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The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.
― William Arthur Ward
Dynamic teaching is an opportunity for every student to be engaged with the content and experience a well-designed course. This is done through constant reflection to improve our courses and provide students with varied activities to deepen their learning. Students should be given multiple opportunities to collaborate, communicate, critically think, and create in a rich, online environment. We want our students to get actively involved in their learning and it to be student-centered rather than teacher-centered. My course "Dynamic Teaching Online" with @ONE drove home the ideas that that we need be to responsive to our students' needs and use data and dynamic tools to continually enhance our courses.
Reflections
Reflections
Where I was.
Where I was.
Not having taught online before was the triggering event for taking this @ONE course. I wanted to be very successful and knew that teaching online was going to be a very different experience than in a traditional classroom. I wanted to develop a well-designed online course that would be innovative and appealing.
Knowing that I was going to start from the very beginning, I wanted to develop a great course that had the right amount of content, technology, and assessments. Infusing the right amount of technology into my course would make it more personal. Getting feedback from students can be very valuable. It allowed for me as the instructor to make important decisions to help better my course. I also wanted to continue to build relationships that mattered because at the end of the day, what matters most in education are the relationships we develop with the students.
Where I Am
Where I Am
"Dynamic Teaching Online" brought to light the importance of course communication. A key element to a student's success is effective feedback. Communicating effectively with students to provide the best, swift, useful feedback will give my student's guidance on how to improve their learning. Feedback is one of the best ways for students to improve and it is very strongly tied to academic achievement. As instructors, we have to remember that the words, phrases, and language we use are critical. Putting a positive spin on what you have to say can make a big difference in how the student will accept the feedback. I have found that feedback can improve a student's self-confidence and enthusiasm for learning.
One of my favorite ways that I provide feedback to my student's is through Padlet. Padlet provides students with an online bulletin board where they can post their thoughts and ideas. It provides me with a way to communicate with them and see if I need to support a student with their learning. Another way that I provide effective feedback is through formative assessment. Formative assessment provides rich feedback that allows me to teach more dynamically. By doing this, the feedback that is given to the students is more meaningful and of high-quality. I have learned that if feedback is done correctly, it should inspire and motive students to do their best.
Where I'm Headed
Where I'm Headed
A dynamic learning environment is at the heart of any course. I plan to improve and continue to engage my students with dynamic tools such as discussion boards, diverse assignments, meet and greets, and videos, just to name a few. I intend to communicate more with my students through announcements, speed-grader, discussions and other Canvas tools. My announcements will be often and designed to broadcast information to the entire class. I will use other Canvas tools that are better suited for connecting with an individual student or even a small group. Good communication across the board will remind students what they need to do and to stay on track. By communicating directly with a student, I can direct them to the appropriate resources that will help them accomplish their assignments and ultimately course goals.
Another area that I plan to broach is peer reviews. This is a valuable tool for engaging students and reinforcing concepts. To do this effectively, the students will need to have specific criteria that they should be reviewing. I believe providing them with my grading rubric will provide rich feedback instead of running the risk of students providing shallow feedback. In addition, at the end of my semester, I post a Google Form/survey to get feedback about the course. This information is valuable and will help me be a more effective online instructor.
As I continue to review my course design, I will provide multiple ways for students to collaborate, be engaged, and provide feedback. As this principle discussed, dynamic teaching is an ongoing process.
The key to success is to appreciate how people learn, understand the thought process that goes into instructional design, what works well, and a range of different ways of achieving goals.” - Tim Buff
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