As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, I had taken a few online-oriented courses before taking this particular course. In those courses, I learned a few features that were also introduced in this course. For example, I have already been using a welcome video, a learner profile survey, and an icebreaker activity. I had heard of Flip before, but I had not used it. The previous courses I took had mentioned Flip, but it was not a requirement to use it. I also had not used Adobe Express either. I have used Google Sites briefly before, but not to the extent this course used it. I had also not created a liquid syllabus or a course banner before.
In terms of humanizing, I think the courses I took previously and the COVID-19 pandemic helped me be a more flexible and approachable instructor. However, I was not aware of some of the literature base supporting these approaches.
I have found it helpful to learn to use new tools as part of this course, in particular, Flip and Adobe Express. It was also helpful to get greater familiarity with Canva and Google Sites.
I valued that the assignments as part of this course were designed to incorporate what was developed into one of my existing courses. It was also helpful to have the assignments embedded within a Canvas Shell so I really have no excuse for not integrating them into my existing Canvas course shell.
I see the value of developing bumper videos for several of my courses using Adobe Express. I find each semester that a number of students may not read the text-based instructions I provide and that a short video (alongside the text) may help overcome some of these gaps.
I am still debating many aspects of the liquid syllabus, as I believe it became too long as part of this course. I think my issue is that I cover most of this material in my first lecture and I also record the lecture. There are also questions about whether a course is in-person, hybrid, online, etc.
I am also still debating the use of Flip. I primarily did not enjoy using it as part of this course. Many students are working or have family responsibilities and may have limited access to a quiet space to record a video or voice recording and may have anxiety about recording a video in terms of appearance. I talked to one of my undergraduate research students and he said he had to use Flip three times in a course and he said he found it to be a chore. In many ways, I believe my experience was the same. I appreciate I may have a bias towards text, but I think it also requires much less work compared to video which is an important factor for students with family responsibilities and/or work commitments. I will probably try a few assignments with a text option and Flip options (voice or video) and see how things pan out. I am open to trying!