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Effective Strategies |
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Creating Activites |
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Effective Strategies
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To compare the information on this page with a real-life example, you can view this example of a class which utilizes online teaching. |
Course management software can be used to require students to complete homework assignments prior to coming to class. Course materials are delivered online, where students answer questions and receive their scores. Benefits of this technique include:
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The materials can be accessed using any network browsing software and is platform independent.
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The course management software can be used to set time restrictions. This means that the instructor can determine the time window during which students can submit their answers. If the instructor sets the assignment to "turn off" at the time when their class starts, students must have read the material and submitted their answers to questions about the material prior to coming to class. This technique assures the instructor that the students have interacted with the material and have some knowledge about the topic when they arrive to class.
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Online materials can include color images and other graphics. Online materials can also include links to external web sites with additional information. In science, some of these external sites contain real-world data presented in "real time"; that is, as it's happening. The instructor can also change aspects of the assignment when there are new developments in the field. These aspects give online materials more currency than a textbook.
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The course management software offers many scoring options. Question types such as multiple choice can be automatically graded by the software, a critical time savings for instructors of large-sized classes. Instructors can also choose short-answer-type questions that require them to do the scoring. An advantage of this question type is that instructors can read some of the answers that students have submitted prior to the class period and be better able to direct the in-class discussions.
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Online submission of answers and online
scoring is logistically easy because there is no paperwork.
Students do not submit paper copies and instructors do not
need to return paper copies. Students can view their scores
online anytime they want, and can view the course materials
anytime they want (even if they can no longer submit answers
to questions). -
Most students are computer-savvy and enjoy doing homework on the computer. Most of them feel it is a more modern instructional approach and that it makes learning more interesting and fun. The computer-assisted learning technique can be a "carrot" that draws students into the material.
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By using a distance-learning tool in a class that has regular meetings, the instructor can better direct the students' out-of-class time by requiring very specific student responses to questions.
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The technique helps to implement the learning cycle by providing an exploratory phase (students explore real-world data and make observations), prior to figuring out the concepts behind the observations. This approach can also be called "discovery-based learning", because students first examine evidence and, through their observations, discover the concepts. Too often, new information is presented in an anti-discovery sequence, where students are first given the concepts and then the examples. With that approach, atudents have no opportunity to construct their own knowledge. The discovery-based approach is a better model of the process whereby new knowledge is constructed.
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Course Management SoftwareDifferent institutions may use different types of Course Management software. It is a good idea to find out what software your institution uses and familiarize yourself with it. Some institutions will also have workshops to teach instructors how to best take advantage of the software in their classes. San Francisco State University utilizes the Blackboard Course management software package. If you would like to learn more about Blackboard, visit the Blackboard site (pop-up). If you would like to learn about Blackboard workshops given by The Center for the Enhancement of Teaching at SFSU, visit the CET site (pop-up). |
In-class follow up is important, so that students will feel that the homework assignments are an integral part of the course. An appropriate way to begin the class is to ask students a question about the material in their homework assignment. To assure participation, students are asked to first confer with their neighbor (students in adjacent seats), and then students are selected to provide answers. The evidence from the assignment is discussed and used to develop the concepts that underlie the observations.