On Course 2013 National Conference
Title of Proposal (10-word max): Best Practices in Applying Active Learning to Online Teaching
Summary (125-word max):
You’ve employed active learning in your face-to-face classes, but what about using those same techniques
online? What active learning techniques translate well to online instruction? What online tools facilitate active
learning? In this session, we’ll explore some of the best practices in applying active learning techniques to online
teaching. In addition, we’ll explore how to incorporate the eight On Course principles—which have been shown
to enhance student retention and success—into online instruction.
Abstract (400-word max):
Colleges and universities are increasingly offering online courses as part of their curriculum. Some of the
challenges of online instruction include its asynchronous communication mode, reliance on technology, differing
pedagogy standards, and the fact that instructors don’t physically meet with students each week. To overcome
these challenges, instructors can help students effectively learn content and concepts in an online setting by
applying active learning tools and instructional strategies that are designed to simulate active learning in faceto-face classes. Some strategies and techniques that help make online instruction effective include using best
practices for course organization and design, employing course management features such as adaptive release,
offering unprecedented instructor access, and facilitating Discussion Board topics. Active learning techniques
also improve online effectiveness, such as predictive demonstrations, virtual field trips, video recordings, Web
animations, and live office hours. Using these strategies and techniques, online courses can be equally effective
and engaging as face-to-face instruction yet serve a diverse and geographically widespread community of
learners.
Anyone who teaches online (or is considering teaching online) should attend this session. Participants will learn
active learning techniques that they can use in the online delivery of their courses as well as explore some best
practices of using online tools for active learning. Participants will also be involved in an activity that explores
how to incorporate the eight On Course principles into online instruction.
Outline of Design (INDICATE TIME ALLOCATED FOR EACH SEGMENT):
75-minute session, to be facilitated as follows:
1)
2)
3)
Brief welcome, introduction, instructions for session (5 minutes)
Form groups of four and assess the online teaching experience of each group by utilizing a webbased online response system called Socrative to poll groups (10 minutes)
Jigsaw Activity Round 1: Home groups of four will be split into the following four categories (10
minutes):
1) Strategies for online communication
2) Strategies for online collaboration
3) Strategies for building online community
4) Strategies for online course design
Participants will have 5 minutes to individually brainstorm about their particular category
4)
5)
6)
7)
Jigsaw Activity Round 2: Break out into expert groups and brainstorm about effective online
strategies in their categories. Use post-it notes to capture ideas and post on large wall pad (20
minutes)
Jigsaw Activity Round 3: Return to home group and have each person share 1-2 ideas (10 minutes)
Gallery Walk: Have each participant fill out a worksheet on matching On Course principles with
effective online teaching strategies based on a gallery walk while viewing the sticky notes (10
minutes)
Analysis and report-out: What strategies did you learn today that you can use in your online classes
to support active learning? (10 minutes)
Best Practices in Applying Active Learning to Online Teaching
Name ____________________________
2013 On Course National Conference, Session 6H
Facilitators: Al Trujillo and Kelly Falcone, Instructors, Palomar College
Part 1 Instructions: In your Home Group, decide which person will address each of the following four areas:
1. Strategies for online communication
2. Strategies for online collaboration
3. Strategies for building online community
4. Strategies for online course design
Part II Instructions: Please fill out the table below during the Gallery Walk:
On Course Principle
(what OC students do)
1. Personal Responsibility
(see themselves as the
primary cause of their
outcomes and
experiences)
2. Self-Motivation
(find purpose in their lives
by discovering personally
meaningful goals and
dreams)
3. Self-Management
(consistently plan and take
purposeful action in
pursuit of their goals and
dreams)
4. Interdependence
(build mutually supportive
relationships that help
them achieve their goals
and dreams)
5. Self-Awareness
(consciously employ
behaviors, beliefs, and
attitudes that keep them
on course)
6. Lifelong Learning
(find valuable lessons and
wisdom in nearly every
experience they have)
7. Emotional Intelligence
(effectively manage their
emotions in support of
their goals and dreams)
8. Believe in Themselves
(see themselves as
capable, lovable, and
unconditionally worthy
human beings)
Online Teaching Strategy
(describe)
2nd Online Teaching Strategy
(optional)
Ideas for Active Learning Strategies in Online Courses from Your Facilitators:
From Al Trujillo, Instructor, Earth Sciences
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Have a well-designed course with clear expectations and deadlines, including a 1-page summary of all
required assignments/exams as well as a checklist of weekly assignments.
Use the “Adaptive Release” feature in Blackboard to have students check off tasks when completed; it
helps keep students on track and gives students a feeling of accomplishment as they finish tasks.
Clearly state your policy for answering e-mails and questions posted in class Discussion Boards
(suggestion: respond to students’ e-mails with 24 hours or, at the latest, 48 hours; tell students that you
will read but not necessarily respond to posts as assignments in class Discussion Boards; actively
participate and guide the discussions).
Discussion boards are good ways to use the On Course Silent Socratic Dialogue technique to stimulate
deeper thinking about the topic.
Require responses to other students’ posts; this can also be done as requiring an On Course-inspired
“beautiful question” in response to another student’s post; a “beautiful question” is one that must be
well-thought-out and shows a depth of knowledge and understanding beyond an obvious question.
