Recently I created an assignment for my online speech classes that I think is simple and light, yet at the same time inspiring and valuable. Here it is (short and sweet): Assignment: Journal Entry about Managing Anxiety This assignment has 3 steps: After I created it, I kind of fell in love with it. I’m…
Have you ever been grading online assignments or replying to emails when it just felt like you were saying different versions of the same thing over and over again? I feel that way a lot of the time, and I know I’m not the only one. It turns out there’s actually a solution for this…
If you teach online, or even in the classroom, you’re probably familiar with the popular learning management system, Canvas (it seems to be every college’s go-to LMS these days). It’s pretty intuitive and easy to use (which is why most instructors tend to prefer it over Blackboard), but there are a few Canvas tools that…
As the fall semester approaches, I thought this article should be a must-read for us instructors. If you’re just starting out as a college instructor, or you sometimes wonder if you’re doing the best job that you can, check out the following article from Faculty Focus: Six Things That Make College Teachers Successful It’s a…
It’s been a long time since I included a post for the Happy Professors series here on the blog, but recently, college professor, published author, and vlogger, Deb Kabwang, sent me a quote about why she loves teaching writing classes- and the timing couldn’t have been better! As I’m wrapping up the final edits on…
When I learn something for fun in my free time, I tend to skim through books, websites, online articles, watch some YouTube videos or TED talks on the topic, share what I’m learning with friends, write down my thoughts and feelings about it, and take some sort of action to incorporate it into my daily…
How does one begin making their online college course ADA accessible? Oh boy. This was a new experience. I’ve been teaching online college courses for a few years now, but for the first time ever I was responsible for making my upcoming summer course shells ADA accessible at one of my schools. Talk about scary. Some…
A faculty development lesson in helping college students succeed.. In a faculty development class I took a while back, we discussed the importance of ‘Six P’s’ in determining student success, and I thought it might be valuable to online instructors to see how these can help out in not just the face-to-face classroom, but also…
The importance of empathy when teaching online students.. It’s that time of year when spring classes have officially started and us instructors are once again trying to bring the best version of ourselves to the classroom and make a difference, especially for those students that may be struggling. I think it’s important to take a…
It’s hard to convey emotion and create a positive environment when teaching online, but I’ve found one way to give feedback that I feel is effective, encourages students, and makes the online environment a more positive place. I call it The Sandwich Method. Quite simply, you construct assignment feedback in the following way: Something (or…