The document discusses quality online teaching and professional development. It addresses what quality online teaching entails and why it matters, how to ensure and evaluate quality, and the preparation and professional development needed by online teachers. Some key aspects of quality online teaching include establishing clear expectations, providing feedback, addressing individual needs, and using technology effectively. The document also discusses standards and criteria for quality online course design, as well as the importance of ongoing professional development for online instructors in areas like content, pedagogy, technologies, and policies.

1. Quality Online Teaching and
Professional Development
Barbara Treacy
VASS Conference
March 2012

2. Questions
 What is quality online teaching
and why does it matter?
 How do we ensure and evaluate
quality teaching?
 What preparation and professional
development do online teachers need?
 How do new tools and quality
course design support quality online teaching?

3. “Teacher quality
matters. In fact, it is
the most important
school-related factor
influencing student
achievement.”
-Jennifer King Rice, University of Maryland

4. “I like a teacher who
gives you something
to take home to
think about besides
homework.”
- Lilly Tomlin

6. Good Teaching is Good Teaching:
Online or Face-to-face
“If you want to teach well
to very high standards, you
have to know the students
well, you have to have that
relationship that allows you
to both challenge them, and
adapt what you're doing for
them so that it works.”
-Linda Darling-Hammond

7. All Teachers Need To:
 establish clear expectations
 have good curriculum
 provide regular feedback and assessment
 listen to and learn from their students
 address individual learning needs
 use technology tools/ Web 2.0 effectively
 collaborate with and contribute to school and
professional communities

8. What’s Different About Teaching Online?
 Online curriculum: different structure
 Online technology: increasing choice of tools
 Social dynamic: different pace and structures
 Online discussion: new facilitation strategies
needed; importance of written communication
 Classroom management: different methods to
address cohort and individual pacing needs
 Assessment: new tools and strategies needed
 Technical: challenges may occur

9. “The illiterate of the 21st
century will not be those
who cannot read and
write, but those who
cannot learn, unlearn,
and relearn.”
-Alvin Toffler (1990)

10. iNACOL Online Teaching Standards
 Initial: 2008; Updated: October, 2011
 Focus on good teaching practices AND
the online context – Connecting them together
 Adapted from SREB Standards
 Address:
 Teacher knowledge and understanding
 Teacher abilities
 Set the agenda for quality teaching AND
preparation of new online instructors

11. http://edc.blackboard.com/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_2_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2FcourseMain%3Fcourse_i

13. Online Facilitator Training
 Building a learning community
 Assessing online learning
 Meeting individual learning needs
 Incorporating online resources tools
 Maintaining participation
 Developing a course implementation plan
 Delivering a course

15. http://voicethread.com/#q.b476366.i0.k0

16. Quality Online Course Design:
Important for Quality Teaching
 iNACOL’s National Standards
for Online Courses
http://www.inacol.org/research/nationalstandards/
 ETLO’s Recommended Criteria
for Quality Online Courses
http://edtechleaders.org/documents/OCD/Course_Dev_Check.htm

17. Online Course Design Topics
 Online instructional design and pedagogy
 Course goals and session content
 Online assessment strategies
 Differentiated instruction
 Using CMS & Web 2.0 design tools
 Developing and integrating multimedia
 Incorporating a learning community approach

18. Role of Professional Development
 Online instructors/designers need initial PD
 Online instructors/designers need ongoing PD in:
 subject matter content and pedagogy
 online pedagogy and instructional practice
 new technologies and tools
 school/district policies
 Evaluation must be coupled with a PD plan;
targeted to the outcomes of the evaluation
 Recognize importance of teacher communities and
collaborative opportunities

19. The power of connected teaching
“If we want our students to
succeed in a global environment,
then we, as educators, must be
engaged in 21st century content,
context, tools, thinking skills, and assessment.
Thanks to online learning I am a 21st century
life-long learner!”
-JoAnn Nuzum, WV online instructor and developer

20. Thank you!
Barbara Treacy
btreacy@edc.org
Director, EdTech Leaders Online
http://edtechleaders.org
Education Development Center
http://edc.org