Presence: COURSE FACILITATION

Students gathered around a laptop

All online courses at Seattle University are designed to create a sense of presence—meaning that the instructor and students will all have a sense of being there and being together. It "feels as if the instructor is accessible to the learners and the learners are accessible to the instructor and each other, and that the technology is transparent to the learning process...Learners are also involved in the design process by giving feedback and helping shape the online environment"¹. Below are some ways that SU faculty have structured their courses to create presence. You may find some ideas to use or adapt for your own course. Click on the rows to open.

Creating Community

BROOKE COLEMAN: I set up group “coffee” chats on Zoom the week before classes start to provide a place for students to meet me outside of our virtual classroom. I use this time to give them an overview of what to expect and make space for questions. I am considering continuing a weekly sign-up for such chats as the semester goes on. The idea is to create something outside of the classroom and outside of office hours where I can really get to know students.

DAVID GREEN: After second class I provide a “Kindred spirit” Padlet for students to post images of three things they geek out about. (For me: typefaces, languages, black-and-white iPhonography.) If students can’t easily have incidental conversations before and after class where they get to see each other as “whole people,” I’m hoping this might help build up more connections.

THOMAS MORRIS: Each week I model a social emotional learning activity that my graduate students can use with K-12 student or with staff. These activities help the group get to know each other better and helps to build community and connection among everyone.

LYN GUALTIERI: I use a “Gather Around the Campfire” activity in Padlet where students post a picture and tell what else they are doing that quarter, etc.

MING FENG: I create quarter-long assignments or projects in or outside of class, or whenever possible, for students to engage with each other in small groups while building up a partnership and friendship among themselves. The idea is to have pockets of “sparks” in order to initiate a spread of enthusiasm in the class.

YEN-LIN HAN: When teams hold their first virtual meeting, the first item to discuss is to decide an activity that they can do together. They are asked to take a screenshot to show all members in the team participate in that activity. Each time they meet, they take a screenshot of a different activity and post it on a pinned discussion. Each team works together to draft a team agreement during their first couple of meetings. They revisit this agreement regularly throughout the quarter and discuss if changes are to be made. There are regular status check-ins so each team can present their progress and solicit suggestions from other students and advisors.

MIMI SAMUEL: I ask upper division law students and alumni to do short videos and/or make short guest appearances in my classes throughout the semester. I also ask the upper division students to give words of welcome, encouragement, or advice depending on where we are in the semester. I ask the alums to talk for a few minutes on what they do and how they got there. In this way, I’m hoping to create connections not just in my classroom but to the law school as an institution and to the local legal community. In addition, I hope to bring in a diversity of voices.

Discussion Ideas

MONICA BOWEN: I explain the purpose of each discussion assignment, so students can see its relevance in connecting to the overall structure of the course and the successful completion of future assignments/exams. I also give students an element of choice for the discussion questions, so they can feel a sense of personal investment in their topic and have added motivation to explore further. In addition, I find it helps to let students know that they can ask an open-ended question in their comment when they struggle with thinking of something new to add to the discussion thread.

ROBERT GAON: Many of my discussions come from instructor/guest speaker prompts and are based on real life experiences from instructor, guest lecturers and the community at large. I encourage students to question speakers, the instructor, and other students and to provide constructive feedback.

JEN SORENSEN: I use a journal question to warm students up before discussion.

ERICA YAMAMURA: I use layered discussions where students discuss with a mentor; then discuss with their peers what they learned from the mentor; then share with the entire class via pecha-kucha (20 slides, 20 seconds each for a 6.5 minute presentation).

JOHN ARMSTRONG: I sometimes assign individuals/small groups specific to approach issues as specific stakeholders (e.g., coal industry CEO, union leader, head of the Sierra Club), setting up for discussions and debate about different perspectives.

TAPOJA CHAUDHURI: I encourage students to ask questions in their discussion posts – so that the discussion board becomes a place where students can collectively explore their doubts and struggles with difficult posts.

KATHERINE RAICHLE: Phrasing assignments in terms of actions such as “find,” “explain,” “describe,” “identify,” and “compare” gives students a sense that the discussion board is a place where real work gets done, rather than a place where everyone sits around to shoot the breeze. For example, one of my favorite prompts for discussing a reading assignment is to “Find three quotes that interested you and explain why.” Variations include “Find three quotes that surprised you and explain why” or “Find three quotes that annoyed you and explain why.”

BENJAMIN SCHULTZ-FIGUEROA: I like to pose problems that I don’t know the answer to, and therefore must learn with the students.

Contribution Spaces

TOM TAYLOR: Each week I ask students to find an article relating the theme of that week to a “contemporary challenge.” This allows discussions to move into where their current interests and concerns are. We then focus significant part of that class delving into what they found and the implications of these links.

ERICA RAUFF: I try to share my own experiences around course content that we are discussing and encourage students to share their experiences in both our Zoom sessions and in their discussion boards as they feel comfortable to help them better understand concepts. Many of the concepts taught are relevant to their own lives and they often have personal experiences to share.

RICHARD BANKHEAD: I use the discussion board as a wiki when students need help with labs.

JENNIFER SCHULTZ: Because students produce a braided essay (a BodyStory) by the end of the quarter, I provide them with a Creative Free-For-All Discussion board. Students have engaged this in wonderful ways by posting sources of inspiration, readings, songs, etc. that they found and that resonated with our discussions. Students also asked each other for inspiration on this board.

JENNIFER FRICAS: I create a “Community Resources/Check-In” Discussion Board to which anyone in the class can post resources, announcements, events, and opportunities.

