IDEAS FOR DISTANCE LEARNING
Dr. Robert
Bramucci
http://fdc.fullerton.edu/learning/STG2001_IDEAS.htm
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IDEAS
FOR INFORMATION
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Don't fall victim to
"shovelware"---i.e., dumping paper documents online. Online
syllabi and notes are good, but they're not enough. Create a variety
of interactive experiences.
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Whenever possible, post
documents in HTML format. Students may not have the necessary
software to open other types of files.
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If you use PowerPoint
presentations, learn to "send" the Outline view to
Microsoft Word and save it as HTML. These files are more compact and
much easier to print.
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Modularize content for the
web.
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Check the size of your
graphics. Optimize large graphics.
-
Write clear learning outcomes
and tailor your tutorials and assessment to those outcomes.
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If you are concerned about your
intellectual property, put copyright notices at the bottom of your content
pages and create a page with a copyright clearance disclaimer.
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Make use of the learning
communities that come built into Blackboard and WebCT. They can be excellent sources of content.
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Consider that your content is
probably geared toward the average student, so add remediation for slower
learners and enrichment for faster learners.
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Create a plan for organizing
the "backstage" area of your course: In which course areas will you place given types of
information? How many directories will you use? What are intuitive names for the directories?
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In the beginning, when you have
less content of your own, make more use of links to other content on the
web.
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IDEAS
FOR BUILDING COMMUNITY
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Take pictures of each student
and post the pictures on your web site. If you name the pictures
after the students, each student's name will be displayed when a user's
mouse "hovers" over the person's picture.
-
Solicit unusual facts about
students and use student pictures to create a weekly "guess
who?" web feature.
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Bring a digital still or movie
camera to document class activities and events, and then post the files on
the class web site.
-
Require students to use the Homepages
tool to post biographies or profiles. Then email each student with a
personal note about something the student mentioned.
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Require students to use
Homepages for other assignments. For example, ask students to share
personal experiences related to a class topic.
-
Give short surveys via the web
site, and then exhibit the results in class and post on the web.
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Enlist students' aid in
deciding on virtual guest speakers or pen pals.
-
Host "events" rather
than assignments (e.g., a poster session rather than a term paper).
IDEAS
FOR INCREASING WEB SITE PARTICIPATION
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If
you require it, they will come. Make web assignments mandatory (especially
participation in communication activities) a significant part of
assessment and clearly communicate this policy to students.
-
Make students build parts of
the web site: e.g., student homepages, picture gallery, and event
reports.
-
"Where's Waldo?"-type
activities reward web site participation. Similarly, sneak actual
exam questions into practice tests and hide them elsewhere on the web
site.
-
Make "value added"
materials (e.g., study guides, practice tests) available only via
the web site.
-
Early in the semester, give
surprise awards to frequent users of the web site.
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Make it fun (e.g., doctored
pictures, top ten lists, music).
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IDEAS
FOR COMMUNICATION
General
Understand
Differences Between Online vs. Face-to-Face Communication
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Individuals in
computer-mediated groups are relatively more uninhibited.
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Compared to face-to-face
communication, text-based communication is contextually impoverished
unless writers are proficient.
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Status differences play less of
a role in the online environment.
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Interaction in online groups
tends to be more evenly distributed among group members.
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Online consensus decision-making
takes significantly longer than when group members interact face-to-face.
-
Many folks sum up the
difference between traditional vs. web-augmented classes in a pithy
saying: "Not the sage on the stage, but the guide on
the side".
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Consider how the online
environment empowers those who may not speak out in a traditional
classroom. You'll find that shy students and non-native speakers
participate more when rapid writing or talking isn't mandatory.
Announcements
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Make the homepage of your course
an announcements page and change the greeting and messages regularly.
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Include valuable time-dependent
information (e.g., "Exam 3 grades have just been posted")
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Include "teasers" for
upcoming class sessions (e.g., "In Wednesday's class, I'll show you
how you can save $1500 on every new car you buy").
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Include some personal touches
like holiday greetings, comments about class sessions, and occasional
praise. Consider sharing responsibility for a "joke of the
week" (stress keeping it clean!).
Email
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Consider establishing a
separate email account for class emails.
-
Always send sensitive
information via private email.
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You can use email to
approximate a listserv by using mass emails to send reminders to
students about deadlines and events.
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When sending mass emails, be
sure to use the BCC (blind carbon copy) rather than the CC (carbon copy)
field. That way, people can't see each other's email addresses and
potentially stigmatizing information isn't made public.
-
Search the grade spreadsheet for
high and low grades, then send boilerplate + personal emails to high/low
scorers and those with dramatic changes in scores.
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Search the web site statistics
for most frequent visitors/posters, then surprise them in class with small
gifts.
-
Consider Electronic Pen Pals:
messages are exchanged with peers in another school, state, or
country. Consider cross-cultural or cross-age pairings or
groups. May be done at individual or group levels.
