I expect to pass through life but once. If therefore, there be kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do to any fellow being, let me do it now, and not defer or neglect it, as I shall not pass this way again. ~attributed to Etienne de Grellet~
Asynchronous work is the standard in undergraduate courses that are designed as fully online courses. In a high-stress situation in which faculty who typically teach F2F classes now have to teach remotely, they are necessary. It's tempting to think that our students ought to be able to synch up to our classes remotely just as... Continue Reading →
Using discussion boards as you move your traditional F2F class online so you can teach it remotely? I've got good news--the easier you make the grading, the better conversations your students will be having. It's another case of how simpler is better. This is because frequent intervention from you interrupts their conversations and makes students... Continue Reading →
If you are quickly moving to remote teaching, I recommend putting your whole course together now rather than doing it week-by-week. It gives students a better sense of what is coming, and it also provides guidance and structure to anyone who might have to teach your class should you fall ill or have to use... Continue Reading →
Educators now teaching remotely: Are you ready to be sick? For those of us who aren't experienced with illness or disability or who aren't in a high risk group, the thought of your own illness might not yet have consciously occurred to you. Or, if it did, you might be beating it back with denial... Continue Reading →
One of the nicest, if unintentional, compliments I received from a student was one who complained that “you can’t even Google answers for tests in Dr. Barrett-Fox’s classes.” The student was frustrated that, even though most questions on most of my exams for Intro to Soc are trule/false and multiple choice, the answers weren’t ones... Continue Reading →
A friend asked yesterday how we can set up valid exams (ones that measure what we want them to measure) in the quick transition to online classes. Again, the process is different in a class that wasn’t originally online, during a time of crisis, for students who are not prepared to be online learners. So... Continue Reading →
Last week, Asbury University, a nondenominational Christian university, and Brigham Young University, owned by the Church of Latter-day Saints, made headlines for their policies around queer students. Righting America (Subscribe, friends--it's a terrific source for commentary on the Religious Right) invited me to reflect. Here is some of what I shared: But for conservative Christians who oppose... Continue Reading →
Thanks to the many of you who reached out to share that this post helped you through last spring's sudden transition to emergency remote teaching. If you are just now coming to this article, note that this was published in March 2020. It's original audience is for educators, especially college professors, with little or no... Continue Reading →
Rebecca Barrett-Fox 