Building Community Online from Day One √ §

Key to students’ motivation and learning is a feeling of connectedness to the class--to the instructor, to other students, and to content. Such feelings foster engagement--an essential element for students to succeed. For many of us creating that sense of community seems easier when we can meet with our students face-to-face. How can we establish connection online? Join with colleagues for a virtual discussion about ways to structure student interactions, demonstrate and manage your presence in the class, teach for inclusion, and convey caring and support in your online course. Please review one of the following two book chapters in preparation for our discussion:

• Chapter 4: “Building Community” from Small Teaching Online by Flower Darby with James Lang--provides a few key ideas to help you think through the process.
• Chapter 6: “Developing Interactivity, Social Connection, and Community” from Online Teaching at Its Best by Linda Nilson and Ludwika Goodson--provides a deeper dive into these issues and links to resources.

Bring your lunch or a snack and join in the conversation!

To maximize learning from each other, both sessions are open to all faculty, but we are inviting faculty to choose sessions based on class size if they can:

• July 8: focus on small to moderate size classes (<70 students)
• July 16: focus on large classes (>70 students)

Please click “Going” below to reserve your seat for this session and we will send you a Google calendar invitation with a WebEx link one hour before the session. If you register less than an hour before the session, you will receive the WebEx link when you register. Please email fdc@umbc.edu if you have any questions.

Only one session can count toward the ALIT or INNOVATE Certificate programs.