Book Review of Make Money Teaching Online

Comments

• Wed, 09 Dec 2015
  Post by Sergio Koon

  Simply amazing article! Thanks for the info, you made it easy to understand. I mostly use AltoMerge to merge PDF files. You can easily merge your documents here altomerge

• Sun, 15 Aug 2010
  Post by Dana Dolsen

  I must say I was never sure on why anyone would ever want to take online courses from a higher education institution. Once I met Dr. Mark Welch, my opinion did an about face (a 180 degree) turn around. Talk about passion and zeal for the great opportunities available to reach out across communities of place and interest in a way that impacts those who love to learn and the few who are truly committed to teach regardless of whether it is in person on campus or via the Internet! Mark took me under his wing about half a year ago after we met at a fundraiser for African orphaned children here in SLC (I am on the board of the Interethnic Health Alliance).

  Mark was totally inspiring and engaging as well as encouraging as far as my potential to offer my experience and acquired knowledge to others who wanted to learn! He has coached and mentored me since then, coming to visit me at my workplace to learn about the online and on campus courses I am certified to teach through my current employer, as well as personally taking the time to visit me in my home to further guide and coach me as I seek further opportunities to teach online.

  I am so very saddened to learn today that Mark, my friend and mentor, has unexpectedly and tragically died yesterday of pancreatisis and I am at a loss as to what to say or do except to urge anyone who reads this to do as Mark did - inspire and guide others in their joie de vivre for learning and teaching and go the extra mile to assist any who wish to pursue their dreams. If there is any way that I may help anyone, please contact me at 801 550-9623, or if you just want to chat about the online education community, please send me a note. Thank you all for living, learning and laughing - that is what Mark did and I hope to honor his legacy by doing the same. Sincerely, Mr. Dana E. Dolsen, Holladay, Utah

• Mon, 26 Jul 2010
  Post by Thomas Retterbush

  Very insightful article. I believe that online learning, via laptop or iPad has a lot of potential to someday challenge the traditional classroom as the primary source of learning. Even though students may miss interaction with fellow students and teachers, both, this problem could be resolved by means of social media.

• Fri, 18 Jun 2010
  Post by Tina

  I really felt a connection to this topic. I teach the Lead 219, Developmental Writing Course. Most of my job is spent motivating student engagement and involvement. I work tirelessly throughout the semester building community in my classroom to provide a safe, comfortable, and accepting setting for students to share ideas and receive peer feedback. My goal is that students innitiate activities that provide meaningful learning opportunities. So much of this is dependant (or so I thought) on f2f interations. I am excited about exploring how to recreate that on Bb. Great article and it gave me alot to think about as I develop my LM.

• Thu, 08 Apr 2010
  Post by Beth Gruenbaum

  Hi Moussa,

  I'm glad that my article was helpful to you with your term paper. Thank you for your positive comments, and good luck!

• Wed, 07 Apr 2010
  Post by Moussa Tankari

  Hi Beth,

  Thank you for this very informative article on adult online learners. I am writing a term paper on online student performance and satisfaction and thought this article is a great start for me. Thank you for sharing your ideas.

• Sat, 20 Feb 2010
  Post by Beth Gruenbaum

  Thank you for your thoughtful response and for the information on the findings of your dissertation with regard to best practices and gender differences in online learners. I concur that further research into gender differences in e-learners may not only yield interesting findings but may also be helpful in assisting instructors to better understand and serve the different needs of their students.

• Wed, 17 Feb 2010
  Post by Dr. Julian R. Cowart

  Thanks for this great article. I just completed my dissertation, Best Practices in Online Instruction: Why Practices Work for Some Students and Not for Others. Of 20 best instructional practices identified, I found that there are significant differences in how students of various ages, gender, educational backgrounds, and comfort levels in using technology, value those instructional practices. Some of the greatest differences surfaced between genders.

  I think you are right on target with your recommended practices to promote, and I would add that instructors may wish to vary their practices, approaches and techniques based on gender as well. At minimum further research into gender differences among online learners might yield some interesting finds.

• Tue, 16 Feb 2010
  Post by Beth Gruenbaum

  Dr. Tudor, thanks for the encouraging response. The United States Department of Education (2009) recently evaluated evidence-based practices in online learning with a specific focus on K-12 online learning. One of the limitations with that study was the fact that so few rigorous published studies exist that focus solely on K-12 e-learners that they had to pull information from other settings and fields such as higher education to complete their evaluation. Thus, they cautioned generalizing the findings of the study to just the K-12 online setting. This is just one example showing that more needs to be done in the way of researching and writing about the topic. Therefore, I believe you are correct in concluding that it may be helpful to investigate this topic. Maybe this is cause for another article in the near future. We'll have to see. Stay tuned!

• Tue, 16 Feb 2010
  Post by Beth Gruenbaum

  Hi Taruna, thank you for your kind comments and response to my article. I will definitely check out your blog in the near future. Thanks for sharing that information.

• Tue, 16 Feb 2010
  Post by Taruna GoelT

  This is an interesting article! You have been able to share some significant components that can contribute to the success of an online learning intervention. I especially enjoyed the implications for online instructors. I recently reflected on the same topic and have my own recipe for online success! I don't have research backings but just my experience (and that of others) that helped me reflect on what I learnt. I welcome your views and comments. http://tarunagoel.blogspot.com/2010/02/online-success-recipe-for-learners-and.html

• Tue, 16 Feb 2010
  Post by John Tudor

  Well written and very good information. I wonder how the research applies to high school students as there are now an increasing number of virtual high schools? Perhaps a new article? Well done.

