After being exposed to the online environment, many educators are interested in teaching an online course. If you are one of these educators, you’ll want to consider the following skills that are necessary for the online environment:

• Educational Technology: While the basics of email, discussion boards, and PowerPoint are necessary, you’ll also want to learn to use meeting software as well as have an understanding of learning management systems. Additionally, it can’t hurt to have a base understanding of how to troubleshoot computer issues, internet connectivity hiccups, and incidents of malware to keep your systems running smoothly.
• Time Commitment: Think online teaching will take less time than teaching face-to-face? Not necessarily. You’ll find that more time is spent one-on-one with students via email and chat rooms, especially with asynchronous programs. And since many online courses are open to students across the globe, you may need to consider the time differences when scheduling synchronous sessions.
• Student Engagement: Unless you are working in a blended learning environment, you may never meet students face-to-face. If that’s the case, take the time to cultivate an online presence so students and colleagues can get to know you. Also, plan to spend time responding to emails and discussion board posts.  Most institutions have policies surrounding faculty-student communication requirements.

Interested in Learning More?  

For the last ten years, the OLC Institute for Professional Development has offered an Online Teaching Certificate, allowing you to collaborate with, and learn from, recognized experts who will prepare you for the conception, implementation, and administration of online learning effectiveness. Here are just some of the key benefits of earning an Online Teaching Certificate from OLC:

• Exposure to creative approaches not encountered through typical resources
• Collaboration with peers from a variety of institutions and disciplines
• Inspiration that propagates and benefits those beyond the immediate classroom
• Actionable feedback from your instructor and mentor so you can apply learning outcomes immediately
  

The Online Teaching Certificate program is an intense 10-week course, however, the rewards are significant and long lasting. In 2017, there are seven cohorts to choose from, with the first starting on March 8th. Review prerequisites, meet our instructors and register before your desired date fills up. Learn more about the Online Teaching Certificate

Have you been teaching in the the online environment? In addition to the Online Teaching Certificate, the OLC Institute for Professional Development offers an Advanced Online Teaching Certificate designed to help educators fine-tune existing online courses and degree programs. For our Advanced Certificate, we suggest that you have either have taught at least 3+ years online; OR have completed our Online Teaching Certificate program AND taught at least one year online. Learn more about the Advanced Online Teaching Certificate

Benefits include:

• Earning an online teaching credential that is highly recognized and respected among higher education institutions
• Access to a network of faculty for support during and after the program
• Overall competency in online teaching and learning theory, practices, and strategies—well enough to talk “shop” with your institution’s professional learning designers
• Confidence in the design, development, and implementation of online courses using relevant tools and strategies

Group Discounts:

Institutions can benefit from group discounts when sending 5 or more attendees. While some Online Learning Consortium Institutional members rely on OLC to supplement their internal online teaching programs, others turn to OLC to provide their institution with an online learning jumpstart. If you’re interested in Group discounts to any of the Online Teaching programs administered by the OLC Institute for Professional Development, please reach out to sales@onlinelearning-c.org for details.