Before or Beginning of Class

PEJMAN KHADIVI: I start sending emails with valuable information about the course weeks before the quarter starts and keep doing that in a weekly manner during the quarter.

VICTOR EVANS: I select a few posts to highlight at the beginning of each class to promote discussion or clarification of the weekly topic and objectives.

M. WINGATE PACKARD: I use free writes in class so everyone can generate ideas before the easy talkers start talking.

MICHAEL SPINETTA: We begin every class with time set-aside for “What’s new in the world of Neuroscience”. This is an opportunity for students to bring in Neuroscience information they gather, from myriad sources that they find salient, and share it with the class. Celebrate the contributions brought to the course by students from multiple backgrounds, and the neurodiversity that gives rise to unique cognition.

MICHAEL NG: As we return each week, I post a ‘Recap/Summary’ and ask students if there are still things they’d like to talk about/extend from a previous seminar or if they have new questions ahead of the seminar so that we can dive in early each week.

After or End of Class

AUDREY HUDGINS: I ask students to post a ~50-word review of their learning at the end of each week to get a sense of how they’re proceeding with the material.

KATHRYN BOLING: At the end of class, I have a 2-minute “Muddiest point” discussion board where the students write what is still unclear to them. I leave it open for a couple days, though, so students can review what they have each written, perhaps respond, or perhaps add another point that didn’t come to mind during the class moment. Then, a couple days later I can visit all the posts and figure out whether to build in time to address themes in the next class, or reach out to individual students who are particularly in need.

MOLLY MAC: I like to hold space to acknowledge what is happening in the world each day. I also set up a shared notebook to list things discussed previously that need more attention, a note where students want to push a discussion further, or threads that are relevant to class discussions but not directly covered. I circle back to this board at least once a week.

Reducing Anxiety

JOANNE HUGHES: I find that paying attention--and recognizing--the struggles that students are facing amid a pandemic, economic crisis, police violence and protests... I have found that simply voicing this recognition and taking these challenges seriously is like giving the student the chance for a deep breath and to start over.

FELIPE MURTINHO: During my Zoom statistics lecture, I continually ask questions to see if students understand the material. At the beginning, I only get the “correct” answers, but then I say that I want to hear from those that are unsure about their answers (they suspect they got it wrong) so everyone can learn from mistakes. According to my student evaluations, this created a relax atmosphere, it made them feel that this was an informal space, where everyone makes mistakes.

SVEN ARVIDSON: I send individual encouragement or a compliment via email at midterm and near the end.

EKATRINA YURASOVSKAYA: When solving a mathematical question, I always ask: “Has anyone done this differently?” Such question is in fact a norm in mathematics education, to discover and discuss multiple approaches to the same problem. When discussing a homework problem, I ask: “Has anyone made a mistake they would be willing to share? That way we will all discover a potential misconception and will get to learn something new and discuss it! (This strategy is in line with general philosophy that it is ok to make mistakes in mathematics, to learn from them, and to potentially even discover mathematical value in them.)

JEROME VEITH: I make it clear that each student brings their full self into this course, and that this self is the foundational content of the course. Similarly, I bring myself into the course as someone with ethical questions and struggles. I try to model in the opening week what fruitful struggle and open dialogue looks like, so that students feel comfortable sharing puzzlement, curiosity, conjecture, criticism, and conviction. I try to continually emphasize to students how much I care about them as people, and value their input. It’s easy to slip into familiar power dynamics, to feel unseen, to check out. I want to make my course an ongoing invitation to ponder.

YEN-LIN HAN: After each meeting, I post an “inclusive meter” survey. Questions include: “How included did I feel in today’s meeting? (selecting from 1 to 5, 5 as feeling the most included)” & “Can you share why you have this reaction?” (to gain insight on the overall atmosphere). The “inclusive meter” can provide an aggregated number on how the atmosphere changes overtime and also give a chance for the instructor and students to reflect.

KATHRYN BOLING: Have the chat box open for the first few classes. When someone says something substantive in the chat box, make it a point to have a short verbal conversation with that person to transform the comment into a “first time talking in class.” Once everyone has talked once in class by some method, disable chat function and encourage people to raise their hands.

NAOMI KASUMI: I distribute a “Tip for Critique” hand-out via Canvas to guide how to speak in a small or large group to contribute their questions, opinions, constructive criticism and suggestions for improvement.

Engagement

ERICA YAMAMURA: I provide students with a self-monitored activity for weeks 1-5. I give them each a bingo card listing the ways they can engage. When they do, they mark off a square. At week 5, I see how many students have reached bingo or checked all the boxes.

BROOKE COLEMAN: I find it is best to layer engagement. The first level is their individual thoughts on an issue. Then, their small group’s. Then, we bring it to the larger class. A key is closing the loop, so I am working on ways to find time for reflection (as individuals and as groups).

Presence: COURSE FACILITATION

LÊ XUÂN HY: I like to share with my students my excitement for learning, mistakes I made, and gratitude for those who have taught me—in school and outside. I invite them to share the same.

Instructor Interactions

ENYU ZHANG: I place an “Ask the Professor” link on my homepage that leads to a dedicated discussion thread.

TOM TAYLOR: I have students ask me a question about what they would want to learn about me. This gives me a chance to see where they are in thinking about me as an instructor.

Reference

¹Lehman, R. M., & Conceição, S. C. O. (2010). Creating a sense of presence in online teaching: how to "be there" for distance learners. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.