Observation+of+GaVS+Forensics+Class

This represents a 4 week observation of a high school Forensics class through Georgia Virtual Schools. During the observation time I was able to observe the design and format of the class and its activities as well as both synchronous and asynchronous interaction between the students and the teacher.

I am grateful that I was afforded the opportunity to observe a high school class through GaVS. GaVS has a good reputation and, between my coursework and this observation, I feel that I am prepared for this teaching adventure.

The asynchronous Mentor Meetings were held through e-mail between the instructor and myself.

//__**First Mentor Meeting Notes** -__// March 17 The following are questions that I asked the instructor. Her answers are in blue. Hey Angie, I went through the discussion boards and the first module. I really like the way you have the modules set up. The introductory page clearly explains how the modules will be laid out and the consistency between the modules makes the navigation much easier for your students. I do have a few questions regarding various topics.  1. Design - Are essential questions the same as learning objectives in GaVS? The essential questions are the standards basically reworded as questions. The rubrics we used when evaluating courses required learning objectives for both the course and the modules and that the objectives, activities, etc. must be aligned to the standards. Is that a current requirement for GaVS? Yes, it is a current requirement. This forensic science course has not been updated in 4 (I think) years. Our course development requirements change very often. So, it is possible that this course does not meet the specs of the course(s) that you recently evaluated.

 2. Administrative - How many students are in this course? What are the prerequisites for this course? What level are the students in this course - middle school, high school? I have 51 students in this course. There are no prerequisites. This is a high school course and counts. Generally, students that are juniors or senior take it, but I do get some younger students as well.

 3. Do your students (or their parents) usually contest grades or do they accept them as final? Sometimes students or parents will contest a grade. Most assignments have rubrics. I folllow them and give the student the benefit of any doubt. It is also important to document everything. I have never had a student or parent contest a grade and win. That is not saying that I haven't made mistakes, of course, I ask students to double check every grade. It is easy to type a 10 instead of a 100. Do you have makeup work? GaVS has a schoolwide policy on latework. Work can be submitted up to 5 school days late for a 10% per school day penalty (up to 50%). What do you do when students miss deadlines? Students can move to a different schedule group one time. The first time they get behind, I offer a schedule change. After that, they must submit based on their schedule and the late policy applies.

 4. Student Interaction and Discussion Boards - What do you do when they students do not follow the instructions, even after your individual response/request? They lose points. If they do fulfill the the requirements after your prompt do they receive full credit? As long as it is before the due date. If after the due date, I weigh which is the lesser penalty, taking the late grade or the original penalty. Do they ever go back and answer your questions or are your questions rhetorical and meant to prompt them to think but not necessarily respond? They are meant for students to respond, but also to provide deeper questions for the other students that must respond to 2 classmates to think about and offer commentary on. They are not required to respond to me for their grade and most don't. But, teachers are required to offer thought provoking questions or comments on all discussion posts.

 5. In the questioning documents discussion - if they used the same cases for support but different links is that okay? Things like that, that are not spelled out in the directions, are up to a teacher's discretion. I think I allowed it. In a class of 51, it is very hard not to repeat things.

 6. How do I access the recording of the synchronous meeting? On the course homepage, look on the left hand side in the User Links widget. The recordings are there.  Okay, so lots of questions. For this second week I thought I would look through a few more modules and check for new discussion posts. Does that sound good? Absolutely! You are doing a great job! Please ask anything. I have 4 different mentees from 3 different programs right now. They all require different things of me. So, if you need something from me, please just let me know. That is the best way that I can keep up with it!

At first I was not sure how much the students were truly getting out of it. I had perused the first three lessons and they involved multiple pages of text. The synchronous meetings were basically mini lectures of 30 minutes or so. I then reviewed the discussion boards, and although the instructor asked for extensive support of comments, some students provided it and others did not. At this point I was becoming concerned how in-depth this study truly was. But then I went to the dropboxes and began to review their lab analysis and case studies. The analysis and answers within the labs and case studies showed a great deal of critical thinking and an in-depth understanding of the topic.

One area that could be improved would be the discussion boards. Even though the instructor gave specific instructions to give support to their opinions, most of the students based their opinions on just that – what they thought, not on fact. The instructor responds to each posting (she is required to) with some good questions to foster thinking in the students but the students do not usually respond nor are they required to. The interaction of the students on the boards could be improved if they were required to respond to the instructor. In reality that may be more than the instructor can conceivably handle.

Overall, the student to student interaction does help to build a collegial environment although it does not seem to help them build their critical thinking skills. The interaction between the instructor and the student does seem to build a positive relationship. Perhaps this could be improved if the discussion boards built on the lab questions so that students had already formed a solid base of knowledge for their applications.

I can see why our classes at UWG have discussed the need for interaction and constructive formats for on-line classes. Reading pages of notes and rather bland lectures that read slides are not very exciting. Also, some of the sites used for virtual labs are the same ones that I have used in class. I think part of what the students enjoy about the websites is the discovery of the information together. It is more “fun” if the students can share their discovery with someone else than learn in isolation. Maybe the discussion boards could be used to foster this feeling of joint discovery.

