NEW INSTRUCTORS GUIDEBOOK

Contents

Basic Rules

Using Blackboard to Record Grades

Using Campus Connect to Record 3-Week, Mid-Term, and Final Grades

ITV Best Practices

Organization

Distributing/Receiving Course Materials and Homework

Instructional Tips and Classroom Management

Discipline

Testing

Test Proctoring

Odds and Ends

Murray State College Teaching Online Policy

Top 10 Rules for Developing Your First Online Course

Can You Flip an Online Class?

Basic Rules

1. You must use Blackboard to record grades—at a minimum, every two weeks—in your course, whether it be residence, ITV, online, hybrid, or other.

2. You are also required to record 3-week, mid-term, and final grades in Campus Connect.

3. Full-time faculty are required to utilize Taskstream to assess course objectives/goals at the end of each term. Department chairs will provide guidance for their respective areas. Adjunct instructors may be asked to assist with this.

4. If you need assistance, in order:

  1. Department Chair – general instructional guidance
  2. Academic Technology – assistance with Blackboard courses, how to use Campus Connect, online course design, other instructional technologies
  3. Use Academic Technology as your “first line” for IT problems; they’ll let you know who to talk to if they can’t fix your problem
  4. Academic Services Coordinator – along with Academic Technology, assistance with ITV
  5. IT Department – password & account issues, software/hardware issues that Academic Technology can’t resolve
  6. Assistant Vice President of Learning and Student Success – Taskstream/assessment, assistance if you can’t get hold of the Department Chair or others listed above.
  7. Vice President of Academic Affairs – assistance if you can’t get hold of the Department Chair or others listed above

5. You must use the Syllabus template provided at the beginning of each term. Certain information is standardized for all courses; highlighted sections are the areas you can exercise academic freedom and change to meet the requirements of your course. Please contact your department chair if you have questions.

6. If you’re teaching an online course, we are required to comply with a Federal mandate to verify the identity of online students. To this end, Academic Affairs requires that 40% of your course some means of verification. This is typically met by use of the Testing Centers at either the Tishomingo or Ardmore campuses; or utilization of an approved proctor.

- Proctors are identified by the students; proctor information is sent to the Testing Center to ensure the proctor meets requirements; then the Testing Center coordinators send the approved proctor information to the instructor of the course.

- Please note that this is not something we do to inconvenience our students. As bolded and underlined above, this is a Federal requirement. Failure to comply could potentially cause the Oklahoma state regents to de-authorize our online courses/programs.

7. Please note: Each term, there is a “class schedule” posted on the MSC website. Part of that class schedule is a “Final Exam Schedule.” It is imperative that you are aware of this schedule! If you choose to schedule your final exams for a time other than what’s listed on the Final Exam Schedule, you will need to deconflict that time and classroom with other instructors who may be scheduling their final exams for the day/time listed on the schedule.

Other requirements will be outlined by your Department Chair, the VPAA, etc. at Department and Faculty Professional Development meetings.

Using Blackboard to Record Grades

Please see the additional hand-out for Blackboard “how-to’s.”

Using Campus Connect to Record 3-Week, Mid-Term, and Final Grades

Please see the additional hand-out for Campus Connect.

ITV Best Practices

This is a list of the ideas, techniques, and common practices that work for successful ITV instructors. This is not exhaustive, and it is NOT meant to be policy or “you must do it like this.” It is merely meant to help you if you need it. Please feel free to submit your own “best practices” for inclusion.

Organization

In addition to all of the organizational tasks you normally do when teaching a course, you’ll need to be even more organized for teaching ITV. Materials must be distributed and assignments graded and returned before class.

Distributing/Receiving Course Materials and Homework

Courier
In the early days of ITV, most materials were sent via courier. Today, you can still send materials through interoffice mail (which travels through the U.S. Postal Service). This is no longer the best method to send materials to students, but if you do send through the mail, be sure to

  • Clearly mark the envelope with course name, campus, your name, date and time and of class, and instructions for the campus support personnel (can material be distributed, should it be held until class time, etc.).
  • Send the materials early. You may want to send four or five days before needed to ensure it arrives and is in place when you need it.
  • Send enough copies for the location.

Course Management System (Blackboard)
You may also use your Blackboard course web site to move materials. You can post assignments, return assignments, list grades, and do many other functions within the site that save time.

