Title: Session 4
Course: Connecting with Students Online

Student progress and communication
You will investigate the pedagogy of student pacing, and best practices in facilitating online discussions. We will also look into a variety of methods of communicating with students. These methods include using synchronous and asynchronous tools such as the message forum and elluminate.
Read
- Posting to Message Forums: http://vimeo.com/channels/44004#4961595

Using the Discussion forum feature of Moodle is one of the ways that students stay connected to each other, and to their teacher. However, it takes work and encouragement to do so. Watch the video on posting to fourms to find out more.
- Managing Discussion Forums: http://www.indiana.edu/~icy/media/de_series/forums.html

A video from Indiana University demonstrating tips on managing a discussion forum online.
- What makes a Successful Online Facilitator: http://www.ion.uillinois.edu/resources/tutorials/pedagogy/instructorprofile.asp

An overview of what it takes to facilitate a worthwhile discussion forum.
Explore
Activity #1:
This week we will be meeting in a synchronous Elluminate session to discuss student pacing, the problems it entails, and some possible solutions that have worked for others. The specific date and time of the Elluminate session will be sent out in a message to you. The Elluminate session will be available to you via a link on the main page of this course.

Activity #2:
Sometimes we learn best when we learn from others who have already done what we are attempting to do. Take the opportunity this week to contact an online teacher, or an online program to ask them about student pacing. How do they, or their program keep students on pace to finish their coursework on time? Use the links below to contact experienced teachers, or contact others you know that teach online.
- MPS Online Teachers: http://www.mpls.k12.mn.us/online/site/Directory_List.asp?byType=125
- Minnesota Online Programs: http://www.mnola.org/home/members
Develop | Open the Communications Tasklist that you began in Session One. Complete Parts IV and V of the tasklist for this week. Remember that this document will be submitted at the end of Session Six. If you would like personal feedback on your tasklist before session six, please share your document with the course facilitatior (if you are using GoogleDocs), or email it to the course facilitator for comments and suggestions.
Discuss
Share what you discovered from other experienced online teachers/programs about how they manage student pacing. What are the challenges of making sure that students in online classes complete the course on time? What can you do to assist them? What role can the discussion forum play in this?

Please note specific points from the readings or from your experiences that support your response. Please make at least three substantive contributions to the discussion using the Discussion Forum Rubric, found on the main page of this course.
Optional Reading
- Becoming an Online Teacher: http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/665
  - "We must provide students with opportunities to collaborate in online communities, to discover experts in one another, to choose when they will engage in learning, and to demonstrate their learning in ways that capitalize on their learning strengths."
Broken Links
While we check links regularly, it is not always possible to make sure that all web links are always working. If you encounter any broken links, or other issues with the course curriculum, please contact your course instructor. Thank you!

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