Step 6: Implementing the Course
The key to successful implementation of any course is good communication with your students. It is important that you clearly communicate what they are required to do during the course as well as the concepts they are trying to learn.
When you are running your course, it is essential that your students know exactly what is expected of them. Remember, when your students work online or in small groups, you may have fewer opportunities to give them verbal instructions - or clarify written instructions. If your students are unclear about their tasks, they are likely to ask for clarification from you. Therefore one of the most time consuming tasks for you may be explaining aspects of the course assignments. According to Oliver and McLaughlan (2003) 'Throughout the course, online teachers will frequently find themselves responding to emails and requests from students for clarification of tasks, elaborations of activity descriptions, more detail about assessment requirements, and questions about procedures for completing activities.' Most of these questions can be avoided if the initial instructions are clear and concise enough for your students. Therefore, your time can be used effectively in writing detailed instructions for your students. It is also helpful to provide students with guidelines, exemplars and clear assessment criteria.
The other important category of communication is feedback to your students. The section 'Introduction to VLEs' outlines a broad range of ways you can provide feedback to your students. Examples include providing exemplar assignments, individual feedback to students or groups, peer feedback, etc.. A good text on supporting online dialogue is E-moderating by Gilly Salmon
