Teaching Online is Like Watching a Film

Each semester in Lesson 1 of my online Theatre Appreciation course we discuss how the experience of watching a film differs from attending a live theatre production. Students usually mention things like actor-audience interaction and emotional human connection as things that live theatre offers that film does not.

I believe the actor-audience interaction is very similar to the relationship between the instructor (the actor) and the student (the audience) and that the classroom is similar to the live theatre experience while the online classroom is similar to watching a film.

In the classroom (live theatre) you have the human element and the live interaction, but in an online class (film) that direct human interaction is missing. Our challenge as online instructors is to find ways to create that live classroom interactive feel in our online courses. Here are five ways to make your online classroom come alive!

1. Communication - Regular communication between the instructor and the student is vitally important. Students emails must be answered within 24 hours. We must keep students engaged and promptly answering their questions is the first step.

2. Feedback - Regular feedback on assignments, tests and discussions, especially at the beginning of the course is critical. A quick “good job” can tell the student that they are on the right track and give them encouragement they need, especially first-time online students. I will often give feedback for less than stellar assignments in the form of a question. Giving them the answer, or just saying "incorrect", doesn’t help them learn, asking questions makes them think about the answer.

3. Announcements - No matter what LMS you are using create and post regular announcements-at least weekly. If you read an interesting article on the course topic, send it to students with a quick note. In my Theatre Appreciation class I often send information about local shows to see or auditions coming up! The point is to keep students engaged with the course topic and create a human connection.

4. Weekly Videos - make a weekly video for students and post it in announcements-online students love to see the instructor in person. The video should briefly review what they learned last week and discuss what they will learn in the coming week. This is also a good time to explain any concepts that students might be missing or make important announcements.

5. Speciality Videos - when you have a difficult concept for students to grasp make and post a short (2-5 minute) video explaining the concept using specific examples. I recently added a short video on the concept of compare and contrast using examples from the course work- it was a major help to students.

Online classes can’t give you that direct human contact of the live classroom, but with these additions to your online course the online experience can be made more personal and interactive for the student and the instructor.