Openo, J. (2019). Can (post-heroic) leadership be taught online? A library educator’s expansion of Baldwin, Ching, and Friesen’s grounded theory model of online course design and development. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, (60)4, 354-372.
Online education continues its rapid expansion and evolution in Canada. For much of the first two decades of the 21st century, online education operated outside the formal structures of postsecondary. But online education has now moved from the periphery to the core of the postsecondary mission, and all faculty need to have a basic level of competence with online learning technologies.
Because of a lack of universal reporting requirements and inconsistent reporting, much remains unknown about the current composition, preparation, and experience of online instructors in Canada. What appears to be known, however, is that a majority of faculty who have taught online (77%) felt that teaching online provided deeper insight into the nature of teaching and learning in every setting. It also appears that training and support for faculty is central to overcoming the primary barriers to the adoption of online education.
This article provides a brief overview of how I approached building an online course in the University of Alberta’s Graduate School of Library and Information Science three years ago.
Instructional beliefs. When starting to teach online, many faculty bring their fears, inhibitions, and bewilderment to teaching in mediated and networked contexts. The experience of teaching online can be a disruptive and disorienting dilemma for faculty that requires a reconsideration of one’s teacher identity and their belief systems. This is why a good first step before teaching online is unpacking our beliefs about what teaching and learning is. Faculty may possess unquestioned assumptions or unexamined beliefs about teaching. Intentionally surfacing these assumptions and beliefs then informs the learning objectives, assessments, and how the course is organized.
Establish teaching presence early and often. The Community of Inquiry framework is the most highly research theoretical model of online education, and one of the core elements of the Community of Inquiry framework is Teaching Presence, which consists of design, facilitation, and direction of a community of inquiry. Design also includes assessments. To build teaching presence, instructors can provide a welcome letter, brief videos, announcements, and feedback to ensure strong teaching presence. In online settings, it is critical to design interactive experiences that incorporate frequent and substantive personal interactions.
Structure students for engagement. Teaching online requires a different set of skills than delivering content, and intentional thought needs to be spent on structuring students for maximum engagement. Many online instructors find discussion boards uninspiring. Discussion boards are only one way to get engaged interaction with and between students. Collaborative projects, peer assessment, debates, brainstorming activities and learner-developed and directed questions provide alternatives to uninspired discussion boards. Learner-generated questions and learner-facilitated discussion can serve as mechanisms for learners to refine their ideas and promote group reflection (Blaschke, 2012). Collaborative learning can also serve as the primary method for students to practice essential self-management skills, such as communication, task negotiation, emotional intelligence, and decision-making, as well as demonstrating personal responsibility.
Go beyond the LMS. Jon Dron (2017) at Athabasca University puts in candidly, “the learning management system alone will not take us where we need to be.” Building a learning environment that goes beyond the LMS flows from one’s instructional beliefs, activities, and the course goals. Reflective journals, blogs, wikis, concept mapping software, and apps such as Padlet or Remind can all be used to supplement and transcend the limitations of the LMS. Some instructors use Twitter to great effect in teaching micro-writing, but consideration must be given to the necessity/value of walled or open systems.
Reflect and modify. No course design is perfect the first time around (or the 20th time around). Keep a journal that records what worked and what could be changed or improved. Review the course analytics and learner comments (which are rarely straightforward to understand and take action on). Then activate your intuition and judgement. Revise your teaching beliefs, if necessary, adapt the course design, and improvise.
I have heard a quote, mis-attributed to Einstein, that the highest form of research is essentially play. In technology circles, too, play is the highest form of proficiency. Some people react strongly and negatively to the idea of play when it comes to teaching, but teaching online successfully requires a serious level of play. It is possible, after all, to have quite a bit of fun with it.