5. Set up your class: tips and techniques

Try out Blackboard for full MCC support: sample blank class

The Basics:

1. Accessibility: everything must be accessible to people with disabilities
2. Reinforcement: reminders for everything are needed in various parts of the site
3. Consistency: consistent look, consistent instructions, accuracy of all information
4. Constancy: you should check in every day, even if you don't participate

Your Pages:

All can just be word-processed files put in content area
- Advantages: easy for instructor, no need to build web pages, .doc format fairly standard
- Disadvantages: can be hard to read on screen, won't work for students without Microsoft Word, your formatting may be lost
- Consider saving as .rtf format so can be opened by other text readers too

Syllabus/schedule

• Do double/triple/quadruple duty on dates (in syllabus, in discussion, reminders in announcements)
• Set all due dates in advance if possible

Research papers

• Do double/triple/quadruple duty on instructions (instructions, in discussion, reminders in announcements)
• Deal with cheating up front: Turnitin.com and/or Google with quotes
• Consider using the Digital Dropbox in Blackboard for submitting and returning papers

Lectures

• Make 'em portable: Create in html for use elsewhere
• Make 'em visual: images may take time to find and cite, but it's worth it for visual learners
• Make 'em accessible: be sure that text options are available for all visuals, and that the pages can be read by text-reading software, that links clearly say what they are [see my page on access levels, Somphone Chen (access specialist), or sites like WebAIM]
• Check out other people's lectures (CVC website awards, one of my sample lectures with fancy stuff)

Discussion Board

• Balance is key -- assign expandable topics, not too many or too few, but something each week
• Be clear on how often they are to contribute, how to contribute, when, and how much it's worth
• Read a bit about online discussing: Dave Knowlton, Dartmouth article

Testing Strategies

• Design tests so they can't really cheat
• Use options for randomizing questions
• Use question pools so you can change tests every semester
• Use "multiple answer" questions so students must choose several right answers1
• Test concepts rather than facts1

E-mail Overload

• Consider using Blackboard's Messages instead of email
• Create a separate email account for your online class
• CHAT! Use IM or CCCConfer for office hours and group discussions

1 A good article: Teach them to Fly: Strategies for Encouraging Active Online Learning

LISA's SECRET TIPS GRAB-BAG

Be curious! "How can I make this work online?"
Use a white background on pages -- patterned backgrounds suck
Google your way to glory: use phrases in quotation marks to catch plagiarists
Find images by limiting search to .edu sites -- it's easier to get permission!
Don't be afraid to ask permission to use anything on the web
Link, link, link! To images if you can't/don't want to get permission, to pages defining basic terms, etc.
Learn CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) so your pages look consistent and you can change fonts with one setting
Consider accessibility = individual learning styles Accessible features don't just make sense for people with disabilities; they help everyone understand your material by using different formats to deliver it
Take classes! CVC Training (free), UCLA Ext. Online Teaching Program ($515/class), Foothill Global Access ($44/class), @ONE Training (many free to faculty)
Think differently! About the purpose of testing, about cheating, about constructing learning, about reaching different learning styles.
Have fun! To teach online is to join the 21st century. Enjoy what you're learning!