• Fri, 12 Jun 2009
  Post by Belinda Schafer

  I have found it so true that emotionally engaging students "hooks" them - and it''s pretty easy to provide that emotional buy in with the emergency medical care courses I teach - I have found that the "real life" stories (no HIPPA violations!!) inspire and engage the students. I really need practice with site design - I don''t even have the time to research all the cool sites and what''s out there available to use. I hope I can use some down time this summer to do some research - and I''m certain this class will give me more confidence in using links/sites, etc

• Mon, 05 Jan 2009
  Post by Jennifer Juhl-Darlington

  Wow, This article was excellent and touched on many topics I have thought about while developing my hybrid nursing classes. I teach a few f2f courses and two hybrid courses and struggle with keeping emotional energy flowing through my fact driven lessons. I identified with Gail, another student in the POP course when I read what she wrote. As a f2f instructor I am evaluated highly for my "passion for the topic" and students have commented on their interest in my "real-life nursing stories. I feel both of these categories take a hit in the hybrid portion of my online. I have already learned much from the intro to this course in how to interject my own experiences to increase the emotional experience of my students. My attention was increased when I read the "getting personal" section. I am excited and now re-motivated to improve my classes yet again.

• Thu, 12 Jul 2007
  Post by Jo Anna

  Making connections with students, whether within an on-line course or face-to-face, is critical. As a manager, it is important to make the connection and continue updating our students with up-to-date information. OUR students appreciate it.

• Tue, 10 Jul 2007
  Post by Jill

  I agree the emotional component of learning is very important for motivating students. The difficulty in the typical class environment is that it is hard to always predict what students care about, especially when you have a students from a variety of backgrounds (and everyone does not always talk in class nor do you always have the time you like to get them talking). So, one benefit of the online environment is the ability for the teacher to see student responses to find out what they care about on an ongoing basis. I like the list of suggestions at the end. In the past, I have found that it can be tricky to grab the emotion, and then get students to settle back down to the process of studying, and forming opinions backed by the factual information (especially in the field of psychology). The suggestions to have "Frequent assignments" and "keep the topic narrow" would be key to be able to consider all aspects of learning without overworking the student. If this model, were to be used in a student services environment, I would think it would be key to create stories of students and their experiences.

• Tue, 10 Jul 2007
  Post by Julie Withers

  Using an emotional appeal really makes the difference. If I can''t get the students to connect emotionally with sociological topics, I''ve lost them. And humor helps lighten the pain when thinking of societal woes, helps us all get past the "what can I do feeling" and get to the heart of the matter.

• Tue, 12 Jun 2007
  Post by David Payne

  I agree with many of Gail''s comments. I find that her commensts are true for face to face classes. The skills and intellectual curiousity is often dulled or lacking entirely in most of my students. I try continually to reach out and to connect, a few, avery few students connect and make my classes enlightening. Always, for me is the fight toget students to see the world as a great toy or game to be reached out to and engaged. There world is so small...their text message and phone...no wonder that tell me how boring things are.

• Sun, 08 Apr 2007
  Post by Stacey Bartlett

  Teaching communication studies courses causes me to use a great deal of humor and emotional appeal to help students overcome communication apprehension. I have felt somewhat disconnected from online teaching because of my narrow-minded view of purely lineal teaching strategies. This article was a welcomed slap in the face. I might be able to do this after all.

• Tue, 03 Apr 2007
  Post by Alfred Konuwa

  I article defines many of the problems associated with failed online communities. The need for emotional attachment is revealing. Online social interactions in the classroom should be treated no different from face to face. Imagine going into a classroom as an instructor and deciding not to direct the content of a discussion. This is tantamount to posting a query and waiting for students to carry on by themselves. Eventually, it dies. While I support the appointment of a cheerleader in the online community, I would add that the primary cheerleader should be the instructor!

• Fri, 01 Dec 2006
  Post by David paynP

  All good information in this article. Much of the same information that one would encounter in a Teacher Education Credential Program ...in fact, I shared this article with my wife (asst.dean CSUChico Dept. of Ed.) I''m lucky that I teach a subject that is ore focused on application of the subject content than a base information acquisition.

• Tue, 28 Nov 2006
  Post by David Payne

  I like this article. It reminded me of my doctorial studies. I remember how much I enjoyed courses that had emontion and humor in them, even courses that i didn''t care about. It was nice to hear about non-linear teaching. That is how I teach all of my Communication Studies courses. I like to get the students up and working and then present skills and knowledge to them when they needed it improve the work. This article also reinforced my perception about just how terminally boring my on line traffic class was...dull,linear succession of facts, visually dry...a sleep inducer. I appreciate good heads up information that is useful and timely.

• Mon, 27 Nov 2006
  Post by Molly

  I have created a discussion board and abandoned it. Everyone in my classes has figured this out, and they have stopped posting on it. I wish I had known some of these tips earlier!

• Mon, 27 Nov 2006
  Post by Gail Hannan

  I really fall down in appealing to the heart in my courses. I am always so focused on getting the facts out that students probably tune me out. I teach a study skills course that students take because they are concerned with their own success in college. I give them many lessons on various aspects of becoming more successful such as time management and preparing for tests. Somehow I need to appeal more to the personal concerns of students than just give them principles. In a face-to-face class you have a better opportunity to communicate directly with students. In an online course, you have to connect emotionally without the benefit of seeing people. I feel like I can use some major improvement here. Sometimes when I read my own lessons I start to tune out. The students need to connect emotionally and I think I could use some change in that area. This course has the potential to be very relevant so...how am I going to communicate that online?