Bringing Life Back to Online Discussion Boards: Moving Beyond Compliance and Listening More Deeply to Students
In online learning, “engagement” is one of the most frequently used words and one of the easiest to flatten into something performative. We say we want engaged students, but too often what we actually build are routines of compliance: post once, reply twice, meet the word count, move on. That structure may produce activity, but […]
April 2026 Snap Survey Results: Weeds and Seeds in Online and Blended Learning
Each month, OLC’s Snap Survey series offers a quick pulse check on issues shaping online and blended learning. April’s survey invited participants (n=27) to reflect on two simple but revealing questions: What practices in online and blended learning should we pull out like weeds, and what ideas or approaches should we intentionally cultivate and grow? […]
Fish With Jetpacks
I’ve recently seen several stories in the news about students who have “cheated” their way through college degrees using AI and other tools—even through the doctoral level. Interestingly, these students and some in society are celebrating this as an achievement. Educators, on the other hand, are terrified. For as long as we’ve had education, teachers […]
Using the W Curve Concept to Encourage Student Support and Success in the Online Classroom
Student success requires assistance, resources, and a holistic viewpoint from a variety of higher education professionals both inside and outside of the classroom. Taking an intentional approach to offering online classes that include meaningful engagement promotes student success, persistence, progression, and retention. Focusing on the design and delivery of the first few weeks of a […]
OLC’s Award for Excellence in AI-Enabled Education (Explained)
The year 2001 was a year of significant personal change for me. I moved from Illinois to Wisconsin (where I still reside) to start a Ph.D. program. I bought my first house. I got a puppy (R.I.P. Scout). 9/11 happened, and we all came together as a nation and said, “never again.” That very same […]