Distance Education Newsletter

People who don't live in Hawai‘i don't believe us when we say this, but we DO have seasons, and it's getting chilly. Time to bake something warm and delicious, and then share it! In fact, click on the button below to share your favorite holiday treats recipe, and to try out your colleagues' favorite recipes. And while we're at it, let's share some virtual warm sweets with our online community of students and colleagues, too. Let's balance out the end-of-the-semester stress with a warm smile, a word of encouragement, or an acknowledgement of a job well done.

We are so excited to share with you the amazing news that as of Fall 2020, we expect the following Degree, Concentration, and Certificate pathways to be available to students entirely online!

• Associate of Arts (AA) in Hawaiian Studies

• Associate of Arts (AA) in Liberal Arts

• AA in Liberal Arts with a Concentration in Business Administration

• AA in Liberal Arts with a Concentration in Family Resources

• AA in Liberal Arts with a Concentration in Secondary Education

• Associate of Science (AS) in Information Technology

• Certificate of Achievement - Accounting

• Certificate of Achievement - Information Technology

• Certificate of Achievement - Information Security and Assurance

• Certificate of Competence - Entrepreneurship

• Certificate of Competence - Help Desk Services

• Certificate of Competence - Information Security and Assurance

• Certificate of Competence - Management

• Certificate of Competence - Payroll Preparer

• Certificate of Competence - Programming

• Certificate of Competence - Tax Preparer

Because of this exciting proliferation of online pathways for our students, we’re expecting more students who do not live in Hawai‘i will join our classes.

So now is a good time to remind everyone who teaches online that it must be possible for non-resident students to succeed in your online class. This means that:

• If you require proctored exams, you must either be willing to work with students to set up a remote proctoring site OR you must offer a ProctorU online proctoring option.

• If you require any on-campus activity, fieldwork, or participation in community events, you must be willing to allow students to conduct the activity or fieldwork at a remote site or participate in remote community events.

If you have questions, please contact the Interim DE Coordinator, Leigh Dooley ldooley@hawaii.edu. If you need assistance developing exams in Laulima or setting up ProctorU for your online class, please contact one of our outstanding Instructional Designers (IDs): Helen Torigoe (htorigoe@hawaii.edu) or Jamie Sickel (jsickel@hawaii.edu).

Join us Tuesday, January 7 from 8:30am - 2:10pm to ring in a new decade of teaching and learning at Kapi‘olani CC at REFRESH 2020! This all-day event will feature four exciting tracks for staff, faculty, and admin, focused on Teaching, Tech-ing, Designing, and Connecting! More details and a link to register will be shared via the Kapi‘olani CC News & Events Bulletin as details are finalized, so mark your calendar now and watch this space - you’re won’t want to miss this!

Looking for the last date of attendance (LDA)? [In online classes, LDA is defined as the last date an assignment was submitted or a significant forum discussion was posted. Just logging in does not count as LDA.]

Did your student withdraw from the class and is no longer in your Laulima site, but financial/athletic/peer mentor agencies are asking for their LDA?

ANSWER: Go to Site Info and add your student back (Site Info > Add Participants). Since Laulima archives everything, all assignments, quizzes, forums, etc. for that student will be restored. Don’t forget to change the status of the student to “Inactive.”

Get a jump start on Spring semester with a fresh, new video intro to your course! Whether you want to promote your course to prospective students or welcome your students to class in a manner that will energize and intrigue them, a well-thought-out intro video can be an effective asset in communicating with your target audience!

This hands-on workshop will present important considerations for creating effective videos and help you plan and produce a video of your own. While the primary focus of this workshop is creating an intro video for classes, these principles can be easily adapted for other promotional or informative videos and ALL staff, faculty and admin are welcome to attend! Jamie will be happy to accommodate your video production goals!

Here are the relevant deets:
When: Friday, December 6, 1-2:30 pm
Where: Lama 116
Who: YOU! – all faculty, staff and admin are welcome (workshop facilitator: Jamie Sickel)
How: RSVP here – bring your own device if possible or indicate your need for a laptop and one will be there waiting for you

Join us for the final workshop of the semester and update your skills and media for the new decade!

Name: Rachel Lindsey

Department: Math & Sciences Department

What courses do you teach online?

I teach Anatomy & Physiology I (PHYL 141) online.

How long have you been teaching online and what made you decide to teach online?

I have been teaching online for two years now. I decided to begin teaching online because I recognized the increasing demand for online courses and wanted to meet the needs of our students. For students with full time jobs and families, online learning can be a lifeline. I was also exposed to amazing online courses created by my colleagues and realized how rich online learning could be.

What is your favorite part of online teaching?

