KEEPING STUDENTS
ENGAGED IN AN ONLINE
COURSE
Sandy Jones
Los Medanos College
Computer Science Dept.
INTRODUCTIONS…
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One week prior to the start of class, e-mail students instructions on how
to login to the class.
Create an Introductions forum and invite students to share a little
information about themselves (worth 5 pts.)
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As the Instructor share something about yourself (be creative & funny).
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Examples could be:
Homework is posted Monday and due by 11pm. Saturday evening.
Membership has its rewards to receive the maximum point value for
work completed on time.
COFFEE HOUSE
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Post a forum for students to chat amongst
themselves. Let them know you will be
monitoring it and ground rules include:
No profanity
 Positive responses only
 Allow students to create study groups
 Keep it clean or post will be subject to deletion
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SET THE STAGE…
Typically in my syllabus, everything is spelled out
and there are no surprises. By the end of class,
students will be writing college level papers. You
may consider:
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Weekly assessments (5 or 10 questions)
Case Projects & Hands-On Projects posted in the DB
Mandatory check in- (worth 2 pts.)
Participation in weekly chat (CCC Confer or I/M)
Research Paper
Field Trip
PREPARE STUDENTS TO SUCCEED…
Offering weekly assessments will reinforce the
information students learned during the week.
Techniques include:
5-10 true/false questions
 5-10 multiple choice questions
 5-10 fill in the blank questions or
 a short answer essay
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By the time the mid-term rolls around, serious students
would have grasped key concepts and will ace the
midterm and final.
CASE PROJECTS
Have students explore the possibilities in completing
weekly case projects, post their findings in the DB
and respond to two students using positive feedback
(worth 10 pts.) Examples include scenarios you create
for just about any courses such as:
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Computer Ethics
Computer Forensics
Computer Investigations and Analysis
Help Desk Customer Technical Support
Introduction to Computers
Managing Your Finances
HANDS-ON PROJECTS
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Provide weekly Hands-On Projects to bridge
information together. Examples may be:
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How many anti-static bags does it take for your cell phone not to ring?
List brand of phone and post your findings in the DB (Introduction to
Computer Forensics).
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Practice opening/closing and resolving hardware or software issues.
Instructor will post various scenarios and students will download
complimentary Help Desk software to practice with. Post findings in
the DB and respond to two students (Help Desk course).
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Create projects in Office 2010 and have students showcase their work
by attaching projects in the DB and having classmates critique work
using positive feedback. (Introduction to Computers).
STUDENTS CAN BUILD A
RESUME…
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Have students create a resume in the beginning of
the semester. Submit in the Digital Dropbox.
Add new skills to the resume as students acquire
them at work or in the classroom especially if they
have enrolled in short-term 9-week courses.
(A+, networking courses etc.)
By the end of the semester, some students would
have enhanced their resume by 25% or more.
Some textbooks such as Computer Forensics &
Investigations require a resume as part of a
Hands-On lab activity.
SAMPLE RESUME…
Name
Address
City, State Zip
Phone #
E-mail address
Objective:
I am seeking a position as……
Education:
Los Medanos College, Pittsburg, CA January 2012- present
Experience:
Most recent employer first
References
List 3
BOOST THEIR VOCABULARY….
Action verbs such as:
managed
implemented
launched
consolidated
improved
revitalized
produced
supervised
expanded
accomplished
achieved
demonstrated
created
coordinated
negotiated
solved
developed
expedited
promoted
strengthened
launched
administered
evaluated
maximized
produced
established
redirected
spearheaded
BOOST THEIR VOCABULARY II….
Action adjectives & adverbs to wow readers:
proven
substantial
major
significant
efficiently
cost-effective
successfully
rapidly
prominent
comprehensively
innovate*
dynamic
STUDENTS CAN SHARPEN SKILLS
BY…
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Utilizing reference books to enhance vocabulary & write
effectively. (dictionaries, thesaurus)
Reading online technology news, magazines and e-books.
Practice spelling entire words out when e-mailing instead of
using acronyms (omg, lol, bff, etc.)
Identifying problems, gathering information, develop
possible solutions, evaluate results.
TEACHING TOOLS I:
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Assign group PowerPoint projects to promote
teambuilding skills. (design & develop the ideal
Help Desk or a new Emerging Technology)
Offer enrichment projects throughout the
semester. Don’t consider this as extra credit.
Students can create tables in Word,
charts/graphs in Excel or an Access database
relating to the topic of the week. They must
present their findings to classmates in the
Discussion Board.
TEACHING TOOLS II:
Here are suggestions for Office 2010:
Using
the online templates, create your college graduation
announcement from a four-year college.
Customize your own flyers for a bbq, create a certificate for
a loved one and design your own business cards.
Utilize a loan amortization schedule to purchase your dream
car (money is no object, 20” wheels & Bose stereo).
Obtain the American Dream of home ownership by utilizing
the mortgage amortization schedule to see how your monthly
payments will be.
GRADUATION ANNOUNCEMENT
PAYMENTS ON MY DREAM CAR…
NEED A GARAGE TO PARK THE CAR
IN…
PERSONAL PORTFOLIO...
VIDEO & ARTICLE PICKS…
Topics may include educating students on the many facets of Google:
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/inside-the-mind-of-google/
With high tech crime on the rise, here is what is going on using an
Ipad and electronic pickpockets:
http://www.wreg.com/videobeta/8ba6f8fc-90a2-4711-90ea1884ec348310/News/Electronic-Pickpocket
ENRICHMENT ASSIGNMENTS:
Suggest field trips which classmates can
carpool together. Students compose a 2 page
paper (MLA style), scan and e-mail ticket stub
to instructor. Cool places include:
Computer History Museum, Mountain View, CA
 High-Tech Forensics Lab, Palo Alto, CA
 Intel Museum, Santa Clara, CA
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RESEARCH PAPER…
Assign a 7 page research paper (cover sheet, report and
works cited page) on a computer related topic. Use APA or
MLA format. Use online database to locate sources such as:
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Your college eBook Collection
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Academic Search Premiere- over 4,500 journals for computer
science, engineering, physics, chemistry, medical sciences and
much more.
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Newspaper Source Plus- 1,570 full-text newspapers & 583,000
television and radio news transcripts, videos and podcasts.
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CQ Researcher explores a single “hot” issues in the news in
depth each week. Topics include science & technology, health,
education and environmental issues.
SIMPLIFY YOUR GRADING…
Check with your department if they utilize
TurnitIn.com which Instructors can check papers
for plagiarism. Students will e-mail a copy of the
report to the instructor and it will be uploaded to
this website.
The database will provide a originality report for
each submission. This includes word count and
similarity index by sources such as internet
publications.
QUESTIONS/COMMENTS?
Feel free to contact me:
Sandy Jones
Inspireyourstudents@gmail.com