Natural Hazards of Teaching Online

When I began my teaching career, my experiences as a student in the classroom helped shape my approach and goals. More recently, when I embarked on the adventure of teaching online courses, I had less relevant experience from which to draw as well as many questions: How will I get a feel for the students as actual human lifeforms, and vice versa? Can I create a class that I will have time to manage? Can I avoid academic misconduct issues? How can I appeal to, motivate, and instill confidence in non-majors from a distance? Will the students feel confident that they have learned the material before exams? Developing and teaching online has been a tremendous learning experience as well as an asset to my classroom abilities. Much to my surprise, I have adapted my traditional courses for both majors and non-majors to include components that have proven successful in my online experiences. In an effort to exchange ideas with seasoned online instructors and in hopes of encouraging wary colleagues, I wish to share some effective ideas, examples, and lessons learned.