Over the next week I plan to review two more lessons, their assignments, case study and discussion boards. I will also check the other two reflection journal prompts so their topics can be included. GaVS spring break is April 2 – 6 so I want to collect as much informational observations as possible before that time. That way I will not have to worry about making deadlines.

The instructor's answers follow the questions in black type.
 * //__Second Mentor Meting Notes -__//** March 31

1. What do you find to be the biggest difference in teaching in a face 2 face situation and a totally online situation? Flexibility (as I am working from Panera this morning!).

2. What do you find to be the hardest component of online teaching? Being able to connect to the students that sit in the corner and never speak up in a traditional classroom.

3. What do you feel is your strongest instructional strategy in an online classroom? The one-on-one help that is available if the students just take you up on it. The weakest? The inability to monitor exactly what students are doing while in the class.

4. Which part of a science class do you feel has been the most difficult to adapt to online instruction? Definitely labs.

5. Do you feel you are able to do as many indepth labs in the online environment? As many as what? That is the key question! When I taught in a Title 1 face-to-face school for 7 years, we did not have much lab equipment. Students did not do labs that were required per the GPS. We just didn't have the equipment. Now, students at least do a virtual lab. If not, do you substitute something for the labs you cannot do? We do virtual labs and kitchen labs (labs done at home with common household substances).

6. How do you make sure the students receive as realistic lab experience as possible? The online labs that are available are more and more realistic. Stay on top of the sites available and keep the content updated.

7. What do you find to be one of the most difficult areas in engaging the students in interactive discussions? In large classes it is difficult to find engaging topics that are different for each student.

8. What component or instructional strategy would you like to strengthen as this course goes forward for you? I am always looking for ways to improve, particularly with my synchronous learning sessions.

//__**Last Mentor Meeting Notes**__// - April 2 Instructor's answers follow the questions in black

1. What is the best advice you can give someone who is preparing to teach in an online classroom to help them be ready for the actual experience as opposed to what is theoretically proposed in educational courses? As an online teacher, you must be flexible. Nothing is certain. Pay is based on enrollment, and enrollments fluctuate greatly. Some semesters I had 10 students, some I had 75. You do not know this until the actual course begins, or even later, with our rolling start dates.

2. Would you make a list of pros and cons from an educator's point of view? Pros: great flexibility, work from home, able to give students one-on-one attention, can tailor lessons to the concepts that students are having trouble with, all of the standards are taught, no administrative interruptions (assemblies, fire drills, etc) Cons: unreliable employment (only used on an as needed basis), hard to motivate students that are not willing to be reached, public misconception of what we do/that the courses are easy/not true educators, great flexibility translates into a job that you cannot get away from

3. What has been the biggest hurdle you have had to overcome in making the transition to online teaching? Being able to have the patience to grow in a very slowly growing field. Getting a job is difficult, and my experience is that you have to pay your dues.

4. What is the percentage rate of students who pass compared to students who do not pass your online course? I don't have the actual number, but I would guess that about 80% pass. As an adjunct, you often get classes that are filled with late additions. These students are often looking for a last chance to pass a course, and their pass rate is much lower. They are usually not ideal online candidates. But, as a fulltime teacher, my classes are doled out first, so I get the first to enroll, which often translates to the best students.

5. Do you honestly feel that your online students learn as much, more or less than students in a f2f class. I think it is dependent upon on what they put into it. They must be motivated to learn and complete things on their own. But, isn't this true of a face-to-face class as well? Generally, I think the opportunity is there to learn more than in a f2f class. All of the standards are covered, plus there are ample opportunities for further enrichment. When I taught f2f, there were many years that I did not finish the standards. We just ran out of time. In an online course, students will touch every single standard, every semester.

Overall, I feel that I have received a good idea of what teaching an online class with GaVS is like. Angie answered all of my initial questions and has answered most of them sice then as well. The student's answers on the discussion boards are a bit repetitive and Angie did say that it was difficult to come up with enough questions for all of the student's and to answer all of the students with different comments. She has given me a good idea of some of the policies that they work under as well as the general way the classroom functions.
 * Last Thoughts**

Angie's classes are a bit large - 51 in this one section. The course is set up and then instructors handle the implementation of the course. Labs are not to the level that we do in a f2f classes but for the less lab oriented courses I do see how they can be accomplished. A true chemistry class would be difficult and unless adequate simulated labs were available for physics, that would be hard to teach totally online also. Earth science, zoology (with virtual dissections), physical science and even biology could effectively be taught this way.

As technology improves, then the problem with adequate online labs will be solved. I already have some wonderful simulated labs in anatomy and physiology that we have never had the equipment to run in a high school. The only concern is if everyone will eventually have access to a computer and high speed internet. Otherwise the dividing line between the privileged and the disenfranchised will become greater.