Humanized Online Teaching Academy
Online Classes Expand Access to College
Online courses don’t only provide a stable backbone for instruction in times of crisis they also increase access to students who have been left out of the traditional higher education paradigm. By removing the barrier of travel and time, asynchronous online courses serve students who do not have the privilege to be on campus or predict their schedule week to week.
As such, community colleges and access-oriented institutions led the United States in online course enrollments long before COVID. But we’ve learned that expanding access alone does not achieve equity. Just like face-to-face courses, online courses must be intentionally designed and taught to support all students in achieving their college goals.
Increasing Belonging Online is a Pathway to Equity
Humanizing is a model of online teaching that leverages the opportunities of online education by cultivating welcoming, supportive classes that foster belonging for all students, particularly those from minoritized communities. Faculty blend culturally responsive teaching and psychologically inclusive course design to create affirming and challenging classes that embrace diversity as an asset. Humanizing centers instructor-student relationships as the foundation of community.
Institutions that invest in professional development to support humanized online teaching and learning will be not only game-changers but life-changers. Equity-minded educators make relationships a priority but also understand that those relationships provide the foundation to challenge students to achieve their full potential (Rendón, 1994; Wood, 2019; Hammond, 2014).
The Butte College Humanized Online Teaching Academy is adapted from the Humanizing Online STEM Academy, a project by Michelle Pacansky-Brock, Michael Smedshammer, and Kim Vincent-Layton.
Humanized Online Teaching Academy at Butte
Join your Butte College colleagues this summer for a special offering of the Humanized Online Teaching Academy, co-facilitated by Michelle Pacansky-Brock and Suzanne Wakim.
Existing research has linked the Academy with:
Student belonging, with higher measures reported among Black, Hispanic, Native American, and Pacific Islander students,
Increased faculty self-efficacy with teaching online,
Improved faculty perceptions of the role instructors play in improving student achievement and on closing equity gaps,
Heightened awareness of students’ individual experiences,
Increased flexibility and approachability,
Increased instructor-student and student-student interaction
Cohort 2: August 28 - October 8, 2023
Cohort 1: June 26 - August 6, 2023 - FULL
Relationship-rich, Online Professional Development
In an asynchronous online environment with a supportive community of peers and “warm demander” (Kleinfeld, 1974) facilitators, participants complete six 1-week modules. Their professional learning is guided with high-touch facilitator interactions (group announcements and reminders, as well as individual check-ins, nudges, and feedback). In the modules, they learn about social psychological factors (stereotype threat, belongingness uncertainty, imposterism) that interfere with a person’s ability to perform to their full potential, and how validation, trust, and care mitigate these threats and cultivate an anti-racist learning environment. Throughout the Academy, participants use humanizing tools (Adobe Creative Cloud Express, Screencast-O-Matic, Flipgrid, Google Sites, and Canva) to develop eight humanized online teaching elements in one of their existing online courses. The final project is a humanized showcase that includes reflections and videos of the eight elements.
In an asynchronous online environment with a supportive community of peers and “warm demander” (Kleinfeld, 1974) facilitators, participants complete six 1-week modules. Their professional learning is guided with high-touch facilitator interactions (group announcements and reminders, as well as individual check-ins, nudges, and feedback). In the modules, they learn about social psychological factors (stereotype threat, belongingness uncertainty, imposterism) that interfere with a person’s ability to perform to their full potential, and how validation, trust, and care mitigate these threats and cultivate an anti-racist learning environment. Throughout the Academy, participants use humanizing tools (Adobe Creative Cloud Express, Screencast-O-Matic, Flipgrid, Google Sites, and Canva) to develop eight humanized online teaching elements in one of their existing online courses. The final project is a humanized showcase that includes reflections and videos of the eight elements.
Want to Know More?
Watch this 2-minute bumper video about the Academy.
What to Expect
The Academy is:
is six weeks long
requires about 10 hours of time per week
is fully asynchronous (no required Zoom sessions)
is delivered in Canvas
is not self-paced. One module is released each week containing content and assignments with due dates. Participants engage in asynchronous discussions.
Incentive
Upon successful completion of the Academy, you will receive a $1,800 stipend funded by the California Community College Chancellor's Office.
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible, you must be the following criteria:
part-time or full-time Butte College faculty
Have taught an asynchronous online course from start to finish
Possess good working knowledge of Canvas;
Be willing to critically investigate one’s values, beliefs, and practices through an equity lens;
Be open to recording and sharing videos of oneself;
Be open to experimenting with several new digital technologies;
Possess the following foundational digital fluency skills: the ability to navigate between multiple browser windows/tabs, use new technologies independently by following digital instructions, troubleshoot basic technology issues independently, operate a smartphone; distinguish document, image, and video file format types from each other; download files from the web and upload files from a computer
Testimonials from Butte Faculty & Staff
View the humanizing showcases of Butte faculty who have completed the Humanizing Academy on the ACDC Faculty Examples page.
"Before I participated in the Humanizing Academy I had one way that I made videos and it always seemed like such a production. ... I learned how to use several different tools and strategies to easily make videos and I now feel way more comfortable quickly making a short video to connect with students, explain a concept, or demonstrate a specific step of a project. The Humanizing Academy is challenging, but with support. I learned so much about how to connect with students in all modalities, and the academy itself modeled the high expectations / high support that we were learning how to facilitate."
Melody Schmid, Biology Faculty
"Participating in the Humanizing Academy gave me a deeper understanding of the many types of effective practices, and the real-world value they bring to students and learning. It was helpful to see actual data about the impact of humanizing strategies, and how STEM fields are particularly in need of improvement.” Chris Palmarini, Instructional Technology Specialist
“The Humanizing Academy helped me take my class to the next level. The skills I learned helped me find new and more engaging ways to connect with my online students. The facilitators and fellow participants in the academy helped me look at my course more deeply and from different angles. Their feedback has given me many wonderful ideas on where I can take my course design in the future.”
Suzanne Wakim, DE, SLO, OER Coordinator; Biology Faculty