Sorry for this delinquent post. Too much going on….

Chapter 11 from Ko and Rossen was very informative and will be very helpful in designing my class. I can see that it is very important to keep copies of everything both in the preparation of your online class and while your class is going on. It also is important to be organized in saving content so that you can find it in the future. As a part of my class FAQ, I will be sure to set up protocols for communication between myself and my students. I really like the idea of having a space on my Blackboard site where students can ask questions and either I or their fellow students can respond to them. I’ve decided to have office hours via Skype during the semester to supplement e-mail contact. Ko and Rossen’s suggestions on how to conduct classes based on class size will also be helpful in designing my online course. Should I have between 40-50% of my class grade be based upon self-grading/self-assessment exercises? I’m going to be a textbook that does provide a lot of content for online use. Should I utilize this content so that I don’t get overwhelmed teaching my first online class? I know that the publisher would like me to. The best part of the chapter were the tips on fostering asynchronous discussion. I am planning on making discussion a major component of my first online class and will utilize their suggestions.

Lisa’s article on how the nature of LMS/CMSs often impose a pedagogy on new online instructors rather than the instructor developing his pedagogical goals first and then utilizing the technology to meet those goals was very helpful. I am going to try and not fall into this trap as I’m very worried that I’m not going to have the time over the summer to fully develop my class for the Fall.

Here is a video of the LMS I chose to investigate:

http://youtu.be/nx-jRU6o5MU