Body
QA Course Overview
Required
The Quality Assurance Rubric, for the Course Overview Section 1.3 states:
The instructor facilitates and participates in an interactive introduction activity with students during the first week of the course.
From the SD Board of Regents
Expectations
- This activity is for student's to introduce themselves and engage with each other and their instructor. To meet the "substantive" interaction portion, you must require students to reply to at least 2 of their peers and include that you, as the instructor will also interact with the students by replying to a few of the students.
- An interactive introduction activity should be facilitated during the first week of the course to facilitate:
- The engagement of students into an online community of their peers, which rubric research correlates to student success.
- Gathering information about your students that can be used to better connect the course with their background, interests, expectations, etc., and to better demonstrate the real-world significance of the course.
- Part of the research that led to the development of this rubric clearly illustrates that the earlier students are engaged into the course, and the more frequently they are required to do so, the more successful they will be.
- It satisfies the DOE requirements of an engagement activity (DOE 34 C.F.R. § 668.22).
- Explain to the students where and how you want the introductions to be done.
- Require students to respond to at least 2 of their peers. If you do not add this, nearly all students will not interact with their peers which causes the activity to fail as being interactive.
- Include in the instructions, that you as the instructor will also be responding and interacting with a few of the students.
- The most common way to facilitate this requirement is to use the discussion feature.
Examples
- Questions you can ask of your students include:
- Who are they (background)?
- Why are they taking this course?
- What are their expectations of the course/instructor?
- What's their biggest fear about taking (this/an online) course?
References
- QM FIPSE rubric I.4 and I.5
- IDEA methods 1, 2, 4, 10
- DOE 34 C.F.R. § 668.22
Other Examples
Example 1:
Welcome to [Course Name]! To help us get to know each other and start building our online learning community, I would like everyone to participate in an interactive introduction activity during this first week. Please go to the Content section, under the First Week module, labeled Introduction Post. I have posted my own introduction as an example.
In your post, please include the following information:
- Who are you? (Tell us a bit about your background)
- Why are you taking this course?
- What are your expectations of the course/instructor?
- What's your biggest fear about taking this (or any online) course?
In addition to posting your own introduction, please respond to at least two of your classmates' introductions. This will help foster student-to-student interaction and create a more connected online community. Engaging in this activity will help us all connect and understand each other's backgrounds, interests, and expectations, which is crucial for a successful learning experience. I look forward to reading your introductions and I also will be interacting with a few replies to your posts as well to get to know each of you!
Sincerely,
Your Professor
Example 2:
Hello everyone, and welcome to [Course Name]! During the first week of our course, I want to create an interactive and engaging environment by having each of you participate in an introduction activity. Please visit the "Introductions" discussion forum in the Getting Started module, where I've shared my own introduction as a model for you to follow.
In your introduction, please address the following questions:
- Who are you? (Share some information about your background)
- What are you looking forward to learning in this course?
- What previous experience do you have with programming?
Additionally, please take the time to respond to at least two of your classmates' introductions and I will also respond to a few of you. This requirement is designed to encourage student-to-student interaction, helping us to form a supportive online community. This activity is not just a formality; it is designed to help us form a supportive online community and to allow me to tailor the course content to better meet your needs and interests. I'm excited to learn more about each of you and to embark on this educational journey together!
Sincerely,
Your Professor