Armida Belvill

Having and disseminating the Tech support phone number and contact email is essential for all students. Reminding them that sample quizzes need to be take to rule out any straight forward issues that can be addressed before the actual quiz is taken. 

The toughest thing about asynchronous meetings is not being able to see their reactions to information they are studying. Do they look lost, confused, interested, excited? Their written reaction is almost the only way for them to express any of this. Adding the opportunity for them to upload a video or audio blog would be helpful.

Excellent mention of reaching out to each student individually by the first week. I usually reach out to then using a general email but using a more personal email will make them feel more cared for and improve their trust in me than a general email. I still plan on using a designed email since reaching out with a unique email to almost 100 students by the first week would be a daunting task. But using a designed email and adding a few personal touches should add the needed personal contact. 

One of the most important things about being an online instructor is to go through the whole class checking that all links are working, all items posted are available and easily accessible to the students, and any support source information is visible and easily accessible to the student.