Quick Conversion of Instructional Activities

Lecture Content

In an online environment, it is difficult to get up in front of the class and just teach like you do every other day of class. There are several decisions and options to make very early in the process of conversion.

THE BIG QUESTION: Will the class lecture content be delivered to students synchronously (scheduled live via video conferencing) or will it be asynchronous (video content students view at their convenience)

Synchronous Delivery

Students attend a scheduled, live session via video conferencing. You can either utilize WebEx or Google Meet for this delivery method. Either of these options allows students to login to the meeting link at the scheduled time, see you and their classmates, hear the instructor, and participate in the live class discussion. This is very similar to teaching in a face-to-face course.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Scheduling synchronous sessions during your regularly scheduled class time to prevent over-stepping on the students class schedule for other courses.

Asynchronous Delivery

The instructor pre-records lecture content in a video format for the students to view at their convenience. Video links or embed codes can then be posted to your Blackboard course. Two recommended tools for video create are Camtasia (university owned machine; on-campus only) or Screencastomatic to pre-record your lesson videos. Both options allow you to record your screen, your webcam, and your audio at the same time.

Camtasia Installation: The university has a site license for Camtasia to open all the features not included in the free trial on their website. To request the installation, please submit an ITicket through the Help Desk at helpdesk.valpo.edu. Camtasia can only be installed on university-owned machines and will only run when you are on campus or accessing our network via Valpo's VPN.

Screencastomatic: A free tool for recording video, screen, and audio simultaneously. There is a limit of 15-minutes per video. Videos can be directly uploaded to your YouTube channel (already on your Valpo Gmail account). This software and tutorial videos can be found at https://screencast-o-matic.com/

IMPORTANT NOTE: Video recordings should only be 15 minutes or less. Stick to the facts, do not repeat or over-explain in the video. They have the ability to pause, rewind, and rewatch.

Class Discussions

Class discussions are an integral part of class activities that raise the level of concern of a student, thus pulling them in to pay better attention. Additionally, this type of activity shifts learning from a passive activity for the students to an active learning activity.

Synchronous Delivery

Class discussion can still be included in your online delivery in a synchronous model where students attend scheduled classes via video conferencing tools mentioned in the Lecture section above.

Asynchronous Delivery

Class discussion can be easily shifted to an asynchronous model by utilizing the Blackboard Discussion features. We all know that discussions can easily be weak in an online environment. Strategies for successful engagement for online discussion boards include the following:

• Set parameters for the students initial post, for example:

  • Must be at least 3 paragraphs and include 2 research sources. Place works cited at the bottom of your post.

  • Think of this as a mini-paper

• Set response parameters, for example:

  • Responses must contain an authentic connection or story from personal experience, or research to counter, or support, the claims in the post.

  • The responses must be thoughtful, professional, and robust with supporting evidence.

  • Short responses in the realm of, "I agree with your post, thank you for sharing," while polite, are lacking in the required elements of a response and will be counted as if they are not a response.

• Use a rubric to score the posts so students know exactly what they need to improve if a score was lowered. Blackboard has the ability to set rubrics. Example rubric for discussion board

Labs & Experiential Learning

Labs and experiences requiring the student to perform procedural steps with supplies not readily available require a bit more thought and creativity. The list of ideas below are not the same as you had planned and may be less than ideal, but they can convey the same message to students. Here are some ideas for overcoming some of the hurdles:

• Check with the publisher to see if they have virtual labs or solutions for the issue, or if they may have alternative lessons or ideas

• Use a camera to record the lab or learning experience examples while you narrate the steps you are taking and the results of the steps

• Ask students if they can setup a video call with an expert in the field and do a write up on the same subject

• If they are comfortable going out to on-site location, could they visit a related site to gain the content

Simulation or Hands-On Activities

Simulation or Hands-On Activities designed for in-class meetings, like labs, may need some consideration and/or creativity. First, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Is this activity absolutely required to meet the course objectives?

2. Will this activity lose its effectiveness if it is conducted online?

3. Are there alternatives through the publisher they may recommend?

4. Could this activity be modified in some way to meet the basic objective it was designed to address?

5.