Best Practices for Online Teaching

1. Rehabilitation Counselor Education Program Distance Education Programs Offered: M.S. in Rehabilitation Counseling, Graduate Certificate in Rehabilitation Counseling, Undergraduate Certificate in Rehabilitation Studies NOTE: no on campus requirement; require students be working in the field; waive GRE with 2 years of experience • Best Practices for Online Teaching • Strong interaction between students and faculty – always give prompt feedback. • Use active learning techniques to enhance learning • Set standards and communicate high expectations. • Anticipate technical problems – develop backup plan for submitting assignments. • Use a rubric to ensure grading consistency and share rubric with students in advance. • Promote academic integrity by using plagiarism detection and remote exam proctoring tools. • Use smaller groups to encourage discussion and collaboration among students– especially important for those with experience. • Use e-portfolio and development of toolkits to demonstrate outcomes. • Use tools to assure quality of online course design (i.e., Quality Matters). • Require annual updates on course content. • (adapted from American Association of Higher Education) • Lessons Learned • Don’t assume content or platform is accessible. • Don’t assume everyone has adequate computer skills. • Don’t assume everyone has adequate hardware and software. • Expect more hand holding in the beginning. • Allocate more time – both students and faculty. • Upfront development is very time consuming – plan accordingly. • Don’t assume it is easier – it requires much more discipline. • Go with your gut when admitting students. • You can’t just load PowerPoints and use on campus assignments. • Distance education is not for everyone! Linda Holloway, Ph.D., CRC Holloway@unt.edu http://pacs.unt.edu/dar/

2. Department of Disability and Addiction Rehabilitation 940-565-2488 http://pacs.unt.edu/dar/ Resources/Websites: https://www.qualitymatters.org/ http://www.teachingonthenet.org/best-practices-standards.cfm http://www.designingforlearning.info/services/writing/ecoach/tenbest.html http://www.proprofs.com/blog/2013/04/awesome-infographic-best-practices-for-creating-an-online-course/ http://elearningbrothers.com/best-practices-for-creating-online-courses/ http://www.facultyfocus.com/free-reports/principles-of-effective-online-teaching-best-practices-in-distance-education/ http://www.facultyfocus.com/wp-content/uploads/images/report-11-strategies-for-managing-online-courses1.pdf https://clear.unt.edu/sites/default/files/Teaching_Online_FirstTime_Fall_2013_Learn_9_SP_11.pdf