Held Captive and Told to Play

Takeaways From Training for Online Modality in Higher Education

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.61468/jofdl.v28i1.617

Keywords:

Online classes, Professional development

Abstract

Research has demonstrated the need to prepare higher education faculty for transitioning from in-person to online modality. Researchers note the need to train faculty in course design, building classroom community, and establishing a teaching presence, among other things. This paper describes a professor’s participation in a university-funded professional development programme that aimed to boost quality in instructional design and result in rapid deployment of online courses. The programme required the professor to enrol in a foundation course in online teaching during the Summer 2023 semester and to transition two doctoral courses to online modality in time for the Fall 2023 semester. The foundation course focused on course design, accessibility, instructional roles, community, and more. Keys to the successful transition were the incentive offered by the university, one-on-one support for assisting with building the course in the learning management system, the
10-week immersion with a focus on course design, and being given time to play with new technologies. Other important takeaways from the summer experience are described. These meaningful practices for professional development may be useful to universities as they consider how best to enhance online teaching and learning, especially faculty motivation and training.

Author Biography

Janet Isbell, Tennessee Tech University

Dr. Janet Kesterson Isbell is a professor in the College of Education at Tennessee Tech University. She teaches doctoral courses in qualitative research, proposal development, and literacy. She chairs the literacy concentration of the Exceptional Learning PhD program. She has published in Journal of Multicultural Affairs, Journal of Poverty, International Journal of Interdisciplinary Literacy Studies, Journal of International Students, and other publications.

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Published

2024-10-01