Teaching Online at Towson
Interactive Activities
Activity Samplers
Below are recommendations for kinds of online activities from Penn State University and samples of activities by discipline from Virginia Tech and UMUC (two universities with extensive online offerings). Note that these activities are no different from the kinds of activities we use in our face-to-face classrooms. Instead, it is how they are presented and carried out that differs based on the limitations and unique characteristics of online courses.
As mentioned above, everything that you know about teaching face-to-face classes can be applied to your online teaching. Therefore, below are some common in-class teaching techniques and some examples of how these can be used (and sometimes expanded) online.
Learning Objects
Of course since online courses take place online, students have easy access to Web resources. You can use hyperlinks to create materials that provides non-linear exploration for students. Additionally, many support services are available to students online.
Faculty post a library of peer-reviewed, reusable, Web-accessible
learning objects at Merlot.org.
Simulations and Case Studies
Students can practice various skills using interactive media. You can also take advantage of rich resources on the Web that allow student interactions with objects and simulations.
You can explore several optional simulations and media used in simulations and case studies below:
Guests
Guests can interact with your students in discussions or you can relay student questions to and from guests via e-mail.
Audrey Cutler
Center for Instructional Advancement and Technology ◦ Towson University.
Copyright 2003, 2005.
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