Pellissippi State Community College
2022 Distance Learning Conference
Session 1 Descriptions and Links
10:15 AM EST - 11:15 AM EST
Option 1:
Wait...What? My Online Class is not Engaging? It’s Not Too Late to Turn Things Around.
Presenter: Lisa Hammonds
A major struggle associated with online learning experiences, either synchronously or asynchronously, is cultivating student engagement. Student engagement fluctuates due to a variety of factors, including the degree of support within the online learning community, and student familiarity with online learning. In this collaborative workshop, we will explore principles of motivation and attention and how to apply them to designing engaging online course experiences. 1.Explore the implication of motivation on student engagement 2.Describe learning activities that enhance student motivation and attention in an asynchronous or synchronous course 3.Apply the material presented to plan an engaging learning activity Participants will select a topic or content area in their course to use during this session. Session activities include participating in group discussions via breakout rooms. Participants will also participate in main session conversation via chat and discussions.
Option 2:
10:15 - Tools for Successful and Fun Online Engagement; 10:35 - Keeping Online Students Engage, During and After the Pandemic
Presenters: 10:15 - Dr. Maya Fernandez, 10:35 - Dr. S. Dell Clemons
10:15 - Join me for this session on learning about tools that will help keep your students engaged, especially online learners. Learning outcomes include: how to engage and keep students active for your online courses; using a variety of tools to break up lecture time; feel empowered to use technology.
10:35 - During this session we will discuss best practices for keeping online students engaged during the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the past two academic years, students and faculty have faced new challenges with the online learning environment. We will discuss those challenges and how we overcame them. Based on those experiences, many faculty developed new practices in their approach to online teaching. We will also discuss best practices for students and faculty post-pandemic.
10:55 - By the end of this session, participants will be able to describe and apply best practices for peer feedback in online classes. (Audience engagement through polls and Q&A). Online classes present a different grading burden, often with increased grading requirements than traditional classes. Further, effective student learning requires timely feedback, but if an instruct has a heavy teaching load, this can be challenging – especially for adjuncts. Peer feedback is a way to embed deeper student engagement, more timely feedback, and a lower grading burden. This presentation will describe a strategy for creating effective peer review in asynchronous online courses.
Option 3:
Incorporating Required Synchronous Learning to Otherwise Asynchronous Courses
Presenter: Jennifer Robinson, Tanya Mooney, Stacy Manning, Diane Hilbrink
As one piece of the retention and persistence efforts, UAGC incorporated Live Learning (synchronous learning) into a 100-level freshman course taken by all students who transfer in with under 30 credits. Live Learning is one feature of embedded orientation and is part of the academic course objectives. Through this presentation, attendees will understand: 1) how Live Learning acted as a formative assessment for both embedded orientation and course learning objectives, 2) the evolution and problem-solving required to host upwards of 200 students in a session, and 3) the benefits and challenges that come along with such large synchronous groups online.
Option 4:
College Faculty’s Perspectives about Teaching Students with Disabilities
Presenter: Toby Baker
Many faculty hold negative beliefs about students with disabilities (SWDs) linked to their negative attitudes (Lombardi et al., 2011). Faculty felt if the student were admitted to a higher education setting, that the student must accept the academic responsibility. Making reasonable accommodations for SWDs was complicated by instructors’ beliefs regarding the academic motivation of students. Faculty members expressed disinterest and dislike in having to teach SWDs and make it known. By providing appropriate faculty training, higher education institutions can begin establishing a change in faculty attitudes and perceptions. This session offers recommendations to faculty and students with disabilities.
Option 5:
Regular and Substantive Interaction: Not Just a Mandate, a Must for Student Success
Presenter: Cheryl Tays
Even before the US Department of Education issued Final Rules on Distance Education and Innovation in September 2020 creating the guidelines for regular and substantive interaction (RSI), the benefits of instructor presence and interaction with students had already been concluded through numerous studies. This workshop will share data from some of those studies as well as templates for online instructor communication plans, course evaluation rubrics to review effectives of RSI, and strategies for regular and substantive interaction between instructor and students. Participants will leave the workshop with an online course checklist to ensure the proper use of RSI.
If you need assistance today, please contact:
Dr. Paul Ramp - pframp@pstcc.edu/(865) 539-6691
Dr. Stephanie Markowitz - ssmarkowitz@pstcc.edu/(865) 539-7031
