Writing Assignments: A Self-Evaluation for Students
This article first appeared in The Teaching Professor on October 5, 2017. © Magna Publications. All rights reserved. I teach online at an open enrollment institution, which means I get students at…
Strategies for Increasing Online Student Retention and Satisfaction
As an increasing number of colleges and universities identify online education as a critical component to their long-term strategy, the issue of retention can no longer be ignored. It is mandatory for everyone who touches the distance learner to understand why these students leave their online courses, and what it will take to keep them there.
COVID-19: Impacting Enrollments in Health Science Disciplines
As the academic year unfolds and faculties assume their teaching roles, they also begin conscripting the next cohorts of students. Emerging variables which may affect applicant numbers are of concern…
Using Small Group Check-ins to Maximize Peer Engagement and Support Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) in Online Courses
Love it or hate it, group work has its place in online higher education. Group projects provide opportunities and positive outcomes for students to take leadership roles, learn personal accountability…
A Teaching Philosophy Journey: Peeling Back the Layers
How do you find your teaching philosophy? How do get to the core of your teaching beliefs and summarize it in a teaching philosophy statement? "It isn’t always easy to…
Tips from the Pros: Improve Student Learning with Peer Feedback
*This article first appeared in the Teaching Professor on August 1, 2018. © Magna Publications. All rights reserved. As instructors, we often assume that students must learn from us and…
A Virtual Method for Delivering a Midterm Assessment Plan (MAP) for Instructors
A Midterm Assessment Plan or MAP is a way for instructors to gauge how students are reacting to a course and to discover possible inefficiencies or challenges in course design,…
Supporting Faculty in Uncertain Times: Five Ideas for Meaningful Dialogue and Reflection
Most higher education professionals are familiar with Centers for Teaching and Learning (CTLs) found within their institutions. CTLs provide professional development opportunities and coaching for faculty members. According to Leiberman…
The Appreciative Close: A Strategy for Creating a Classroom Community
This article first appeared in The Teaching Professor on September 4, 2018. © Magna Publications. All rights reserved. “What you appreciate appreciates” (Twist, n.d.). One of the practices I have…
Transforming Asynchronous Learning Spaces
I don’t know any of my students. For 20 years, in our experience learning and teaching online, we knew no one. Like a chapter out of Ralph Ellison’s The Invisible…