The Architecture of Engagement: Part 2

Earlier in July, I shared a link to download a report entitled, "Actively Engaging Students in Asynchronous Online Classes" by Shannon A. Riggs and Kathryn E. Linder (2016) in The Online Educator Facebook Group. Even though this paper is from 2016, it is full of excellent ideas and strategies to keep students engaged in the online classroom. When many people think about active learning strategies and engaging students, they typically think about interactive activities and assignments. While this is certainly a big part of it, I want to remind us to also consider other engagement strategies such as how and what we communicate in our Syllabus and how we orient students to our class, as well as the way we design our course.  Riggs & Linder (2016) refer to these three components as the "Architecture of Engagement" and this is what I have been focusing our previous blog topics. This blog post is the second in a 3 part series on The Architecture of Engagement as described by Riggs & Linder (2016) which includes the following topics:

• Architectural Element 1: Syllabus Communication and Engagement Policy- See Blog Post, "The Architecture of Engagement: Part 1"
• Architectural Element 2: Course Orientation
• Architectural Element 3: Modular Course Structure

Today's Topic:

Architectural Element 2: Course Orientation

For architectural element 2, Riggs & Linder (2016) recommend including an orientation to your course in video format if possible. If you have been following me for a while, you know that I am a big proponent of the Welcome-Start Here Module in the Learning Management System (LMS). The Welcome Start HERE Module serves as an orientation to the course in that it includes various orientation components such as:

• Basic course information and expectations- This will include things such as the text that will be used, the best way to communicate with the instructor, a brief overview of the course assignments.
• Course Textbook information- I typically also include a picture of the course text as well for clarity
• Course Syllabus (or link)- I also include a separate place in my LMS designated to the Course Syllabus
• Overview of how to navigate the LMS- It is best to do this as a video but if you are unsure of how to create a video, you can also take screen shots of where things are and post a brief description next to them.
• Introduction video- this would be a more personalized welcome message where you would introduce yourself and then include the same or similar information that is included in the course information/expectations section.
• Syllabus Overview video- On the first day of classes, faculty usually do a brief overview of the course syllabus. This often does not occur in an online environment. If you wanted to do an activity such as this in your online course, the Welcome-Start Here Module may be an excellent place to store it.
• Contact information and info for office hours- be sure to also include information about the tool that will be use for online meetings such as for Online Office Hours
• Introduction Activity/ Ice Breaker- You may choose to include this in Module 1 of your course as well, but including it here is also a good idea. You can include any Icebreaker or Introduction activity of your choosing, but it's always a good idea to be a good role model and introduce yourself as well.

In addition to the Welcome- Start HERE Module, I also typically organize the basic course information section as a welcome message to students and I use this same message as an email that I send to students a few weeks before the semester begins. This way students are prepared and ready to begin once the first day of class arrives.

Do you have a course orientation or Welcome-Start HERE Module? What do you include in this section? Share your thoughts, experiences and ideas in The Online Educator Facebook Group by clicking the link HERE. Also, as a treat don’t forget to GRAB YOUR FREE GUIDE to the 3 Secrets to Teaching Online Successfully.