Hope classes are going well, both online and off. Can you believe it is midterm already? This a good time to check in with your students and give yourself a midterm evaluation of your class. Michelle Miller in her book “Minds Online” writes of how early online social participation can be an indicator of end-of-semester success (2014, p.29). Online we can’t “see” the disengaged person at the back of the room. However, we can use analytics to get a sense of involvement (see my youtube on canvas analytics here: https://youtu.be/AlZ9ubzRCmw ) and then we can intentionally reach to less engaged students if needed.
Analytics are a way to track online activity as well. Were some weeks more active than others? Why? What can we do for the next half of the semester to increase engagement? A quick student survey at the midterm in Canvas could also garner important information to help increase effectiveness in the second half. We call this a “formative assessment” because it helps form the learning environment as it proceeds. What worked? What didn’t? They will probably tell you if you ask!
Drop me a line if you want to continue the conversation on any of this!