Email
You can email materials to your students. As with sending materials via courier, be sure you give enough time for the students to access email and print materials. Give clear instructions for when and how the materials will be used.

Instructional Tips and Classroom Management

  • Keep the lecture area clutter free. Book bags, coats, power cables, loose paper, and open folders can be visual distractions.
  • Avoid wearing neon colors, bold stripes, bright reds, or elaborate patterned clothing (visual distractions).
  • Practice in front of a mirror or camera if possible before the lecture.
  • Do an attendance check/roll call every time your class meets. Seat assignments are used by some faculty.
  • Look into the instructor camera – this will give you the sense that you are looking at the off campus students.
  • Vary your tone of voice and the amount of eye contact with the camera.
  • Hand gestures and body movements, in moderation, can also make for a more dynamic presentation.
  • Remind students to identify themselves when addressing you from an off-site location. When a student addresses you or the class, they should be reminded to identify themselves and their location. This includes those students in your local classroom.
  • Alternate between lecture and discussion regularly during the class. Changing the students’ field of vision helps them stay focused. Additionally, especially if using a PowerPoint, you become a disembodied voice if you don’t switch to the instructor camera occasionally.
  • Utilize multiple forms of student interaction: polling, discussing, reading, writing.
  • Reinforce the concepts presented with quizzes, games, and group projects.
  • Engage students with direct questions and reward their contributions to the class.
  • Less is more. Students need to be able to absorb both the information on the slides and the lecture. Instead of complicated single slides, create multiple slides that contain distinct ideas or concepts.
  • Avoid reading your lecture when possible. Talking directly to the audience is more engaging, especially when dealing with distant learners.
  • When using PowerPoint, giving students a study guide to fill in (do not just give them your presentation) will also help them stay engaged in the learning process.

Patience

While our ITV system runs very well and there are very few problems throughout the year, issues do happen and you should have a backup plan. Students should know how long to wait in the classroom should a technical glitch occur.

Additionally, use your Blackboard course site if a course gets interrupted. Most of your students will adjust to the situation and you will lose very little instructional time if you have a backup plan. The campus support person at your site will work with the other campus technicians to remedy the situation as quickly as possible.

Discipline

To minimize problems, make it clear to the class what kinds of behavior will be tolerated. Some instructors insist on a seating chart for the remote sites and require all students to be within the view of the camera at all times. If you feel you have a situation that needs addressing, discuss it with your Department Chair and/or VPAA and ask that steps be taken to rectify the situation.

Visiting other campuses and teaching from different locations can aid in a smooth semester. The students at distance sites enjoy meeting the instructor face-to-face and the local students better understand what the distance sites have to deal with. Be sure to contact the Academic Services Coordinator (Tishomingo) and/or ITV Coordinator (Ardmore) if changing the "host" location for your class.

Testing
One of the most uncomfortable areas for some instructors using ITV is that they are not in the room when students are being tested. We have an agreement with our ITV partners to have monitors in the classrooms. Please contact the Academic Services Coordinator (Tishomingo) and/or the ITV Coordinator (Ardmore) to schedule tests/exams.

Test Proctoring
Our Testing Centers have limited resources, and are typically reserved for online courses. If you need proctoring assistance, please contact the Testing Center coordinators.

Odds and Ends

  • Prepare handouts for students whenever large amounts of material are being covered and have them delivered to the campus or posted in D2L in advance. Remember that handouts should be study guides or something students have to fill in. Do not just send students your completed PowerPoint presentations.
  • Address your materials properly. Minnesota West hosts 25-30 classes each semester across the college. ALWAYS identify the class, the room, the time, instructor name, and any other relevant information whenever communicating with the campus support people.
  • Overheads/ELMO: paper copies of transparencies work best. Plastic reflects and is difficult for other sites to read.
  • Layout: A horizontal format with sans serif 24 point letters works the best for presentation of written material. Be sure any notes uploaded into D2L are optimized for printing (you do not need 24 point letters on a printout).
  • Presentations: Create a presentation using Power Point or on the Web. ITV classrooms are equipped with computers and Internet access.
  • Paper: White or colored paper works when writing on the ELMO. Use a medium point pen and leave margins around copy.
  • Videos: Use video guides when watching videos to make this activity an active learning experience. Remember to utilize the streaming videos that are available (see the LARC staff), and also remember that these can be viewed outside of class time when appropriate.

