5. Engagement and Communication in a Virtual Space

Somewhere in your course, (perhaps course information) there should be a set of guidelines regarding netiquette. There are three main areas that netiquette applies. Here are some suggestions to help you craft your own guide for students. However you choose to communicate this to students, make sure it is explicit and displayed prominently in the course.

Below are some suggestions that you can include in your own netiquette expectations. Depending on the sort of environment you want to set (formal/informal), pick and choose aspects that speak to you to create a policy that works for your class.

During Synchronous Classes:

• Ask students to mute themselves if not speaking

• Ask them to use the 'raise hand' feature of either Blackboard Collaborate or Zoom

• Remind them to be respectful in the chat

• Provide a link to this Seneca module on synchronous session netiquette. (See it here)

For Online Discussions:

• Remind students to remember that on the other side is a human and to have respect and empathy for others

• No flame wars (posts intended to be offensive, confrontational and of a bullying nature).

• Sparing use of emoticons

• DON'T USE ALL CAPS. It sounds like you are shouting.

• Be clear and concise.

• Reread your posts to ensure they are clear

• Remind students that discussions are monitored by you

• Use professional language

• Avoid obscure acronyms

For e-mail:

• Use formal greetings to address your instructor

• Identify your name, course and section number

• Remind students to check their e-mail regularly, especially if it is your preferred method of communication.

  • If you choose to communicate with students differently, set out expectations for how they should communicate with you.

The big thing about netiquette is to foster an environment of respect and empathy in the classroom.

Ongoing and impactful engagement in an online environment requires the use of various tools. The tools themselves will be similar to those used for assessments. While engagement tools and formative assessment can often overlap (formative assessment is by its nature engaging, and neither are for marks), the key difference is that engagement tools may also cover feedback about the course in general, assessments, and activities.

The scope of formative assessments is restricted to the course content: their purpose is to determine if students are learning the material. Engagement tools may have this same scope, but, they should also be expanded to allow students to engage with questions about how the course is run, how the virtual space is used, and how time is spent.

Engagement Goals

The straightforward goal of student engagement is simple: have students be active in the class. The ways in which that is achieved are much less clear. Below are a number of suggestions of how to encourage students to be more active:

• Create discussion boards that are not for marks.

• Routinely solicit feedback from students about the course progression, what they like, what they don't like, etc.

  • We usually leave feedback for the end of the semester, but in an online environment, it can be very helpful for students and instructors to have an open channel of communication for ongoing feedback.

  • Usefully, points of confusion in course content can be revealed here.

  • You can also ask questions about assignment choices, lecture topics, and other instructional decisions.

  • It is important to implement this feedback where possible. See the section 'Students as Partners' for more information.

• During live lectures use polls to solicit opinions from students.

• Include short no-stakes quizzes at the end of modules.

What tools to use

Seneca's Educational Technology Advisory Committee (ETAC) regularly meets to consider and evaluate new technology tools. They keep a running list of online tools that have passed a vetting process. See their suggestions here. Any of those tools have been deemed assessible, equitable and appropriate for learning.

Some tools that you might use:

• Mentimeter

  • Use it to ask questions during live lectures

  • Use it to solicit course feedback throughout the semester

• Padlet

  • Use it for live activities

  • Use it for an asynchronous discussion board

• EdPuzzle

  • Use it asynchronously incorporate questions into YouTube videos

• Blackboard Surveys

  • Use them asynchronously to generate feedback, check in with students, and include them in decisions about course progression.

• Google Forms/MS Forms

  • Use them for non-anonymous surveys and quizzes at the end of modules.

One particular way to contribute to an environment where students feel engaged is treating students as partners. The idea is fairly simple: Usually, when we create and facilitate a course, decisions of how the online spaced is used, what activities to employ, how tools are used and other such questions are decided solely by the instructor.

Treating students as partners means asking them about how they would like to use the online space, asking them how they would like to be interacted with and then implementing those ideas.

In the previous section (Tools) it was mentioned that soliciting ongoing feedback throughout the semester is a great way to engage students. If students see that their ideas and suggestions are being implemented, then they are more likely to be engaged with the course, and have an improved sense of ownership over their learning.

How to achieve this?

There are many ways to involve students in the learning design process. Consider some situations below:

Breakout Rooms

You routinely use breakout rooms during a live lecture. After a few weeks, you create an anonymous poll (perhaps using Mentimeter) asking students whether they like breakout groups or not. If the students enjoy it, then you acknowledge this and keep going. This way the students know that they are being consulted. If the students do not like breakout rooms, you should change the dynamic. The next time they come to class and find that you have replaced the breakout rooms with something else, they will immediately appreciate the change and feel respected.

Topic Choice

Sometimes we assign topics to students. Sometimes we allow them to choose from a set of topics. If possible, the best solution is to provide a suggested list of topics, and include a note that students can choose another topic if they e-mail you about it. Even if they do not take you up on the offer, you have allowed students the option to pursue something that is interesting to them, rather than prescribed to them.

Any Activity

Any activity you do (Mentimeter Polls, EdPuzzles, Padlets, Kahoot, etc) can include an aspect that solicits feedback from students. In a basic sense this allows you to better determine whether they enjoy the activity. If not, that's probably a big reason they are unengaged. If you take their feedback and apply it, they will feel respected in the class environment. They are more likely to participate as a result. And really, that's what we all want.

The Bottom Line

Treating students as partners sees them as both learners and consultants. This doesn't mean that you must consult students before you do anything, but rather, after you do something you solicit feedback and action that feedback.