Personal Online Learning Handbook

1. Susan Inman’s
Online Learning Handbook
created for ERL: 590 DOLE
June 2015

2. Technology for my classes will be utilized to enhance our classroom
experience. To that end, the following topics are most relevant to my
practice:
Online Learning in my Classes
Presentation
Active Learning
Communication
Skill Development
Just Plain Good Teaching

3. 1. Keep it clean and neat. The class website should be
clear, free from clutter, and easy to navigate.
2. Use voice. I want to be present in my online spaces,
and one way to do that is to write in a comfortable style, with
my voice.
Presentation

4. 1. Make it interactive. Online learning experiences
should not only be passive delivery of information.
Students should be asked to do something with the
information they find, and students should do some of the
finding!
2. Give time to play. Whenever a new online platform is
introduced, students must be invited to play and explore
and make the space their own as much as possible.
Active Learning

5. 1. Emphasize electronic communication etiquette.
Students benefit from direct instruction and opportunities
to practice polite, constructive, and productive ways to
communicate in online discussions, emails, and writer’s
feedback.
2. Provide feedback. Responding online to students’
work online in a timely fashion is important. It also helps
with teacher presence.
Communication (Part 1)

6. 3. Look out for lost souls. Being aware of and
communicating electronically with students who miss the
mark or lose their way can be an effective form of support.
4. Provide opportunities for reflection. Both
individual and shared reflections can help students see
where they started and where they’ve gotten to. Feedback
can inform and improve my instruction as well. Online
opportunities can give students time to think before
reflecting and can give voice to otherwise quiet students.
Communication (Part 2)

7. 1. Provide resources and opportunities to access
them. An important skill for my students is knowing how
to access resources and put them to use, both for my class
and for other classes and arenas in their lives.
2. Teach responsible research practices. A major
component of online learning is research, and students
need support in learning how to navigate the many kinds of
sources out there. Teaching about reliability and validity
explicitly is important!
Skill Building

8. 1. Be intentional. Avoid all flash with no substance.
Technology should not be integrated into teaching “just
because.” It should enhance the learning experience, or at
the very least make a traditional task easier (for both
teachers and students).
2. Remember: Good Teaching is Good Teaching.
The most important elements of effective teaching are the
same both on- and off-line.
Good Teaching

9. Agger, Michael. "How We Read Online." Slate. TheSlateGroup, 13 June 2008. Web. 19 June 2015.
“Best Practices in Online Teaching Strategies.” Hanover Research Council. July 2009. Web. 19
June 2015.
Hayes, Suzanne, Sedef Uzuner Smith, and Peter Shea. “Expanding Learning Presence to Account
for the Direction of Regulative Intent: Self-, Co- and Shared Regulation in Online Learning.”
Online Learning Consortium. Online Learning Consortium, June 2015. Web. 19 June 2015.
Lambert, Craig. "Twilight of the Lecture." Harvard Magazine. Harvard Magazine Inc., Apr. 2012.
Web. 19 June 2015.
Nielson, Jakob. "How Users Read on the Web." Nielson Norman Group. Nielson Norman Group,
1 Oct. 1997. Web. 19 June 2015.
*I used Easybib for the sake of trying out what my students use--this experience highlighted for me how poor a job
Easybib does with most websites, but how a little “know-how” can make it a helpful resource.
Works Consulted*