My favorite part about online teaching is that it allows me to engage students in a purposeful and meaningful way and that students are equal and active participants in their learning. Online learning can happen in a variety of ways and at different times affording students’ immense flexibility and the opportunity to choose what works for them.

What is most challenging about teaching online?

One of the more challenging aspects of online teaching is that retention rates are typically lower as compared to face to face courses. Knowing this I strive to embed student support throughout my course and seek ways to increase student success. For example, readiness and orientation have been identified as potential barriers for students in distance learning. In order to address these barriers, I created two additional modules. The Week 0 module, meant to be completed prior to the start of the semester, addresses learning style, time management, and their readiness for an online course. The “Start Here First” module is dedicated to orienting them to the online environment and my course. Additionally, there are many support structures built into my class to encourage student success including open forums, office hours and live exam review sessions through Zoom.

What surprised you about teaching online?

Building an online learning community was easier than I expected which actually surprised me quite a bit. In my course each week the students are asked to engage with each other, and with me, through various activities including forums, Flipgrid, and Padlet posts. They very quickly make connections helping them to feel supported, which is also critical for student success in an online course.

What is your favorite web tool/technology:

Right now, my favorite online tool l use is Flipgrid. This tool allows students to post short video clips and responses. I find that utilizing a video post during the first week allows students to feel that they aren’t alone in the course and it helps to simulate a face to face environment which many of them are used to. I also enjoy getting to see my students through this medium. Since I’ve implemented this activity, I’ve actually gotten to meet a few of my students on campus since I recognized their faces!

Among other questions, the 2018 DE Student Survey asked students to evaluate their best online learning experience and worst online learning experience separately (if they had taken more than one online class). We will be sharing these meaningful data soon, but the replies to one question, “The teacher or a counselor contacted me when I was struggling with my studies to help me get the assistance I needed,” are worth noting now.

For the “Best Online Learning Experience,” 43% of the respondents reported being contacted by the teacher or a counselor when they were struggling. (14% said they were not contacted and 44% said the question was not applicable.)

For the “Worst Online Learning Experience,” 23% of the respondents reported being contacted by the teacher or a counselor. (36% said they were not contacted and 41% found the question not applicable.)

These differences are the most significant we found when comparing the “most successful” with the “least successful” online experiences.

This insight is in line with studies that show increased motivation when students feel that the instructor cares about their learning (Jones, B. D. (2009). Motivating students to engage in learning: the MUSIC model of academic motivation. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 21(2), 272-285).

Do you reach out to your students who may be struggling? Please share your experience via email or by leaving us a comment at the bottom of this newsletter.

The TOPP Fall ‘19 cohort finished strong! They completed the 8-week online training and shared their progress on their newly developed or revised online/hybrid classes at the Zoom Showcase sessions on Nov 7th & 8th. Pictured below is our newest batch of DE pioneers:

Row 1:

• Susan Dik (ENT 130)

• Jamie Sickel (TOPP facilitator)

• Alfred Seita (BUS 250)

• Palani Kelly (HWST 107)

Row 2:

• David Mendonsa (MICT 162)

• Louise Tatekawa (FSHE 185)

• Shawn Ford (SLT 203B)

• Susan Inouye (TOPP facilitator)

Row 3:

• (enthusiastic guest)

• Nicole Otero (ESL 100)

• Steven Nagata (LAW 102)

• Boris Bogaczewicz (ITS 144)
  

If you see these colleagues around, please offer them your congratulations and ask them about their experience with TOPP and their new DE class!

The percent of students choosing to learn online continues to increase.

The latest DE data from OFIE show that

1. Almost ½ of Kapiʻolani students are enrolled in at least one online class (48.7% in F19)

2. Percentage of students enrolled in online only has passed double digits for the first time (10.6% in F19)

3. Percentage of classes being delivered online (DCO) is the highest ever (21.0% in F19)

See our Distance Learning page for more data. We are excited to see this positive trend and thank you for your contributions toward increasing online learning opportunities for our students!

The following is a list of items that the committee is currently working on:

• Have you noticed that the Add/Drop deadline was moved from Friday of the first week of the semester to the Tuesday of the second week? The reason for the adjustment was to align all colleges in the UH system. Different drop dates for different campuses caused student confusion and created the need for many exceptions. The DE committee is concerned about this new date because surveys and research have shown that missing the first week of online classes may negatively impact students’ success rate. We are working with Faculty Senate and the administration to discuss best options.

• Can international students take online classes? An international student on an F1 student visa may take one online class. We are collaborating with the Honda International Center to assist foreign students in taking online classes to increase enrollment and tap into a new market.

• Have you heard of the No-Show Policy? This policy allows the possibility to drop a student from the class if they have either never attended class (F2F) or have completed no class-related work (online). The UH system and Kapi‘olani CC are piloting a No-Show policy for Spring 2020.

