I am putting out fires with my students today because they are doing something that is particularly confusing, technology-wise, and at the end of the day I am going to go in and repair the inevitable errors so that the technology thing will work properly. But, you know, they're not asking a bunch of questions about the wierd confusing thing they have to do today. They're asking questions about other things that are clearly answered in big announcements on the course homepage that they are apparently just not reading. Not everyone, of course. Most students are doing their assignments properly and asking reasonable questions. But the nature of the online class makes it more time-consuming to handle the problems that arise from students' neglecting to read instructions carefully because I have to talk to each student individually and answer these questions. I would think that the announcements portion of the course website would be the equivalent of standing in front of class and saying words to them, but that is only so if they actually read the words in big colorful text right in the center of the screen. I don't like feeling this kind of adversarial relationship with my students. I don't usually feel this way. But the online class can reduce the interaction I have with the students who are enthusiastic and pleasant and fun while increasing the interactions with students who are less committed and more likely to be rude and accusatory. I have begun to seek out students who are doing a good job and initiating personal communication with them. And the exchange is always satisfying. I think that I will make an effort over the next week to send some kind of personal message to any student with whom I have not yet communicated. That is reasonable with my class size. And by now I have communicated individually with most of them. I love to teach and I want to love to teach this class. I am learning how to make this thing into something I can love.
In other news, I'm at one of those points where I have a ton of potential blog posts cooking and have to decide which ones to get to first. I have a lot to say about academic pressure on kids that is relevant to my child now, my child's future education, and even my current students and my relationship with them. That's going to take several posts, but ideas are synthesizing in useful ways, I think. I also have had a personal epiphany that relates to the stalled progress of my dissertation and might contribute to its revival.
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2 comments:
Most of the confusion in my class also stems from students not reading the assignment prompts. I can, therefore, see why they get confused beyond no end. Like you, I make announcements that clarify every assignment that is due. Unlike you, however, I find that these online announcements are no different than those announcements that I verbally make in traditional classrooms. That is to say, some students listen, and others don't. Even when I would loudly proclaim to students (in traditional classrooms) that I was about to make a big announcement and that they should all listen carefully and perhaps even write down what I was going to say, it always amazed me that many still did not pay the least bit of attention to me.
You may have already done this, but I'm finding that the Q/A discussion board is significantly reducing the number of course related emails I'm having to answer. It's helpful to the students to get answers from their peers (and far faster than from me if I'm out driving kids for the evening!). It's also changed the atmosphere -- they seem to be taking care of each other more and turning to me less.
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