area, you will be able to find the chat tool, a roster with all the participants, share options, and settings.
Here are some important things to consider if and when you decide to use it:
Consider your Students
- Your students will be living in different time zones. You will need to establish a consistent time zone that will be used for this (and actually, any other submissions you may have).
- Consider making the synchronous sessions optional or offering several sessions from which your students may choose.
- Requiring synchronous sessions reduces the flexibility that appeals to, and is often necessary for the schedules of, many online students. They will appreciate your extra efforts in schedule accommodations.
Inform Your Students
Send an email or post information in Blackboard for your students explaining the technology and how they will use it.
Schedule a Trial Run
Test Blackboard Collaborate first, if possible, with someone who can log in from a different location as a "test audience." Then you can run through your materials in Blackboard Collaborate early, checking that everything loads properly.
Record Sessions
Recording your sessions allows students who could not attend to listen to the recorded session presentation.
Mention Student Names
Use students' names as frequently as possible. It grabs their attention and makes the online environment feel more personal.
We would be doing you a disservice if we did not discuss some of the possible challenges you may face in an online environment. Student behavior can be, for better or worse, very different in the online portion of your class than in the face-to-face environment. On a positive note, you will probably receive participation from students who never say anything in the F2F class, but open up quite nicely online. On the other hand, sometimes the online arena can be too "liberating," and cause concern about what has been posted or the appropriateness of how students are interacting with you or each other. Moderating the online environment can be a difficult task, for new and experienced faculty. The "appropriateness" of interactions found on discussion boards and e-mail exchanges between students and faculty, and students with other students can be quite subjective. This is made more difficult in classes where the context of controversy is already expected. How far can someone go, then, before it is considered "too far?"
Defining "Appropriateness"
The starting point is being able to identify problematic behaviors and interactions for you and your students such as:
Cyber-Harassment, or the use of a computer to cause a person harm such as anxiety, distress or psychological harm, including abusive, threatening or hateful emails and messages and the posting of derogatory information online.
This may include, but is not limited to:
- Cyberbullying, or intimidating messages sent directly to the victim via email or other internet communication mediums, and/or the use of technological means to interfere with a victim's use of the Internet such as hacking or denial of services attacks. This can also include spreading rumors about the victim in internet forums, discussion boards; subscribing the victim to unwanted online services, or sending messages to others in the victim's name.
- Cyberstalking, or threatening behavior or unwanted advances directed at another using the Internet and other forms of online and computer communications. With personal information becoming readily available to an increasing number of people through the Internet and other advanced technology, state legislators are addressing the problem of stalkers who harass and threaten their victims over the World Wide Web.
- Flaming, or hostile and insulting interaction between internet users. It is frequently the result of the discussion of heated real-world issues such as politics, religion, and philosophy, or of issues that polarise subpopulations, but can also be provoked by seemingly trivial differences. Deliberate flaming, as opposed to flaming as a result of emotional discussions, is carried out by individuals who are specifically motivated to incite flaming. Usually, are more subtle than their counterparts, or trolls , who also post inflammatory messages in an online community. Their primary intent is to provoke readers into an emotional response and disrupt normal, on-topic, discussion.
Establishing Policy
Becoming informed about best practices will help make you and your students' experience with online interaction a rewarding experience and one that contributes effectively to learning. Here are some quick tips about moderating:
- Establish and communicate discussion board ground rules.
- What are your expectations for writing styles in the online forum?
- How long should each post be, and how many of their classmates should they respond to (and how long should those responses be)?
- Are students able to modify, delete their own messages?
- Can and should they start new threads?
- Try Including an introductory post that outlines your expectations and appropriate (n)etiquette for the class.
- Use a Accessibility score: High Click to improve Netiquette Guide Netiquette Guide - Alternative Formats (click to download) to help students understand what behavior is expected of them.
- Determine and communicate how you will evaluate students' participation. Students must know how their contributions will be assessed in order to make effective responses; otherwise, they may misunderstand your directions or become unsure of what is expected of them leading to a frustrating and ineffective learning experience.
- What are your guidelines for giving students credit for discussion board participation? Do they need to post a certain number of times? How often? Any specific length? Is there information they should include or reference? What are your specific evaluation criteria?
- Encourage students to contact you if they don't understand the assignment or are having technical difficulties with the board.
- Engage your students by asking good questions to get discussions going. Use open-ended questions and questions that challenge thinking. To encourage informal interaction and connection amongst your students, create an area in your discussion board for personal introductions and discussions. Your students may learn more about their peers than they would in the classroom — opening new doors of connection and community.
- Establish and use a grading rubric to assign points to the Discussion Board and student postings if needed. It will hold them accountable, and can encourage more substantial participation and serious participation.
Incorporating Policies into the Syllabus
It is also important for students to know how they can best participate on a discussion board and with their professor. You might share the following tips to students on your syllabus:
- Language: Given the absence of face-to-face clues, written text can easily be misinterpreted. Avoid the use of strong or offensive language and the excessive use of exclamation points. If you feel particularly strongly about a point, it may be best to write it first as a draft and then to review it, before posting it, in order to remove any strong language.
- Be Forgiving: If someone states something that you find offensive, mention this directly to the instructor. Remember that the person contributing to the discussion is also new to this form of communication. What you find offensive may quite possibly have been unintended and can best be cleared up by the instructor.
- This is Permanent: Think carefully about the content of your message before contributing it. Once sent to the group, there is no taking it back. Also, although the grammar and spelling of a message typically are not graded, they do reflect on you, and your audience might not be able to decode misspelled words or poorly constructed sentences. It is a good practice to compose and check your comments in a word-processor before posting them.
- Test For Clarity: Messages may often appear perfectly clear to you as you compose them, but turn out to be perfectly obtuse to your reader. One way to test for clarity is to read your message aloud to see if it flows smoothly. If you can read it to another person before posting it, even better.
- Remember Your Place: A Web-based classroom is still a classroom, and comments that would be inappropriate in a regular classroom are likely to be inappropriate in a Web-based course as well. Treat your instructor and your fellow students with respect.
- Follow the Parameters/ Stick To The Point: Follow the posting requirements and parameters set up by your professor. Contributions to a discussion should have a clear subject header, and you need to stick to the subject. Don't waste others' time by going off on irrelevant tangents.
- Read First, Write Later: Don't add your comments to a discussion before reading the comments of other students unless the assignment specifically asks you to. Doing so is tantamount to ignoring your fellow students and is rude. Comments related to the content of previous messages should be posted under them to keep related topics organized, and you should specify the person and the particular point you are following up on.
Additional Resources