I have LOTS of ideas based on my work this week and I am anxious to find out who has responses and ideas for me to consider. Here's my ideas:
1. I want to use the "water cooler" or "teachers' lounge" idea for students to post their burning questions or processing issues for the benefit of others. Is there another way that you've had one place where students can post ideas/questions/issues that either the prof or other students can respond to help everyone?
2. I find it interesting to listen to my undergraduate students' responses to their perceptions of textbooks and required readings. It's not positive! So find it interesting to monitor my own response in this course to reading blog posts, listening to video lectures, and reading other "short" articles instead of reading the textbook. It just seems more, dare I say it, FUN. Now I like the text for this course, but it still find it fascinating to monitory my response. I'd better not rely too much on my text, even though it, too, is a good one!
3. The idea of using humor continues to show up in this course. I love the humor of others, usually, and know that students respond positively to it. But I admit to being a bit scared to use it online because I don't want students to misinterpret it. I don't want to offend, so I guess if I use humor, it will have to "obvious?" But then it doesn't seem like humor. How have others of you handled this dilemma?
4. Dave mentions giving students his cell/smart phone number for texting. I'm skeptical of that for privacy sake and prefer using email to communicate with students. Advice? Do students misuse your personal phone numbers?
Hi Ed, I have some of the same questions as you do so I probably won't help to much to find answers. Your use of the water cooler seems like a legitimate reason for it. I'm not a fan of the whole backchannel thing but this is a good purpose for it. With undergraduates, I think I'd approach this like an admit slip. Whenever students complete an admit slip I ask them to pose a question that the reading raises for them. That way I get a continual "read" on what my students wonder about. I wonder if you could use the water cooler in that deliberate of a way as well. In other words, it isn't really optional to participate.
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