Ishtar Thomas- Lane, Biology Professor at Sierra College
This site provides examples of instructional resources created in the Humanizing Online STEM Academy, a professional development program funded by the California Education Learning Lab and administered by the Foothill DeAnza Community College District.
Prior to this academy I completed online training courses offered through the college where I teach. I had experience using Camtasia, 3C Media, and Canvas Studio. I also had created a welcome banners and course cards in Canva. I was initially hesitant to take this course because I am not quick with technology. I had never used YouTube for my own videos and had no experience with some of the other tools that are covered in this academy such as Flip and Adobe Express. When I first began teaching fully online I was excited at the idea of more flexibility, but then I quickly realized my kindness cues and ability to build relationships with online students was lacking. I am very expressive with my tone, inflections and facial expressions which contributes to my teaching style but it wasn't translating to the online environment. I saw that other instructors humanized their online courses with videos of themselves to better connect with their students but I’ve always felt uncomfortable talking to a WebCam and so I avoided it.
I've become pretty comfortable with the "new" technology we used in this academy. The instructions were very easy to follow and made the course less intimidating. I actually looked forward to each assignment to see what else I get to learn. This academy really gave me a new perspective. I have a clearer understanding of high context culture and low context culture (and learned more about myself). In addition, I now feel a tiny bit more comfortable making video recordings of myself. It's a work in progress.
I'm so thankful I had the opportunity to be part of this invaluable academy. I will continue to implement the humanizing elements to my online (and hybrid) courses and be more mindful of high context cultures (since I lean more low context). The importance of providing wise feedback will also be carried on to my classes. I look forward to seeing what my future student feedback will be now that my courses are more humanized.
My liquid syllabus begins with a welcoming video that tells a short story of my college journey. This includes when I was a former student at the college I currently teach at. I think it's a great way to build a connection and relationship to my students early on.
The liquid syllabus also provides information to help them prepare for the course while implementing kindness cues and humor. In addition, my "tips for success" section includes a link to a learning styles quiz to help both the students and I know what their learning needs are.
I think it's a little comical to see a skeleton with glasses working on the laptop. It's a tough course and I feel humor really helps create a less stressful environment. It meets both the course subject of anatomy and relates to the students because internally we look pretty similar to this image when using a laptop.
The welcome section of my homepage let's the students know I will post weekly announcements to help them stay on track (and to encourage them). It also includes a link that sends them to the "getting started" module.
I included a welcoming photo of myself along with how they can contact me and/or make an appointment to meet. With "rigor through empathy" in mind I also have tutoring services mentioned on the homepage so that students are reminded of the resources available to them to succeed in the course.
I start every semester with a getting to know you survey. This is my updated version which now includes more kindness cues. In the past I did not think to ask how they feel about the course at the start of semester or what their communication preference is. I think by adding more questions like this lets the student know I care about their feelings and needs.
My wisdom wall provides students with the opportunity to reflect on the course at the end of the semester to support metacognition and share advice (or wisdom) from their experience to future students. It serves to create a space for honest feedback and suggestions that incoming students can choose to listen to to help them plan for the course. Not all students will benefit from the same advice so it's beneficial to have a variety to learn from.
I often get students who ask me how to best study for anatomy. In this bumper video I go over a few studying strategies that have worked for students in the past. The purpose of this video is to help students get a good start on finding a technique that works best for them since each student will have a different learning and studying preference.
This microlecture is one of the topics we cover in the course. The learning objective for this topic is to explain the four human blood types and how they apply to blood transfusions. This video is less than 10 minutes for improved retention.
