Areas of Strengths
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- My background in, knowledge of, and desire to use technology. I think because
online teaching relies so heavily on technology to operate smoothly I think I have an
advantage over other instructors. This prior knowledge lets me focus more on the
actual content and less on learning how to turn that content into a digital format.
- My ability to talk people through or provide resources for the use of
technology. Because I have a background in technical support allows me to assist the
students will technical problems they may encounter in an online course. In addition, I
have collected many technology related resource to help students learn to use different
forms of technology.
- My encouragement and modeling of respectful "classroom" interaction. I keep
my classroom a friendly, non-threatening, and respectful environment regardless of the
delivery method.
- My innate ability to facilitation online course work. Several personal
characteristics such as empathy for others, writing ability and critical thinking skills
provide me the tools needed to be a great online instructor.
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Areas for Improvement
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- Providing the appropriate amount of feedback. Sometimes if I don’t have a lot of
time one week I provide very little if any feedback on assignments that were done well.
This is not fair to the students because even if they did well on the assignment they
should know what aspects were exceptionally good and which areas could have been a
little better. But unfortunately sometimes life gets in the way. I also need to encouraging
more peer feedback. As stated by Lehman in “How to Be a Great Online Teacher,” the
use of peer review can be less threatening for students than an assessment by the
instructor.
- Confronting students on issues. I am definitely a non-confrontational person. I hate
addressing situations that might create heated debates or hurt feelings.
- Holding true to my last assignment policy. Because I am also a student I have
great empathy for students when I feel they have a valid reason for turning assignments
in late. Life gets hectic and I always want my students to see me as compassionate.
Unfortunately sometimes I think I am taken advantage of because of this.
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Where to go from here (Goals)
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- Develop activities that rely on both peer feedback and instructor assessment.
I feel this will allow learners to gain knowledge and insights from a variety of sources.
The more feedback and suggestions a person can get, the more they will learn if they
are willing to accept the advice.
- Sticking to Due Dates. This semester I have really stuck to my due dates and have
followed through on the consequences for late assignments.
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Resources
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