50 Matching Annotations
  1. May 2024
    1. In the absence of scheduled synchronousmeeting times when students know they can ask a questionand get an immediate answer, providing the instructor’s planfor engagement sets and manages student expectations

      purpose of instructor plan of engagement

    2. It should include severalbasic pieces of information:• A time frame for replies to email communicationsand questions posted on discussion forums, withencouragement to ask questions in advance ofassignment due dates• A time frame for providing feedback on assignments• Commentary on how the instructor plans to participatein online asynchronous discussions (e.g., I do readevery post, but will not reply to every post so as not todominate the conversation; I will post a summary ofdiscussion highlights at the conclusion of each unit.)• Commentary on other ways the instructor plans to remainactively involved throughout the course and how urgentor timely information will be communicated (e.g., viaannouncement or email)

      Steps for instructor plan of engagement

    1. Instructor presence is required for social presence to occur, and social presence is necessary for cognitive presence (Akyol & Garrison, 2008; Garrison, et al., 2001; Shea & Bidjerano, 2009).  Furthermore, Shea & Bidjerano (2009) purport that “teaching presence predicts variance in cognitive presences directly” (p. 545). As an example, they found that when the instructor focused and participated in discussion, teaching presence correlated to higher cognitive presence.

      Instructor presence leads to social presence which leads to cognitive presence.

    2. Michael Graham Moore (1989), editor of the American Journal of Distance Education since 1987, identifies three distinct types of interaction: learner-to-content, learner-to-instructor, and learner-to-learner.  Learner-to-instructor interaction is described as encouraging interest and modeling, organizing information and assessing progress, maintaining individual contact with the learner, interacting frequently, and fostering the learner-to-learner interaction (Moore, 1989).  It is Moore’s (1989) contention that these connections are keys to effective distance learning.

      3 distinct types of interaction Learner to Learner Learner to Content Learner to Instructor Encouraging Interest organizing information and assessing progress maintaining individual contact with learning interacting frequently fostering learner to learner interaction

    3. He believed their mission was to guide students to handle social influencers and to foster a continual construction of knowledge.

      In 1929 they felt the need to guide students to handle social influences.

    4. Despite frustration with the course I was taking for my academic program, I, and my fellow students, began to take charge and support one another as we approached the final weeks of the semester.  While some of us continued to flourish in this newfound community, others appeared lost.  The lack of feedback and direction from the instructor was frustrating with the final project deadline looming.

      When instructors are not actively driving the course students may take over, but not all students will be on that train.

    1. At its core, instructor presence means being there for your students.

      Simple definition of Instructional presence.

    1. The designer of online courses needs to consider how he or she and others teachinga course will be able to leverage design features such as built-in interactions andavenues for communication

      instructor presence

    2. Regularly communicate with the class in a consistent, predictable, and publicmanner, whether in the discussion forums, class e-mails, or announcements(Arbaugh & Hwang, 2006; Lowenthal & Thomas, 2010)• Occasionally send individual e-mails or messages to students (Dunlap &Lowenthal, 2010)• Provide timely and detailed feedback (Borup et al., 2015; Cox et al., 2015; Dunlap& Lowenthal, 2014; Ice et al., 2007)• Have students post assignments in discussion forums rather than in digital dropboxes (Lowenthal & Thomas, 2010)• Self-disclose and share personal stories (Lowenthal & Thomas, 2010)• Address students by name (Rourke et al., 1999

      communication strategies to establish instructor persence

    3. Clearly set expectations and how instructors see their role in class discussions (asDennen, 2005, found, there is not one right way to facilitate discussions) (Shea,Hayes, & Vickers, 2010)• Add humor when appropriate (e.g., post content-related comic strips) (seeGunawardena & Zittle, 1997; Rourke et al., 1999; Sung & Mayer, 2012; Wiseet al., 2004)

      Could you create "master courses" that allow instructors to select some things - instructor choice - to allow more instructor presence.

    4. to design courses that reflect not only your personality but also,most importantly, your own instructional values

      argument for allowing faculty to have some control over course design.

