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Face-to-Face Connection in a Public Speaking Course. More? Or Less?: Comparing a Fully Online Basic Speech Course to a Partly-Online “Hybrid” Format. Ellen Bremen, Professor Highline Community College Speech Department. In the Beginning… Online Public Speaking.
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Face-to-Face Connection in a Public Speaking Course. More? Or Less?:Comparing a Fully Online Basic Speech Course to a Partly-Online “Hybrid” Format Ellen Bremen, Professor Highline Community College Speech Department
In the Beginning… Online Public Speaking • Necessary to support college strategic management plan. • Lack of course hinders other online programs. • Lack of course stunts students in outlying areas. • One of the top 10 digital community colleges, as nominated by the American Association of Community Colleges
How Online Public Speaking Works • Course work delivered via WebCT with written and audio lectures, real-time PowerPoint slides, and instructor-created audio sample speeches • Mandatory online orientation • One audio speech, called in to a college voice mail system • Four videotaped speeches (informative, demonstrative, persuasive, special occasion) on videotape • 17 online quizzes & “higher order” discussion questions • One PowerPoint presentation • Three graded comprehensive outlines • Audience & location requirement • Specified due dates (Wednesdays) with 10 points late penalty within current speech genre; 50% penalty afterwards with mandatory phone conversation
Step 1: Preliminary Work • Orientation • Syllabus • Course Timeline
Ensure that college schedule has brief details about online requirements and orientation address. Managing the Orientation Process Develop an online orientation to create an authentically distant course. Students MUST make contact before starting, either by contacting you or vice versa.
Transforming the Syllabus: Nothing can be taken for granted! All instructions must be explicitly described!
Determine Special Requirements • Type of videotapes you will accept. • Whether or not student must have an outside e-mail account. • Audience requirement. • Location requirement. • Lighting/volume requirement. • Deadlines/Late penalty: Specified due dates with 10 points late penalty within current speech genre; 50% penalty afterwards with mandatory phone conversation. • How students should submit work (in person, mail, e-mail).
Determine Special Requirements • Camera angle and positioning (on speaker entire time; visual aid) • Queued tapes. • Stopping and starting tapes. • No Q & A. • No tag-team speeches. • How you wish to be contacted. • How often students are expected to check discussion forum or e-mail. • Current contact information for the student.
Transforming the Syllabus: Provide instructions for everything! Reiterate often.
Statement on Syllabus: “Our communication in this course is most important … I am committed to returning your phone call or e-mail within 24 hours on a weekday… If I receive an e-mail from you over the weekend, I will usually also respond sometime on Saturday or Sunday, unless I am out of town. If you do not hear from me, then this means that I have not received your e-mail or voice mail message. Please contact me again. Similarly, if you have only tried to e-mail me, and I have not e-mailed you back, then this means we are having a technological problem, and I anticipate that you will attempt to reach me via telephone. I welcome hearing from you as often as you need me—I’m here to serve you—but I can’t communicate with you if I don’t know that you’re trying to get in touch with me.”
Creating a Course Timeline: Keep the timeline manageable for yourself in conjunction with other courses.
Step 2: Transform Course Content Content should mimic existing traditional course. Remember: Anything you would say to your students in class has to be transformed to text and audio.
Determine Speech Assignments. Provide ALL requirements, evaluation forms, rubrics, even sample evaluations, if possible.
Design Course Content Use diverse pedagogical strategies so distant students can connect with curriculum i.e., text files, PowerPoint, audio, activities, quizzes, essay questions, outside websites, etc.
Build Community Strategy #1: Student Samples
Create a “Student Samples” page to showcase former/current student work
Build Community Strategy #2: Have students record material online and record your own samples.
Build Community Strategy #3: Allow students to “meet” you.