-
Consider Peer-to-Peer Tutoring
(aka electronic mentoring): email links students with others who provide
one-on-one content or technical assistance and guidance.
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Student
Homepages
Possible
Uses:
Group
Work
-
Help forge a group identity by
asking group members to come up with the group's name.
-
Create gentle group competition
(e.g., be the first group to complete a scavenger hunt). Don't make the
prizes all-or-none---just give the winning group slightly better prizes.
Consider
using more than one type of group:
-
Base: support,
encouragement, assistance (2-5 persons)
-
Formal: project-based (2-4
persons)
-
Informal: focuses on selected
material to be learned (2-4 persons)
-
Consider using both ad hoc and
permanent groups.
Consider
giving each group member a role:
-
Technical support person:
responds to technical questions.
-
Recorder: writes minutes.
-
Facilitator: checks that all
members are contributing.
-
Checker: assures all work is
completed on time.
-
Consider Round-Robin
Publishing: a group starts a story with one paragraph and emails it
to another group. Students add a new paragraph to the story, and the story
variations rotate to the next group.
-
Rotate responsibility for an
"observer report" from each group.
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At some point in the semester,
meet with each group member individually (even if it's via chat rooms).
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In WebCT and Blackboard, groups
can have their own bulletin boards, chat rooms, ways to email group
members, and share files.
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Discussion
Boards
In an initial posting:
-
Clearly
state the purposes of the discussions--e.g. How will discussions help each
student to achieve the course learning outcomes? What are the
benefits of discussion for students?
-
Clearly state the minimal
number of postings expected, per student, per discussion.
-
Provide examples of good vs.
poor discussion messages.
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Post rules, hints about writing
style, and conventions regarding use of the discussion boards.
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Advise students of the extent
to which you will participate in or monitor the discussions.
-
It's up to you to decide how
involved you'll be in discussions.
Some instructors are very active, while others occasionally read
messages but never post to the discussion boards.
-
Enforce guidelines for respect
and responsibility in discussion postings. Guide individual students
privately (via email) if their contributions do not follow the agreed
conventions.
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At least in the beginning, use
qualifiers (e.g., "it appears...", "don't you think
that...") to reduce defensiveness. Also, use
"I-messages"("I believe...") in place of
"You-messages" ("You are...") whenever possible.
-
Use
private email messages to encourage participation in, and reinforce
contributions to, the discussion boards.
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Clarify misunderstandings or
inaccuracies in postings.
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Refer students to comments made
by others in the class.
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Occasionally summarize
discussions in progress.
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Consider
getting a discussion started by asking controversial questions.
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Consider
an anonymous bulletin board for sensitive topics (like instructor
feedback!).
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Require
students to reply not only to your initial message, but to the replies of
other students as well.
-
Consider
peer review of writing via the discussion boards (it eases the logistical
burden, plus no more stacks of notebooks to lug home!)
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If
you use group work, consider creating separate discussion boards for each
group in addition to the class discussion boards.
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Consider modeling how to
facilitate virtual discussions, then requiring student-led
discussion. For example, using a seminar format, students
(individually or in small groups) can be given opportunities to identify
critical issues in the lectures and readings and lead discussions related
to those topics.
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Solicit topics for discussion
both publicly (via the discussion boards) and privately (via email).
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Discussions should occur during
a specified time frame. For example, students may have two weeks to
participate in ongoing discussions, starting with the date of their first
posting. The conversations are then closed.
-
Once a discussion is closed,
provide feedback that 1) summarizes the discussion and conclusions, 2)
refers students to enrichment opportunities, and 3) evaluates the quality
of the students' overall contributions. This responsibility could be delegated
to students or groups.
-
At the end of the semester, use
searches to collate each student's contributions to the discussion boards
(overall quality is easier to assess if all the messages are grouped
together). Make the resulting file part of the student's electronic
portfolio.
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Chat
Rooms
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Require groups to hold online
meetings in logged chat rooms. If you have more groups than chat
rooms, stagger the meeting times.
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Hold virtual office
hours. This is more effective at certain times than others (e.g.,
the night before an exam or project deadline).
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Invite virtual guest speakers.
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Post chat logs (edited, if
necessary).
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Hold a class session online
instead of on campus.
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Use a chat room for
"virtual tours" of web sites.
Audio
& Video
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Blackboard and WebCT support
sound and video files as attachments; however, to be useful, web audio and
video should be in streaming formats (i.e., Windows Media,
RealAudio/RealVideo, or QuickTime). Streaming can be tricky, so
attend one of the FDC's free workshops.
-
The software supplied with some
$20-50 desktop video cameras can save files in streaming
formats. If not, then free converter programs can take the
video output and convert it to streaming format.
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Some software programs (e.g.,
Sonic Foundry's SoundForge XP, $40) let you record
"streaming" audio or video from your desktop and attach it to
emails or discussion board messages.
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Easy-to-use video editing
programs (which used to cost hundreds or thousands of dollars) can now be
obtained for less than $50 (or even for free).