    5. establishing instructor social presence in online courses is find-ing ways to establish one’s personality—or what Dennen (2007) termed persona.

      persona

    6. The study reported thetop 10 techniques used by the instructors for establishing their instructor presence as fol-lows: using names (cohesive), using greetings (cohesive), referencing groups (cohesive),acknowledging work (interactive), clarifying for instructional purposes (direct instruc-tion), providing tips for how to succeed in the course (facilitating discourse), providinggeneral information or just-in-time information about the course (design and organiza-tion), offering praise and encouragement (interactive), using unusual punctuation orparalanguage to express nonverbal emotions (affective), and using emphasis to heightenawareness (affective)

      techniques to crate instructor presence

    7. investigated instructor social presence in accelerated onlinecourses which the instructors did not design and in which they did not have authoringaccess to the courses. In courses like these, the instructors could only share things aboutthemselves—and that they were “real” and “there”—through the course discussions andthe grade book. In this mixed-methods exploratory study that focused solely on analyzingonline course discussions, Lowenthal found that instructors spent some time establishingtheir own social presence (e.g., greetings and salutations, inclusive language, empathy)but that they quickly shifted their focus from social presence behaviors to teaching pres-ence behaviors (e.g., dealing with course logistics), most likely because of the lack of timein eight-week accelerated online courses

      instructor presence in courses they did not design or have the ability to modify

    8. concept of intimacy (Argyle & Dean, 1965), which in instructional terms can be thoughtof as supporting and meeting the needs of individual learners. Although an instructor’ssocial presence, and specifically this type of immediacy and intimacy, depends largelyon teacher-to-student interaction, it also depends on the design and development deci-sions that permeate all aspects of a course, including individual projects or assignments

      course design impacts instructor social presence and intimacy

    9. Likewise, research hasshown that instructor immediacy is important in face-to-face courses (Witt, Wheeless,& Allen, 2004) and online courses (Baker, 2010; Hutchins, 2003), even if it might beaccomplished in different ways.

      instructor immediacy in face-to-face and online modalies

    10. Research has shown us that students’ relationshipswith faculty have a direct and significant effect on their scholarly engagement

      instructor - student relationship

    1. where we see that those who chose a face-to-face class as thebest were both more likely to say the instructor was the most important factor in that selection and morelikely to rank their relationship with the instructor and the instructor’s attitude as important.

      face-to-face - instructor relationship was important factor in value of course

    2. . Moore (2013) found thatTD was the single biggest predictor of student satisfaction in online classes, a finding confirmed by morerecent research as well (Weidlich & Bastiaens, 2018). Low online retention rates are explained, in part, bythe potentially high barrier to contact and relationship-building between faculty and students in onlinecourses.

      importance of transactional distance and instructor presence

    3. These findings support the need for increased faculty professionaldevelopment in online course design and facilitation focused on student experience as well as facultyexpertise.

      Need for training of faculty on creating presence

    4. However, students responded that instructors matter more in face-to-face courses, where they can establish personal relationships with students, whereas assignments “standin” for instructors in online classes.

      student perceptions of instructor importance

    1. Selecting two or three key points (e.g. two stars and a wish; stars & stairs) or connecting to important learning goals will minimize a rambling feedback message or a missed ‘teachable moment.’

      feedback structure 2 stars and a wish

    2. Humanizing elements in feedback incorporate the content, strategies, sequence, and tools. Content elements include the focus, function, valence, clarity, and specificity. Feedback strategies incorporate timing, amount, audience, and mode. Considering the sequence for feedback – listening, summarize-explain-redirect-resubmit (SE2R), connecting, creating, and tracking will assist instructors to humanize their actions. A survey of available technologies and tools to create feedback messages with text, graphic, audio, image, and video, and integrated multimodal production technologies is presented. A

      Feedback -Humanizing Elements * Content Focus Function Valence Clarity Specificity * Strategies Time Amount Audience Mode * Sequence Listening Summarize - Explain redirect resubmit - SE2R Connecting Creating Tracking * Tools Text Graphic Audio Image Video Integrated multi-modal

    1. we aren’t just trying to replicate some of the humanizing interactions in face-to-face courses (such as: eye contact, nodding, and casual banter). We’re also talking about intentionally creating moments of exchange, feedback, and personal framing for the learning that our students experience.

      Sometimes you don't get instructor presence in on ground courses....if the instructor is only lecturing and holding discussions

    2. “[instructor presence is]  the instructor’s interaction and communication style and the frequency of the instructor’s input into the class discussions and communications

      instructor presence definition interaction communication style frequency

    1. You can’t make a student do the work or be successful in your course, but you can let them know you’re there if they need it!

      Good quote - you can't make students work, but you can let them know you are available if they need you. That's your responsibility; theirs is to do the work and reach out when they need you.

    2. (Flipgrid can help with this!).

      Using Flipgrid to help with discussion boards....

    3. Respond within a given time frame. Let students know when they can expect a response from you via email or in the LMS and stick to it. Students should know that they’ll be able to get answers or assistance in a set amount of time.