Use predictive demonstrations by showing students a demonstration set-up, then have them respond
online to what will happen next before they are allowed to view the results of the demonstration; this
increases the student buy-in to the demonstration and promotes active learning.
Record short videos of the instructor explaining content that students normally have a difficult time
understanding or video tape a virtual field trip. For example, for a virtual oceanography field trip using
Google Earth, see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTTEajWRg4Y.
Hold weekly live office hours using Blackboard Collaborate, Join.me, Google Hangout, or Facetime.
From Kelly Falcone, Instructor, Kinesiology
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Include your communication guidelines, i.e. “I will respond within 48 hours” or “please use the class
Discussion Board for all questions pertaining to assignments or course topics, only send an e-mail if it is
a personal nature.”
Post weekly announcements. Be sure to show the students that you are a part of the course and are
regularly attending just like they are. They need to know you are actually there in the classroom even
though they cannot see you. This also increases “teacher presence” which is an important aspect of
online course design. (please go to: http://communitiesofinquiry.com/welcome)
Regularly check attendance and identify at-risk students. Send a “friendly reminder” e-mail to those that
have not attended class; my students always send a heartfelt thank-you when I do this.
Course Collaboration: It is VERY important for the students to build relationships and talk with each
other just as they would in a face-to-face course. Building a sense of community increases student’s
satisfaction and success!
o Use group projects, group papers, Blogs, Discussion Boards, Wikis, or Googledocs
o Although asynchronous communication is the primary mode in distance education, have
students attend at least one synchronous session per semester. This can be the entire class, or
in small groups.
o
Have students post their introduction bio and picture (optional) where it can be accessed easily.
I use a Google form embedded in Blackboard which autopopulates a spreadsheet that the
students can look at throughout the semester as a quick reminder of their classmates. I give
them extra credit if they make a quick video and input the link online!
Constructivism in Distance Education
Mayne, L. A., & Wu, Q. (2011). Creating and measuring social presence in online graduate nursing courses.
Nursing Education Perspectives, 32(2), 110-4. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com/docview/863645869?accountid=35812
In an experimental study in which Faculty taught one course as they conventionally would, and taught a
second course incorporating multiple strategies to increase social presence, it was found that
“purposeful application of social presence techniques by the instructor in online courses can have a
significant and positive effect on student perceptions of social presence and group interaction, as well as
desire to continue learning in an online format” (p. 111). The authors identify usual online strategies
versus social presence strategies; an example of this is a typical welcome announcement when the class
begins, versus sending out a personal email a couple weeks prior to beginning the semester and opening
course early with opportunity to start asking questions. Another example is rather than only posting
basic “about me” instructor information, instructors should incorporate a welcome letter, with
biographical information and pictures.
Shackelford, J. L., & Maxwell, M. (2012). Sense of community in graduate online education: Contribution of
learner to learner Interaction. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, (13) 4.
Retrieved from http://www.irrodl.org/index.php/irrodl/rt/printerFriendly/1339/2317
To understand what learner-learner interactions were most predictive of sense of community the
researchers surveyed students from 110 graduate level online courses with 381 students participating.
Sense of Community (SoC) was the dependent variable, which was derived from the students’ total
score on the Classroom Community Scale. The results of this study found that “Interactions between
learners which emerged as contributing the most to sense of community, in decreasing order of
contribution, were (a) introductions, (b) collaborative group projects, (c) contributing personal
experiences, (d) entire class online discussions, and (e) exchanging resources.”
Hsu, Y.C., & Ching, Y.H. (2011). Microblogging for strengthening a virtual learning community in an online
course. Knowledge Management & E-Learning: An International Journal, 3(4), 585-598. Retrieved from
http://www.kmel-journal.org/ojs/index.php/online-publication/article/viewArticle/146
The researchers studied the use of microblogging, specifically Twitter, to strengthen virtual learning
communities (VLC). The study results showed that Twitter was a valuable tool to strengthen VLC. The
students used Twitter to share their design projects as this was a graphic design course, to share realworld examples and information pertaining to the course, and to quickly and easily connect with peers.
Armstrong, A., & Thornton, N. (2012). Incorporating Brookfield's discussion techniques synchronously into
asynchronous online courses. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 13(1), 1-9,49-50. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com/docview/1034104103?accountid=35812
The researchers studied the use of Brookfield and Preskill’s democratic discussion strategies, specifically
Circle of Voices and Circular Response, in online synchronous discussions. Brookfield’s discussion
techniques focus on setting up a systematic discussion with rules, to ensure each persons voice is heard.
The results of this study showed that this is an effective technique for holding synchronous online
discussions. “Using Adobe Connect, a synchronous virtual classroom technology, to augment an
asynchronous online graduate course using Brookfield and Preskill’s instructional strategies for
democratic instruction can be very effective for increasing involvement and motivation of graduate
students in higher education” (p. 8). An example of the discussion format is to set an order to have each
person speak for 2-minutes without interruptions or questions. After each person has responded then
each person gets another chance to speak and respond to what others have said. It is very important to
provide a clear agenda with questions topics prior to this type of meeting. Students found several
aspects of this type of discussion important, they were hospitality (felt welcome), participation
(everyone was heard), mindfulness (no interrupting), and deliberation (everyone was prepared for
discussion).