Online Teaching Best Practices

Helpful Reminders

Hunter College instructors who are teaching online can use this calendar of reminders to make sure their courses are running smoothly.

Calendar of reminders:

Start of the Semester

1. Have you copied your course successfully?

Make sure that:

  • There are no duplicate items in the navigation menu.
  • The Discussion Board has no posts from previous semesters.
  • There are no empty folders in the content areas.
  • Links for students to submit assignments, to take quizzes, and to respond to surveys are active.

2. Are all items in your course legible and accessible?

Make sure that:

  • All text in Brightspace is in a consistent font, size 12 or bigger.
  • No essential content requires more than three clicks or is buried too many levels deep in the course.
  • All text color in Brightspace is black (see below for examples).
  • All images and weblinks have “alt tags” describing them.
  • All videos have captions.
  • You follow the guidelines for best practices in creating accessible content.
  • You check all Microsoft Office documents that you create using the built-in accessibility checkers and correct any issues that you find.

For more information about making content accessible, please see the CUNY IT accessibility website.

Examples of ADA level 3 compliant colors

Examples of ADA level 3 compliant colors.

3. Have you posted a welcome video in a Welcome, Orientation or Getting Started folder?

Make sure it:

  • Tells students where to go for tech support, course-related questions, and course policies.
  • Guides students towards reviewing the syllabus and noting major course deadlines in their calendars.
  • Reminds students to acknowledge reading the Academic Integrity Policy.
  • Tells students to conduct a browser test to ensure Brightspace compatibility.
  • Tells students to self-check their skills using Brightspace through the “Getting Started in Brightspace for Students” course.
  • Informs students where to find assessment rubrics, and how they will be applied to their assignments.
  • Is warm, inviting, and most importantly, exudes your personality, which will promote student/professor engagement.

4. Have you made the course available?

Make sure that:

  • The course is open two weeks before the semester starts.
  • Students can access, at minimum, materials for week one.
  • Students can find the syllabus.
  • Students can find your contact information.
  • The current announcements are available, and announcements for later in the semester are not available.

5. Are all the materials current?

Make sure to:

  • Review all web links and course links and update any links that are no longer working.
  • Go through your course content and check it for relevance and currency.
  • Change dates of the weeks in the syllabus and weekly modules if you have them listed.

Mid Semester

1. Have you been maintaining a strong instructor presence in the course?

Make sure that you:

  • Respond to students’ emails within the time stated in the syllabus.
  • Guide students through course content by introducing new material and making connections to previously learned material.
  • Stay active in the course by posting announcements, sending reminders of deadlines, and participating in discussion boards.
  • Monitor discussions and enforce rules of netiquette.
  • Invite students to online office hours.
  • Reach out to individual students who are missing or falling behind.
  • Direct students to technology help when appropriate.

2. Have you been helping students self-monitor their progress in the class?

Make sure that you:

  • Give frequent, low-stakes assessments.
  • Give meaningful and prompt feedback on student assignments.
  • Keep grades up-to-date.
  • Direct students towards viewing their grades and reflecting on their learning.

3. Have you asked for feedback from your students?

Make sure that:

  • You have made feedback surveys available to the students (e.g., in week four and week eight).
  • You make reasonable adjustments to the course based on student feedback.

4. Are you guiding students through long-term or group projects?

Make sure that you have:

  • Given clear instructions and concrete outcomes.
  • Set reasonable milestones and required deliverables.
  • Offered opportunities to discuss projects individually or as a group in online conference rooms.

 

End-of-the-Semester

1. Have you encouraged students to complete the course evaluation survey?

Make sure that:

  • You have posted the link in the last weekly module of the semester.
  • You have posted an announcement reminding students about it.

2. Have you graded all the assignments?

Remember that you can:

  • Give feedback in audio or video format instead of, or in addition to, written text.
  • Speed up the grading process and show students how they scored according to a set criteria by using rubrics.

3. Have you ended the semester with a wrap-up activity? 

Consider asking students to:

  • Write reflections about what they learned in an assignment.
  • Post recommendations for future students of this course in a discussion forum.
  • Say good-bye to each other in a discussion forum.

4. Have you made preparations for the upcoming semester? 

While the semester is still fresh in your mind, you can:

  • Note activities, materials, or technologies that worked well or those that did not work well.
  • Mark up instructions that need revising.
  • Take down resources that are obsolete.
  • Review suggestions that students have offered throughout the semester.

5. Have you completed final course management tasks?

Make sure you have:

  • Submitted students’ grades.
  • Posted a cordial farewell announcement.