      Importance of creating grading expectations and living by them.

    4. Even if your course is largely asynchronous, giving students the chance to interact with you and other students in a live format can help them get to know you better and may help many feel more comfortable asking questions. Attendance in these kinds of interactions can be low, despite them being highly beneficial to students, so it’s a smart idea to require that students attend a set number throughout the term.

      Interesting idea - to require students to attend a set number of live interactive sessions - but not all of them.....

    1. Some practices that promote instructor presence can include: Sending out welcome letters Posting announcements30 highlighting connections between course content, activities, and assignments Facilitating in-depth thinking through online discussions Providing detailed specific feedback Reaching out to struggling students Making connections to real world applications and providing clarification when needed.

      6 ways to build instructor presence

    1. By definition, instructor presence is “the design, facilitation, and direction of cognitive and social process for the purpose of realizing personally meaningful and educationally worthwhile learning outcomes.”

      definition of instructor presence

    1. robust theme in the reasons given for preferringface-to-face delivery formats is the perceived lack of interactionwith an instructor in online courses.This was evident in statementsthat suggested that students believe they would have to “teachthemselves”, or that they would prefer a course taught by a “hu-man” or a “real teacher”.

      need for instructor interaction

    1. Instructors’ Perceptions of Instructor Presence in OnlineLearning Environments

      Title

  2. Mar 2023
    1. Presence

      Still really the operative term. The teacher needs to be...there. In the discussion. In the case of social annotation, in the text.

    2. Be easily accessible to your students. Provide multiple regular opportunities for connectionand support via email, virtual office hours, prompt feedback, and virtual study sessions orstudent conferences

      I think it's interesting to think about social annotation as a vehicle for this availability/accessibility of the instructor.n What's more isolating than the reading? What's more power than having your instructor present IN the reading?

  3. May 2022
  4. Sep 2021
    1. Una de las tareas que debe cumplir el profesorcomo instructor es la de enseñarles a los estudianteshabilidades de colaboración. Muchos estudiantes–especialmente los más brillantes– se resisten inicial-mente a trabajar en equipos. Además, los conflictosinterpersonales –que usualmente tienen que ver condiferencias entre los integrantes con respecto a habili-dad, sentido de responsabilidad, ética– inevitablemen-te se acrecientan en el trabajo en grupo y pueden inter-ferir seriamente con su efectividad. Por esta razón, esconveniente que el profesor, como instructor, enseñeestas habilidades de resolución de problemas y de tra-bajo en equipo. No solo es importante colaborar paraaprender, sino aprender a colaborar
  5. Jul 2020
  6. Mar 2020
    1. she wanted us to create a research paper about – well, about anything basically. Um, she gave us a bunch of ideas. She ac – like, she gave us, like, um, ideas like – hmm, like organic foods, GMOs, and just, like, you know, just problems in our society. But then, I chose, um, gentrification, so that’s what that’s about.

      "she" is the instructor, so this interview starts with "helper" idea right away

  7. Feb 2020
    1. Two Instructors Share Their Perspective At the Instructor Insights page for 7.341 The Microbiome and Drug Delivery: Cross-species Communication in Health and Disease, you can find a video interview with the course’s instructors, Dr. Ali Beyzavi and Dr. Miguel Jimenez.

      Instructor insights

  8. Jun 2019
  9. May 2019
  10. Nov 2018
    1. One instructor's use of Slack, comparing and contrasting other LMS (but he used Canvas); good basic breakdown of the conversational tools and samples of how hey can be used; This is a great primer of Slack's use in the classroom (5/5)

    1. Use of Slack in a FACE-TO-FACE class and how much it increased interaction; brings up a point that concerns me and that's what happens when the instructor/TA appear to be available 24/7 given the nature of Slack; good exploration of motivating students to use it (4/5)

  11. Oct 2016
    1. A teacher’s presence in learning activities and as part of community in online learn-ing environments is motivational (McIntyre 2011).
  12. Sep 2016
    1. Activities such as time spent on task and discussion board interactions are at the forefront of research.

      Really? These aren’t uncontroversial, to say the least. For instance, discussion board interactions often call for careful, mixed-method work with an eye to preventing instructor effect and confirmation bias. “Time on task” is almost a codeword for distinctions between models of learning. Research in cognitive science gives very nuanced value to “time spent on task” while the Malcolm Gladwells of the world usurp some research results. A major insight behind Competency-Based Education is that it can allow for some variance in terms of “time on task”. So it’s kind of surprising that this summary puts those two things to the fore.