Janice Sinoski

Faculty can be creative when designing the course by incorporating a variety of media strategies in online courses. Well-chosen audio and visual content increases student engagement while meeting the objectives of the course. The process needs to be methodical to ensure all aspects of course design are included.

Every aspect of course design is important and contributes to the success of the student from the outline of the syllabus to the immediate feedback to the student. I understand how to put a course together in a methodical manner.

Excellent information on the advantages and disadvantages of synchronous versus asynchronous courses. Synchronous courses allow for face-to-face interaction and can create an atmosphere for lively discussions. Asynchronous courses allow students to take more time to reflect and process the information before they respond to discussion forums.

I started taking correspondence courses in the 1970s and loved the freedom to learn at my own pace. My graduate programs were online as well and I learned the key characteristics of online programs that help make students successful. Successful online courses for adults are engaging, flexible, and goal-oriented. They provide clear objectives, interactive content, and practical applications.  The courses need to have a user-friendly design and ensure accessibility and relevance for adult learners. 

Building an asynchronous online lab involves starting with clear objectives, detailed instructions, and user-friendly interfaces. Technical support is essential while building the online lab to ensure the interface is glitch- free. Prepackaged lab materials will provide all students with the same learning materials and faculty can upload helpful images to augment the lab materials, so students can see how the materials relate to real-world clinical assessment tools for nursing. 

I learned that providing prompt and meaningful feedback is essential to student advancement in online classes. I would provide a checklist so students can track their progress in the course and stay on track to meet all the requirements. I like the idea of creating and incorporating a course bot that answers FAQs too.

For those of you with years of online teaching experience, what has been your biggest challenge and how have you successfully dealt with the challenge?

Thanks,

Janice

In an asynchronous online course, both introverted and extroverted students can shine with their responses and have an equal ability to participate in all group actions in their own time. When designing an online course, I will ensure there will be multiple online group functions that will engage the students and let them show their individuality in how they meet the criteria for the assignment.