Building a Faculty Development Culture of Instructional Innovation: Opportunities and Challenges
In today’s rapidly evolving educational landscape, fostering a culture of continuous innovation is crucial. Encouraging faculty to explore and adopt new instructional approaches is key to enhancing student learning experiences. Yet, institutions often face challenges in successfully engaging faculty in this process.
In 2017, while at William & Mary, I presented with Instructional Design Specialist Josh Chung at the Online Learning Consortium (OLC). Our presentation, titled “Building a Faculty Development Culture for Instructional Innovation: Opportunities and Challenges” delved into the complexities surrounding innovation in higher education. We explored motivations, barriers, and strategies for institutions seeking to cultivate a dynamic environment where innovation thrives.
Presentation Summary
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Defining Instructional Innovation: The presentation clarified that instructional innovation encompasses any new or […]
Steps to Improving Online Learning Video Production
High-quality video is an essential component of engaging online courses. In 2017, while at William & Mary, I teamed up with Instructional Design Specialist Josh Chung to present at the Online Learning Consortium (OLC). Our presentation, “Steps to Improving Online Learning Video Production”, offered practical strategies and insights for educational institutions seeking to enhance the quality and impact of their online learning videos.
Presentation Summary: A Roadmap to Better Online Videos
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The Challenge Online learning videos can range from basic and uninspiring to highly polished and effective. Understanding models and processes for continuous improvement is essential.
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Profiles: Basic, Better, Best We outlined three broad categories of video quality (Basic, Better, and Best). Each level reflects increasing […]
Managing Second-Level Effects of Innovative Projects
Innovative projects offer exciting possibilities, but their implementation often has complex ripple effects beyond what is initially expected. In 2017, while at William & Mary, I presented at the WCET conference in Denver on the topic of “Second-Level Effects.” This presentation explored the challenges of managing these unexpected consequences of innovation and offered potential strategies for success.
Presentation Summary: Managing “Second-Level Effects“
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The Nature of the Challenge: Often, we carefully plan for the initial, anticipated outcomes of a project (“First-Level Effects”). We may address challenges like increased workload or resistance from stakeholders. However, “Second-Level Effects” are much harder to predict. These are the indirect and often surprising changes that emerge as a project is implemented. Because they are […]
How to Improve the Visual Appeal of an Online Program
How to Improve the Visual Appeal of an Online Program
Introductory note: In the early-to-mid 2010’s, I had lead an online learning program to drastically improve its collective visual appeal. In the early-to-mid-2010s, online video and graphics was not as easy and abundant as it would be a decade later. So, those insights and lessons learned were turned into a key presentation that I gave at a conference. While I can’t find the slide deck, I did find the presentation script (for some reason I have that!). So, below is a script from the presentation on how to improve the visual appeal of an online program – highlighting the need, the steps taken, and the lessons learned along the way.
Presentation Script
Let’s face […]
From Spielberg to Screen Capture: Creating Quality Online Videos
Nearly a decade ago, Kristen Ferguson and I had the privilege of presenting this content at the Online Learning Consortium’s Fall Conference in Orlando. The technical considerations, presentation elements, models, and administrative considerations for creating quality online videos for online learning remain true today. Below is a summary of presentation and the slide deck we used.
From Spielberg to Screen Capture: Creating Quality Online Videos
Online videos are essential to modern online learning, but quality matters. Good educational videos engage students with visuals, audio, and active learning strategies. Bad videos can be confusing, ineffective, and even hinder learning. A quality video balances clear, compelling content with strong technical aspects.
Technical Considerations for Creating Quality Online Videos
- Length: Short videos are […]
3 Problematic Aspects of Online Enrollment Management
A recent article by The Atlantic provides an excellent perspective on a potential student’s reaction to “typical” online student recruitment (aka online enrollment management. Overall, the article highlights various, well-analyzed issues related to online program administration as a whole. The author – herself someone who was considering an online degree as a working adult – describes her journey of considering online programs. In doing so, she shares 3 problematic aspects of online student recruitment that are particularly worth noting.
3 Problematic Aspects of Online Enrollment Management
- Annoying and relentless phone calls. The author highlights how the phone calls (mostly from OPMs or other vendors) were too frequent and felt intrusive. She also highlights Eduventures research that says, “By and large, [prospective students] […]
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