What's your Model for Synchronous Events?

[Jennifer_Wendt]

Hello!

We are thinking through the process of adding required synchronous events (using Canvas Conferences) into our online curriculum and I was curious as to what other colleges do. In particular:

• Do you require your online students to attend synchronous events? If so, how many do you require students to attend?
• Do you schedule more than what's required to accommodate student schedules? For example, your faculty might schedule 12, but students are only required to attend 6 of those 12.
• Are your synchronous events graded or ungraded?
• If graded, how are they weighted towards the final grade in the course? For example, 5%, 10%, 30%, etc.

Any other details or resources are appreciated. Thanks so much!

[dhulsey]

Hi, Jennifer!   Syncronus events are tricky, so this is a great question! I never require synchronous events. I have students who are police officers, fire fighters, troops on deployment, etc. Requiring synchronous events would knock some students out of the game just because they couldn't match their schedule to mine. Optional synchronous events are an awesome idea. I use them for Q and A right before an exam or while the class is working on a major paper.

[Jennifer_Wendt]

 @dhulsey ‌ - I agree with you about optional synchronous events so much! One of my worries if we "mandate" these sessions is because of exactly what you said - it'll knock some students out of the game. Thanks so much! 

[kona]

 @Jennifer_Wendt , in general we don't recommend synchronous events unless they are (1) optional and (2) recorded. This way if students can't attend they can still go back and see what they missed. In terms of the why, mostly because the reason our students (we are a rural Community College) take our online classes is that they want/need the freedom to log in and participate whenever it is convenient for them. As Dallas said, many of our students have strange schedules that would make it very difficult to participate.

The only course that has any required synchronous events is our speech course. It has 6 meeting times, 3 of which students have to attend. Students are notified up front (before the class starts) what these days/times are so that way they can decide if the course will work for them and their schedule or not.

[Stef_retired]

 @Jennifer_Wendt , it's been a while, so I might not be remembering this accurately, but I believe my school did not allow a course to be defined as "online" for state reporting purposes if it contained required synchronous events.

[Jennifer_Wendt]

Thanks stefaniesanders‌! 

[thebert]

Students enroll in online courses so they can attend class according to their schedule not according to the school's schedule or the instructor's schedule.

We have "office" hours so that students can talk with the instructor face-to-face. We use Webex for that purpose. Even though the student and instructor meet one-on-one, they meet face-to-face and synchronously. These meetings are good for a social presence of the instructor.

We also have optional synchronous events that are recorded through Webex. Perhaps 8 in a class of 80 attend. Usually the same ones attend, too. Times for the events are best scattered throughout the day so that students from all over the world and all walks of life can attend. These meetings are likewise good for the instructor's social presence.

The instructor will have an agenda--maybe two items to cover. This is in case no one asks anything. Dead air time is not good. Purposeless talking is not good either.

The recording is added to Canvas in a link--usually the next module. The other students can view the meeting at their leisure. No requirements are met by students. Our modules are usually weekly in our 101-109 courses.

Sometimes a teaching assistant will conduct the meeting or the "office" hour. The teaching assistant might have their own meeting or meetings. Multiple teaching assistants in a course will meet with their section.

As a course designer and technologists, I have sat in on these meetings to assure that Webex goes well. Some instructors are intimidated with Webex.