Points for Successful Teaching Online

What makes an online instructor successful? Certainly, the same qualities that make the traditional classroom instructor successful apply to the online instructor. When online, however, those qualities (and any shortcomings) can be magnified.

Teaching online, however, requires the instructor to play a greater role in facilitation, guidance, and management. The instructor needs to make that extra effort to been seen as approachable and accessible to the student.

In eSchool News (January 2009), Managing Editor Dennis Pierce listed the "Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education" (Chickering & Gamson, 1987):

• Encouraging student-faculty contact,
• Encouraging cooperation among students,
• Encouraging active learning,
• Giving prompt feedback,
• Emphasizing time on task,
• Setting high expectations, and
• Respecting diverse talents and ways of learning.

Pierce interviewed Bill Phillips of the University of Central Florida. Phillips recommends that the instructor must demonstrate authority and gain students' trust right from the start. He suggests that the instructor can establish trust right away by sending a note to students individually before the course begins, introducing themselves and setting clear goals and expectations.

In a conversation with some Faculty at Drexel, I learned that this simple note of welcome provides big returns. The students feel that they are important as individuals, and that they are recognized not only as another enrolled student. At the end of the course that these students attended, their feedback indicated, again, the good impression that first note of welcome made on them. It impacted their view of the instructor, the course, and their individual responsibility for the success of the course.

Phillips also noted that some measure of redundancy of course information is important: posting directions and reminders in many places throughout the online course environment, so that students can easily find course requirements and other important material, is important to the student's success and comfort level.

When teaching online, the message is clear: good, open, frequent communication is the key. Clearly identifying objectives and expectations provides the focus the students are looking for, and a road map that points to the successful completion of the course.

The Write Stuff

Successful learning depends on accurate, easy-to-understand, and thorough learning aids and resources. User Reference Manuals and Guides, Operator Manuals, and job aids (also known as “cheat sheets”) are typical examples.

After the training session has concluded, adult learners want to have something tangible to take away from the learning experience. Printed reference materials, or links posted on your company’s intranet, are often times the most widely used resources your workforce will rely upon when searching out how to complete a task or procedure. These materials make the training an on-going process, instead of a one-time, finite event.

Another consideration is the training presentation materials and content. Is everything clearly written? Succinct? Accurate? Does the presentation content blend with and enhance the material provided in the training take-aways? More importantly, does the material support the identified learning objectives?

Solid technical communication addresses all of this, and is an integral part of the overall learning solution.

How Strictly Do You Interpret Instructional Design?

I just visited Ben Hamilton's new weblog (http://hamiltonnotes.blogspot.com/) and addressed the issue of ISD for effective creation of learning solutions (Design (Part I) - Why is ISD receiving a black eye?).

I suggested that, on his first bullet point, "ISD is done too much 'by the book'..." can be a fair argument; too strict an interpretation for every situation can create some tedious training solutions. Instructional Design is a wonderfully powerful tool to design effective learning, and I have approached it with a sense of flexibility to fit the particular situation. Often, having a clear idea of the intended audience helps me identify to what degree I apply any given part of ID. That said, I wouldn't want to create learning solutions without it; it has helped guide me to effective training solutions by taking some rather complex components and ideas and getting them clearly communicated and covered in the training.

This very issue had come up in a recent conversation with a colleague. We found that if we interpreted ID too strictly (at least in this particular situation), the training we were trying to convey became too rigid, and made understanding the concepts we were promoting more difficult.

This is a very interesting topic to me, and I'd like to hear from others in our profession: How do you approach ID? What works best for you?

Workplace Learning and Performance Professionals as Leaders and Teachers

Do you recall a boss from your work history who made a difference in your life – who managed to teach you something instead of just manage your work? They seem to be the ones we remember most.

How about teachers? You know, the ones who did more than just teach the subject assigned for the year; the ones who gave you more of a full picture, a focus toward a vision, a goal, a path.

In the April 2007 issue of Fast Company magazine (page 112), Bill George, Professor at Harvard Business School, and Wendy Kopp, President of Teach for America (www.teachforamerica.org), had a conversation around leadership and teaching. It got me to thinking about past jobs (and bosses) and school days (and teachers) gone by.

But even more so, it has me thinking about our role as Workplace Learning and Performance professionals – we need to think both as leaders and teachers when creating and delivering instructional materials and content.

As Kopp notes in the article, “The best leaders keep focused on the outcomes they’re trying to achieve...” Having clear objectives makes all the difference in ensuring you reach your intended destination, whether you’re developing and launching a new product, or teaching a student the proper way to dissect a frog.

Kopp adds: “The most successful teachers set a vision for their students’ achievement… They are purposeful and effective in planning and executing toward that vision, work relentlessly to tackle the immense challenges that inevitably arise, and reflect constantly on their students’ performance and their own practice.” We can draw parallels to the instructional design model: analysis, design and development, the implementation, and careful evaluation.