-
When possible, always buy
"academic" versions of software (they're cheaper).
-
Blackboard and WebCT support
email and discussion board attachments of many types.
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WebCT can "call"
large audio and video files from CD-ROMs.
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The FDC offers training in the Tegrity
WebLearner, a mobile cart that creates streaming media files.
You can link to these files from your Blackboard or WebCT course.
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IDEAS
FOR ASSESSMENT
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Make sure all assessments are criterion-referenced:
i.e., consistent with your learning objectives/outcomes.
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Use frequent small assessments
rather than infrequent large assessments.
-
Use an "assessment
portfolio", where each different type of assessment plays a different
role, rather than one or two types of assessments.
Here are
some examples that go beyond exams and term papers:
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discussions
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WebQuests
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projects
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interviews
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research
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critiques
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peer review/reactions
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peer teaching
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video review/reactions
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summaries
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web production
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cases
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music
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storytelling
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poems
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news articles
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analogies
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service learning
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design or art production
(pictures, diagrams, ads, photos, videos)
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Attach short quizzes or surveys
to individual pages of notes.
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Consider using the online
environment to have students construct electronic portfolios that are downloadable
when the class is over.
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Ensure individual
accountability by including some individual assessments like quizzes.
papers, reports, presentations, and self-assessments.
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"Ramp up" assignments
in their degree of technical sophistication.
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List criteria for, and examples
of, what you think constitutes quality, OK, below average, and failing
work.
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FLEXIBILITY
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Offer opportunities to exercise
creativity.
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Give students some choice over
when and how they complete assignments.
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Give students some degree of
freedom to pace themselves to go a bit faster or slower than others taking
the course.
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Allow students to choose,
through links, whether or not to explore topics in more depth (i.e.,
enrichment).
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Provide optional remediation
for students who are falling behind.
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Provide assessments that
students can take more than once to improve their score.
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Open closed discussions for a
short period of time near the end of class, but with more stringent
requirements for posting.
IDEAS
FOR ADMINISTRATION
How can
Blackboard or WebCT aid course administration?
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Access 24/7 from any
web-connected computer.
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Central repository for class
interaction.
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Compact archiving.
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Multiple backups decrease the
chance of data loss.
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Reduced clutter.
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Students can check grades from
anywhere (and view only their own grades).
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Downloadable files.
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Searchable course and files.
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Automatic grade computation
(WebCT)
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Automatic grading and grade
book entry of quizzes.
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File sharing.
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Homework submission.
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ACCESSIBILITY
Blackboard
and WebCT take pains to be accessible to persons with disabilities.
However, you can help, too:
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Create <ALT> tags for all
images.
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Provide text Descriptions of
images.
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Make link and file titles
informative.
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Make sure screen color
combinations are legible.
AUTOMATION
To accomplish
some of the things I've suggested, you'll have to become efficiency-minded and
automate wherever it does no harm.
Examples
of automation:
*
Spreadsheets for grading
* Student
databases
* Rubrics
*
Boilerplate + personal comments
* Student
grading (spot check to keep 'em honest)
* Pass/fail
grading
*
"Found" data (e.g., Blackboard & WebCT's tracking statistics)
Other
software can help, too:
* Software
forms & EPSSs (e.g., Bob's IDEA at http://instructtech1.fullerton.edu/newidea/)
*
Plagiarism-detection (e.g., www.turnitin.com)
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TECH
SUPPORT
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Technology will
eventually fail. Have a backup plan.
-
Teach students how to use the
software program---via a face-to-face orientation session in a computer
lab, when possible.
-
Provide printed materials
(clear instructions, computer requirements, FAQ, etc.). To make
these more effective, learn to use a screen capture program (e.g., SnagIt
from www.techsmith.com)
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Provide technical help online
within the course.
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Instruct students how to
minimize loss of files (redundancy, hard copy backup, transferring email
and discussion messages from a word processor).
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Make use of the expertise of
other members in the course by asking for technologically adept students
to serve as resources.
MISCELLANEOUS
IDEAS
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Before you make a substantial
online investment, clarify ownership of your intellectual property
(content, platform, etc.).
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Similarly, honor others'
intellectual property. Become acquainted with applicable laws.
When in doubt, link.
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Consider how the web site could
augment your regular classroom sessions.
For example, you could show Presentations from the web site, or hide
files on the web site that students couldn't access but which you could
use while teaching your class.
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When you first log on, and
before performing any tasks, scan relevant areas of the course to get an
idea of your workload that day. Extinguish the
"fires" first before working your way down to less pressing
matters.
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Always have that week's
assignments uploaded the first day prior to the classroom week.
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Deal quickly with excessively
negative students before they "drag down" the entire class.
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You'll be doing a lot of work,
so you might as well get publications out of it. Before the
semester, identify the two or three biggest changes you'll be making to
your teaching as a result of going online---then formulate a plan for data
collections.
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posted 11/21/2002
K E Moore |