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NC.EDUC 105 - Introduction to Online Instruction - Michelle LaBrie

Course:Introduction to Online Instruction
Professor:Michelle LaBrie
Email:michelle.labrie@canyons.edu
Format:
  • Online
Course Length:
  • 5 Week

Introduction

Introduction:

Introduction to Online Instruction (IOI) is a 100% online course directed toward teaching professional educators--those who currently instruct in the higher education (college/university) level OR in the K-12 system expand their skills in teaching 100% online courses.

The class meets 100% online beginning the first date indicated in the MyCanyons registration; there are no in person or synchronous class meetings, i.e. Zoom. The course will require an average of 7 hours per week, reading course materials, participating in discussions and group activities, completing quizzes and creating your personal Canvas developmental shell. Upon successful completion, faculty participants have the option of earning Professional Development credit hours or 2 units toward salary advancement. Please note that this course does teach you to instruct via Zoom, nor does it fulfil any part of the OnlineLIVE certification. This course directs faculty to teach 100% online courses and hybrid only. The course shell you will prepare and submit for evaluation will be a 100% online or hybrid course.

Please note: Participants must possess strong, competent skills in navigating the CANVAS Learning Management System as an instructor prior to enrolling in IOI. Completion of the 5 hour, self paced "Intro to Teaching with Canvas & Online Accessibility" is required as a re requisite to the IOI course. IOI is not a course in how to use Canvas LMS. IOI teaches the pedagogy of online instruction geared toward professional experienced educators. If a participant does not have Canvas certification and experience using the Canvas LMS, it is recommended that they participate in an Intro to Canvas class and or engage in significant self-study before enrolling in this course. If you have not yet completed Canvas certification, please complete the Canvas Self-Paced Training Workshop Request Form and finish Canvas certification prior to enrolling in this IOI course.

About your Instructor:

I have been a faculty member since 1998. Presently, I teach in the Psychology Department, but I have also been a full time member of the counseling faculty (2002-2008). I started teaching online in 2006 and, before Covid and the move off campus, over half of my full-time teaching load was 100% online. I began facilitating this IOI course in 2016 and I am thrilled that you are interested in expanding your knowledge of 100% online teaching.

Course Description

This is a 100% online course directed toward helping professional educators--those who currently teach in the higher education (college/university level)  OR in the K-12 system expand their skills in teaching 100% online courses. Upon successful completion, faculty participants have the option of earning Professional Development credit hours or 2 units toward salary advancement, depending on your institution.

This one of the many courses offered through the Center for Excellence in Teaching & Learning. Introduction to Online Instruction addresses the skills, theories and best practices in online teaching and learning. The course will require an average of 7 hours per week, reading course materials, participating in discussions and group activities, completing quizzes and creating your personal Canvas developmental shell to teach a 100% online or hybrid course.  In this course, we will explore the application of learning theories for online learners; characteristics of online learners; differences between face-to-face and online learning; resources for online teaching and learning; best practices of effective online communication; and the nature of online assessments. The course is designed so that you will experience the various components of an online course from both student and instructor perspectives. In short, the course will assist participants in their quest to provide their students with an outstanding online learning experience.

You will find this IOI online class helpful if you:

  • Wish to complete a portion of the Online Instructor Qualifications for teaching online at COC. 
  •  Plan to teach (or are assigned) a 100% online or hybrid course and need help/guidance/ideas of how to translate your classroom presence and learning activities into cyberspace.
  •  Would like to add a DLA (distance learning addendum) to a course for your department and wonder how or whether it can successfully be taught online.
  •  Plan to supplement a traditional course with online teaching tools.

What to Expect in this Course

The IOI class is 5 week, 100% online, asynchronous--there are no required synchronous or “live” meetings. We do not meet in person or online via Zoom at any time.  This course directs faculty to teach 100% online courses and hybrid only. Therefore, the Canvas shell you create, the assignments, your syllabus--everything, will be geared toward a 100% online course, not an OnlineLIVE or Zoom class.

We teach IOI just like a 100% online class at COC so that faculty can experience what a 100% online class should be like and they experience it from the student perspective. Because IOI mimics a typical 100% online class offered at COC, there are specific due dates, an orientation letter, a syllabus, discussions with instructor/student interaction, student to student interaction, assignments, evaluative grades and everyone in the course moves at the same pace, working on the same assignments within that week. Then we move on to the next topic. It’s a “real” class in that faculty can opt to earn 2 units so it is taught like a “real” 100% online class. We work on one week of material at a time that opens on Sundays and there are due dates within that week, but you can be online at 2 am or 2pm, it doesn’t matter when you are online, as long as you meet the posted due dates.

Types of Assessments

Inside our IOI class, there will be assignments, readings, assessments, group work and discussions. In addition to the IOI course, you will also build your own online course to use when you begin teaching online or hybrid courses. Thus, you will have two new Canvas shells: (think of a shell as a self-contained course) one is the main IOI shell, in which each of you are in the "Student" role. The other is your own IOI development shell, which you will see from the "instructor" perspective. This is the shell you will develop over the next 5 weeks. Your fellow participants will appear as students in the course, so that we can participate in and provide feedback as the course progresses.

Inside the IOI course, there are weekly discussions, one journal, assignments, quizzes using various formats and a final course shell project of a developmental shell for a 100% online or hybrid course with each of the following: at least one comprehensive module with content, including a welcoming home page, discussion forum, 1 exam, a 1-2 minute captioned video for your course, syllabus for an online course, online orientation letter, a rubric attached to an assignment or discussion, and one assignment of your choice.

Textbook Information

Textbook: there is no textbook for the course. All course materials are located inside Canvas.

