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Spring Track F - Planning, Developing, and Delivering Online Instruction
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Spring Track General Requirements
This year, FDI is again offering alternative tracks that will meet during the spring semester. By attending the sessions that comprise a spring track, faculty can opt out of participating during the summer months and still meet the participation requirements to receive a computer.
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Track Requirements
(click on title to jump to a description and time listing) |
Total of
Seven 2-hour Spring Short Courses
Required Short Course #1:
Required Short Course #2:
Required Short Course #3:
Required Short Course #4:
Required Short Course #5:
Required Short Course #6:
Required Short Course #7:
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Spring Track F Description
This spring track will focus on Institute for Distance and Distributed Learning (IDDL) course development, delivery considerations, and strategies for teaching distance learning courses via synchronous and asynchronous methods. Participants will have opportunities to use a variety of instructional tools and course development software that facilitate the process of delivering instruction at a distance. Topics within this track include creating online presentations (PowerPoint as well as tutorials); using online meeting spaces for office hours, group meetings, and lectures; creating accessible multimedia; and online interaction strategies. In addition to the hands-on sessions, participants will have the opportunity to meet with distance learning faculty of varying levels from a variety of disciplines. Track participants will finish the series with a culminating experience and will receive Online Instructor certification.
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Spring Track F Requirements Overview
Spring Track F requires participants to attend seven selected spring short courses to receive a computer. The table to the right summarizes these requirements. The table below lists the required short courses with descriptions and dates offered. If you plan to attend a spring alternative track, you must be able to attend required sessions from those listed below. As always, it is possible to sign up for more than the required seven courses.
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Spring Track Course Listing
| Required Session #1 |
1 |
Campus Instructional Resources/Computer Security
- Tuesday February 3
10am - 12pm
Torgersen 1100
Windows / Macintosh
- Wednesday February 4
3pm - 5pm
Torgersen 1100
Windows / Macintosh
- Monday February 9
3pm - 5pm
Torgersen 1100
Windows / Macintosh
- Thursday February 26
10am - 12pm
Torgersen 1100
Windows / Macintosh
- Thursday March 26
3pm - 5pm
Torgersen 1100
Windows / Macintosh
| This short course will provide participants with an overview of the services and agencies that are in place at Virginia Tech to support the use of technology across instructional and research activities. Virginia Tech's security group will present and provide strategies, suggestions, and access to software that will assist participants as they take steps to ensure the safety of the information on their computers and the computer systems at Virginia Tech. In addition, leadership from new centers and projects which have broad interest to all Virginia Tech faculty will be present to describe and discuss their forthcoming projects and work. ^ |
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| Required Session #2 |
2 |
Introduction to Interaction in the Online Classroom
- Tuesday February 3
10am - 12pm
Torgersen 3080
Windows / Macintosh
| Are you students keeping up with the rest of the class? Are their expectations being met? Interaction is a key element to any course. It can help improve and assess comprehension of course material, as well as increase student motivation. This short course, led by staff from the Institute for Distance and Distributed Learning, will show you how to promote effective use of interaction with techniques and tools suited for online instruction without becoming overwhelmed by the process or technology. ^ |
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| Required Session #3 |
3 |
Real-Time Online Communication: Centra 7.5
- Tuesday February 17
10am - 12pm
Torgersen 3080
Windows / Macintosh
| Looking for a good solution for adding real-time interaction to your online course? From interactive lectures to unscheduled chatting, there are a lot of options that are easy to use. Staff from the Institute for Distance and Distributed Learning will demonstrate and let you try out some powerful ways to promote real-time discussions in an online learning environment. Some of the programs used will include Centra, Blackboard, and Yahoo Messenger. ^ |
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| Required Session #4 |
4 |
Creating Effective Tutorials with Adobe Presenter and Camtasia
- Tuesday March 3
10am - 12pm
Torgersen 3080
Windows
| Presenter allows user to add narration to your slides. This can help your students more fully connect to that information. In this short course, you will learn how to use Adobe Presenter. Just as a picture can sometimes illustrate a point more effectively than text, video can often bring it to life. In this short course, you will learn how the use of video can improve your ability to clearly demonstrate course content such as the use of software or live footage. Camtasia Studio allows you to produce tutorials so that students with high or low bandwidth can access content without difficulty. You will get a chance to create high quality narrated presentations and learn of several ways that your files can be prepared for online delivery. ^ |
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| Required Session #5 |
5 |
Organizing your Online Course: Using a Course Template
- Tuesday March 17
10am - 12pm
Torgersen 3080
Windows / Macintosh
| Creating a distance-delivered course can be a daunting and time-consuming affair, especially for those new to teaching at a distance. It is often hard to know how to structure such a course and just where to get started. The Distance Learning Course Template, developed by Virginia Tech's Institute for Distance and Distributed Learning, was designed to simplify this process, and can serve as a good starting point for your course development. It contains a basic course structure, example assignments, guides, and instructional materials developed using the various technologies demonstrated in our other sessions. In this workshop, we will take you through the process of importing the template into an empty Blackboard course shell, show you the different components that make up the template, and describe some strategies you can use to make your course clear and engaging. ^ |
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| Required Session #6 |
6 |
Faculty Experiences in Distance Learning: A Panel Discussion
- Thursday April 2
10am - 12pm
Torgersen 1120
Windows / Macintosh
- Tuesday March 31
10am - 12pm
Torgersen 1120
Windows / Macintosh
| Methods used to teach distance classes can vary greatly from course to course. In this session you will meet with faculty members who have integrated synchronous and/or asynchronous online elements into their distance class. Come learn from some of Virginia Tech's eLearning instructors as they lead the discussion and suggest possible practices to maximize your efforts and minimize your headaches. These instructors have had experiences that are quite different from one another, as the content, discipline, student academic level, and experience with distance learning varies between them all. ^ |
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| Required Session #7 |
7 |
Planning, Developing, Delivering Online Instruction (Spring Track F Culminating Experience)
- Tuesday April 28
10am - 12pm
Torgersen 3060
Windows / Macintosh
| To truly gain an understanding of new concepts there must be application. Spring Track F participants will apply the strategies, tools, and practices learned over the course of the Track in an online course simulation or in their own course. Through collaboration, participants will expand their knowledge of distance education, while demonstrating which strategies work well in different disciplines. ^ |
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