• What is the status with the Class Review Process? As you know, the Class Review process was passed by the Faculty Senate and the administration. We are now finalizing the rubrics and hope to send them to Faculty Senate for consideration soon.

If you are interested in more information on any of the above item, please contact your department DE representative.

Digital Humanities Advancement Grants (DHAG) support innovative, experimental, and/or computationally challenging projects at different stages throughout their lifecycles, from early start-up phases through implementation and sustainability. Experimentation, reuse, and extensibility are hallmarks of this program, leading to innovative work that can scale to enhance scholarly research, teaching, and public programming in the humanities. This program is offered twice per year. Proposals are welcome for digital initiatives in any area of the humanities.

In support of its efforts to advance digital infrastructures and initiatives in libraries and archives, and subject to the availability of funds and IMLS discretion, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) anticipates providing funding through this program. These funds may support some DHAG projects that further the IMLS mission to advance, support, and empower America’s museums, libraries, and related organizations. IMLS funding will encourage innovative collaborations between library and archives professionals, humanities professionals, and relevant public communities that advance preservation of, access to, and public engagement with digital collections and services to empower community learning, foster civic cohesion, and strengthen knowledge networks. This could include collaborations with community-based archives, community-driven efforts, and institutions or initiatives representing the traditionally underserved. Interested applicants should also refer to the current IMLS Strategic Plan for additional context.

Grant Snapshot

• Maximum award amount

• Level I: $50,000

• Level II: $100,000

• Level III: $325,000 in outright funds, with an additional $50,000 in matching funds

• Open to Organizations

• Expected output

• Article

• Digital Material and Publications

• Workshop

• Report

• Teaching Resources

• Digital Infrastructure

• Software

• Period of performance: Up to thirty-six months

• Application available: October 31, 2019

• Optional Draft due: December 4, 2019

• Application due: January 15, 2020

• Expected notification date: August 31, 2020

• Project start date: September 1, 2020

• 10 Tech Tools to Promote Active Learning & Engagement, webinar, Innovative Educators

This webinar may come in especially handy for hybrid folks, though many of the apps can be used in an online setting as well. Access the slides for quick links and overviews of the apps, including EdPuzzle, Pindex, Mindomo, Google Docs, Poll Everywhere, Socrative, Plickers, VoiceThread, Popplet, Versal, Adobe Spark, Screencast-o-matic and Moovly) and ideas on how to utilize them for active learning.

• 7 Approaches to Alternative Assessments, article, ASCDExpress

Interested in Alternative / Authentic Assessment in your classes, but not sure how to implement it? This article suggests 7 specific, practical alternative assessment practices for implementation as soon as next semester. They are applicable to both online and face-to-face classes.

• Higher Ed’s Toughest Nut to Crack: Implementing Innovation, article, Inside Higher Ed

Much of the literature dedicated to promoting change within an organization misses key elements unique to Higher Ed institutions. This article offers suggestions to implement innovation that take our culture into account.

• Are We Doing Enough to Develop Creativity in Students?, article, eCampus News

A new report from Adobe reveals that employers value specific soft skills (creativity, complex problem-solving skills, critical thinking, people management, and the ability to collaborate with others) that they feel are lacking in today’s candidates. What can we do to help students develop these skills and to showcase them when searching for jobs?

• College Websites, E-mail Among the Most Important Information Sources for Prospective Students, article, Campus Technology

College e-mails were rated as the highest impact information source by 62 percent of the students surveyed, followed by word of mouth from family and friends (57 percent) and school websites (46 percent).

• Will Online Learning Help 4-Year Colleges Weather the Next Recession?, article, Education Dive

The short answer is “YES!” The University of Maine and Maryville University have invested in online learning and are seeing significant gains in their enrollments, especially with non-traditional learners. Experts advise finding “the unmet need,” not underestimating the necessity of robust infrastructure, and making room for unconventional pathways and paces.

• Fully Online Courses Are No. 1 Requirement for Many Working Learners, article, Campus Technology

A recent report, surveying more than 31,000 working students, claims that 53% of working learners are taking at least 1 online class, and 42% identify the availability of fully-online classes as their first consideration when they are selecting an institution of higher learning.

• DE Newsletter - Nov 2019

• DE Newsletter – Oct 2019

• DE Newsletter – Sep 2019

• DE Newsletter – Aug 2019

• DE Newsletter – May 2019

• DE Newsletter – Apr 2019

• DE Newsletter – Mar 2019

• DE Newsletter – Feb 2019

• DE Newsletter – Jan 2019

• DE Newsletter – Dec 2018

• DE Newsletter – Nov 2018

• DE Newsletter – Oct 2018

• DE Newsletter – Aug 2018