Other Relevant Course Information

The class begins on the first date indicated in the my canyons registration system.  Please look at the dates of the course carefully and compare it with your teaching load and personal responsibilities. If you believe that this may not be an opportune time to take this course, please consider dropping the class through Professional Development in order to make room for your colleagues to take the course. Please note that a working knowledge of Canvas is recommended preparation for this course. There will also be Canvas tutorials and reminder tasks built within the orientation modules for beginning users to Canvas.

You are asked to log into the IOI online class and post your introduction response to the discussion board to confirm your presence in the online class no later than 11:59 pm on Wednesday, of the first week of the class in order to confirm your enrollment. Failure to post your introductory response by 11:59 pm on by that date may result in a drop from the class, if there are other faculty participants attempting to add the course.  Due to the accelerated pace of this course, please keep the course calendar close and readily accessible so that you do not miss any deadlines.

Technology Requirements

It is necessary to have regular and reliable access to the Internet, a good web browser (Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox recommended), and a word-processing program such as Microsoft Word or alternative (google docs).

Canvas

The course is accessed via Canvas on the first day of the course. Follow the login instructions at the bottom of the screen to log in. You are welcome to use the material from any other course materials you have developed for your discipline and copy into your IOI course so you may continue building your “sandbox;” you do not have to begin building your course all over again. Instructions on how to copy from an existing Canvas course into the IOI course will be given the first week of class. 

Because Canvas certification is a prerequisite, the IOI class will focus on online instruction best practices and teaching pedagogy, not navigating canvas, itself. Thus, you might consider watching the Canvas instructor videos to re-familiarize yourself with Canvas if you are unfamiliar with Canvas.  The video tutorials are located on the Canvas Instructor tutorial website.

It is strongly suggested that you watch the following Canvas instructional videos: Assignments Overview, Commons Overview, Course Settings, Discussions Overview, Modules Overview, Rubrics Overview, Pages Overview, and others depending on your mastery level. Each of these videos are less than 5 minutes. Viewing these videos will help refresh your memory of Canvas so that you can focus your attention on building your course content and discussing best practices in online instruction.

Additional Notes

More information about the course will be detailed in the class syllabus, which you will find when you log into the course shell on the first day of the course. In the meantime, if you have any questions about the course, please do not hesitate to contact me. I look forward to "seeing" you online very soon!

Teaching Foundation Certificate of Completion

Students can earn a Teaching Foundation Certificate of Completion by completing the following requirements:

Take at least one course from the following:

  • NC.EDUC100 - Teaching Strategies
  • NC.EDUC104 - Culturally Responsive Teaching
  • NC.EDUC105 - Introduction to Online Instruction

Take at least two courses from the following:

  • NC.EDUC101 - Reading Strategies
  • NC.EDUC102 - Assessment Strategies
  • NC.EDUC103 - Critical Thinking Strategies

 

 


Additional Resources

Canvas

This course can be accessed on the first day of class via Canvas at https://coc.instructure.com. Log into Canvas using your CanyonsID single sign-on:

  • CanyonsID Username is your COC student email address (Ex: username@my.canyons.edu)
  • CanyonsID Password is your COC student email password

Please visit the Get to Know Your Online Classroom page for help logging into Canvas and for tips on using Canvas and Zoom. Canvas Chat Support is also available 24/7 for any Canvas related issues.

Online Education

Check out the Online Education website for more information on a variety of topics that can help you be a successful online student such as: exam proctoring, learning styles, computer skills, and tips for student success. If this is your first online course, feel free to take our online learning readiness assessment to assess your skills.

The Learning Center (TLC)

The TLC provides FREE online tutoring resources to COC students!

Academic Accommodation Center (AAC)

College of the Canyons AAC provides educational services and access for eligible students with documented disabilities who intend to pursue coursework at COC. A variety of programs and services are available which afford eligible students with disabilities the opportunity to participate fully in all aspects of the college programs and activities through appropriate and reasonable accommodations. For more information on their services visit the Academic Accomodation Center website.

Online Counseling

The Counseling Department offers appointments online. You can schedule an appointment by visiting the Online Counseling website. Counselors can help you map out a plan to reach your educational goals as well as advise you on course selection and registration.

Management of Stress and Mental Health

Often the pressure on our students is very strong, involving academic commitments, relationships, outside jobs and family pressure to name a few. The staff and faculty of College of the Canyons are here to see you succeed academically and care about your emotional and physical health. You can learn more about the broad range of confidential student services, including counseling and mental health services available on campus by visiting the Student Health & Wellness Center in the Student Services Building (across from the bookstore). The phone number is 661-362-3259 that you can call 24/7. You can also e mail for an appointment at StudentHealthCenter@canyons.edu. At the Canyon Country Campus the Health Center will be in the new Student Services Building.

Also, the National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline number is now 988. All students at COC are encouraged to enter that phone number in their cells. You can call it when you, or someone you know, is having thoughts of suicide or is in severe distress.

You can also now use the Crisis Text Line: Just text "Courage" to 741741. Someone will get back to you immediately. Its free, 24/7, and confidential.

Veterans Resource Center

The College of the Canyons Veterans Resource Center is a department within the Student Services Division at the college, created to help veterans and veteran dependents with applying to College of the Canyons, enrolling in classes, and requesting VA Education or Vocational Benefits. For more information please visit the Veterans Resource Center website, email veterans@canyons.edu or phone (661) 362-3469.

Library

The Library provides live online and in-person research help, access to a full range of e-resources and physical materials that support the curriculum, individual and group study areas, and much more!

Last updated: 04/18/2023 Sub#: 17