(sources: Minnesota West Community & Technical College; Nathan Graham, University of Houston)

Murray State College Teaching Online Policy

All faculty teaching online courses agree to implement the Murray State College Teaching Online Policy to ensure successful student learning.

  1. Do not post materials that are not relevant to the course content.
  1. Instructors are required to provide some form of assessment of student work approximately every week. This can be participation points, tests, quizzes, etc.
  1. Instructors must respond to student enquiries within 48 working hours unless other arrangements are made.
  1. Instructors are required to provide a “Start Button” with instructions for how to begin the course, as well as a syllabus/orientation test at the beginning of the semester.
  1. Instructors are required to provide more than one line of communication for the students to contact them (email, phone number, department chair phone number, VPAA’s number).
  1. Instructors are required to use Blackboard for their grade book.
  1. Instructors are required to incorporate different learning styles.
  1. Instructors are required to use a variety of teaching tools.

Additions to policy to consider:

  1. Prior to teaching a class online for the first time, it is recommended that instructors complete the Quality Matters Rubric Training Certification unless approved by the VPAAs office. At that point, a plan of action will be made to ensure the instructor receives the certification training.
  2. Instructors are required to deliver online courses via Blackboard unless given approval from the VPAAs office. I know the online math courses are required to go to another site to do their assignments….
  3. Instructors will provide a syllabus in the Murray State College Online Syllabus Format that includes all pertinent information including a daily schedule, assignments, tests, proctored events, etc. on Blackboard no later than the first day of the semester.
  4. Instructors will provide an introduction of themselves and as well as an introduction of the course no later than the first day of the semester.
  5. Instructors will ensure students follow Murray State College Online Netiquette Policy.
  6. Instructors will design their online courses based off of the Quality Matters Rubric and Murray State College Online Course Checklist.
  7. Online classes are expected to represent an equivalent amount of student time/work as face-to-face classes.
  8. When a class is offered both face-to-face and online in the same semester, assessment procedures should be used to establish equivalency in learning outcomes.
  9. In order to establish student authentication, instructors must include at least two proctored events per semester for the online course. Proctored events are any activities that fulfill a graded component of the course and require visual authentication of the enrolled student. Examples of proctored events include, but are not limited to: face-to-face meetings/activities, on-site computer lab meetings, video conferencing, computer-based testing (MSC campus testing center or an approved third party testing service), live and/or recorded video presentations performed by the student.
  10. Each student’s final grade must consist of a minimum of 50% of graded activities that are proctored events as identified above.
  11. Instructors are required to provide at least one announcement a week to motivate all students to participate, and to provide students with weekly overviews.
  12. Instructors are required to use some form of communication tool so that students will feel a sense of online community such as the use of discussions, journals, blogs, wikis, group work, and activities to guide students toward constructing their own knowledge and connecting it with what they already know.

Top 10 Rules for Developing Your First Online Course

By: John Orlando, PhD in Online Education

Years of helping faculty pass to the dark side of online education have taught me a few simple rules that I brow beat (in a collegial way) into all new online teachers.

Rule 1: Provide Extra Detail in Your Online Syllabus
Most of us spend much of the first day of class going through the syllabus, taking time to elaborate on different points, and answering questions as we go along. Online classrooms lack this time, and so the syllabus must be more detailed than it would be for a face-to-face class, especially when it comes to procedures. You can also preempt problems and save time answering questions by creating a discussion forum devoted to common questions about the class itself.

Rule 2: Begin with Community Building
Despite appearances, online education is (should be) a fundamentally communal endeavor, with discussion taking center stage. But discussion requires trust, which can be built through community-building exercises. Some educators even recommend spending the first two weeks on community building, asserting that it will pay for itself in better performance over the remainder of the course.

Rule 3: Design for the Web
I remember building my first online course by transcribing the lectures from my face-to-face course into text. Somehow the students managed to get through them, bless their hearts. But, of course, the online environment is fundamentally visual, built on videos, interaction, exploration, etc. All effective communication requires an understanding of the rules of that environment. Don’t view the online environment through the paradigm of the face-to-face environment. Rather, design for the web.

Rule 4: Account for Different Systems
It’s easy to forget that web pages operate differently on different browsers, and especially on different devices. Ask your instructional designers to go over your course to confirm that everything will work on different systems. It’s a good idea to check in with them before designing content so that they can give you a template that will work.