George notes, “I believe that great leaders are also excellent teachers. I wonder, would actually thinking of themselves as teachers help leaders be more effective? What can we learn from teachers about our own leadership?”

It seems these are fair questions to ask ourselves as Workplace Learning and Performance professionals.

Do our training and classroom presentations spark learners’ curiosity and interest? Do our instructional materials encourage independent thought and exploration to help build students’ future leadership skills? Are our instructional materials closely aligned to the desired learning objectives and outcomes? Do they teach something?

Maybe it’s a good idea, as Workplace Learning and Performance professionals, to remind ourselves to think (and act) as leaders and teachers.

Considerations when Implementing Instructional Technologies

Prior to implementing any new technology for adult learners, we need to give consideration to certain instructional factors:

• Will the technology improve information delivery?
• Does it empower the learner toward achieving a goal?
• Will it expand the “instructional territory” the learner is traversing?
• Is the new technology a complement to the instructional objectives?
• Will the learner benefit from using this technology?
• Can the new technology be integrated into the existing instructional structure?

Keep in mind that ease-of-use is critical. The technology must be intuitive to use. If learners find the curve to adapt too steep, they may look for something else.
In addition, the technology must provide a real benefit to the learner, and be integrated with sound instructional design principles.

The question we should ask is, will the new technology expand the learner’s territory in a positive way by providing a greater potential for interactivity, collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and personal development?

Navigating the “Learning Territory”

One of the greatest outcomes of instructional technology integration is how the learner can acquire and demonstrate new knowledge. Technology has eliminated the traditional “one-way street” approach to learning, where the learner passively obtains information from a lecture, demonstration, or presentation.

Instructional technologies have replaced the learning territory’s one-way streets with multi-lane, multi-directional, instructional highways. This creates true interactivity among learners, instructors, and resources.

Instructional technologies have created more “points of interest” to visit and interact with throughout the learning territory. Interactivity, collaboration, and networking are the new cornerstones in adult learning, made possible by instructional technologies.

Learners have a wider array of tools and locations from which to peruse and use information and learning resources:

• Websites
• Simulations and Gaming
• E-learning and CBT
• Podcasts
• Wikis
• Blogs
• Networking sites
• Forums
• Virtual Classrooms
• Remote Meetings
• Virtual Spaces

These learning resources, like the learning territory, will continue to expand outward, substantially increasing what is available to the learner.

Expanding Your “Learning Territory”

“Learning expands the territory in which you live, and allows you to develop your fullest potential.”

Technology, applied thoughtfully, can equip adult learners with the tools needed to expand their learning territory and grow potential. Our challenge, as instructional technology professionals, is to ensure the applied technology directly serves the adult learner, and does not distract the learner from the primary goal: increasing knowledge, understanding, skills, and potential. Our primary focus, then, should be on the learning and not the technology.

Since new technology creates an environment in which adult learners have to adapt, we must ensure this learning space, this territory, is accessible, easy to navigate, and expandable. As adult learners traverse this territory, the technology should help to promote self-direction and expression within this learning environment.

Conducting Virtual Training

I always enjoy conducting a virtual training session. The biggest challenge remains really connecting with your learner audience, and them, with you.

How can we achieve that "all in the same classroom" environment? Here are a few tips that I have found helpful toward that goal:

• Actively listen - When a student is posing a question or sharing information with the class, stay focused on what he/she is saying. It is too easy to use this space of time - when you are not talking - to organize your next thought, or bring up the next window on the computer. This can result in missing what the student has just said; you may have heard it, but you really didn't listen to it.

• Avoid multitasking - Okay, this is really close to the first point, but this can happen while you are talking. If you are trying to explain one thing, while thinking of something else, and/or doing something else at the same time, you'll never be quite sure of what you just said. Your students may not be in the physical classroom with you, but they will pick up on this. We can sum this one up in two words: Stay focused.

• Maintain professional etiquette when speaking - Remember, your students' primary way of "seeing" you is through your language. Speak clearly, thoughfully. Be mindful of your tone - inflection is important. No slang, either. And watch those "ummmms," "ahhhhs," and the "you knows." They are distracting to students when they are in the same room as you. They are even more pronounced and magnified when all they can do is hear you.

And finally...

• Phrase questions that are open-ended - Maintaining collaboration and interactivity are critical in the virtual classroom. Keeping participants engaged keeps them learning. Close-ended questions requiring nothing more than a "yes" or "no" will result in your students drifting off, and makes for a boring session. Remember to ask those questions than encourage dialog and interaction among class participants. People like to express themselves - and this gives them the opportunity to do so.

What else works for you when facilitating a virtual class? Have any tips to share? Post them here and we'll re-visit this topic again.

Keep learning!