How A Junk Mail Flyer Changed My Career

Hmmm...Learn to teach online?

Who would have thought that receiving a junk mail flyer in my mailbox would have changed my career?  How was I to know that this one particular flyer would have a significant impact on my professional life?

In 1999 I was living in the Federal Hill neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland.  One day I received a flyer in the U.S. mail from the University of Phoenix (UOP).  They were recruiting potential faculty to teach online for them.  I had wondered about teaching online, but never really did anything about before. From my research, reading and conversations with professional colleagues, it seemed like eLearning was poised to grow.

Like many of you I had heard a number of things about the University of Phoenix.  Many of them were not good.   I tried to keep an open mind.  I was working at Towson University at the time in a staff position.  I mentioned to a faculty member that I was thinking about going through the UOP faculty training program.  To my surprise he said that he knew someone who had gone through the UOP program and thought that it was excellent.

I decided to enroll in the course.  I thought it would be good for my career.  I was right.  Prior to this training course I had never taken an eLearning course myself, nor had I taught one.  I had some limited experience with eLearning, but I never taught a complete online class.

The class required us to be available for 20 hours of class time, homework and studying each week. There were no exceptions for anyone.  If you missed class time or were late on your assignments, you were removed form the class and had to start over again.

The course was modeled after the UOP's regular 5 week format.  We experienced the same thing as students taking our courses.  This helped to develop empathy, as well as to "walk a mile" in the students' shoes.

It was a demanding and challenging experience.  However, I learned a great deal.  It was the foundation for developing my eLearning skills.  Here is some of what I learned.

What I Learned About eLearning 
1. It's not "easy" being an online student.  Online learning is not for everyone.
2. Online students need good time management skills, be motivated and disciplined
3. eLearning is not about the technology.  While online teachers use technology, a successful course is more about their ability to facilitate their learning.
4. Communication is very different.  We know how simple email communication can easily get misunderstood.  That misunderstanding can grow exponentially when it comes to eLearning.
5. Contrary to popular opinion, the University of Phoenix knows how to teach online

Other Lessons Learned
1. Be open to change, it's how we grow
2. You never know where or when opportunities may pop up
3. Use critical thinking and don't believe everything you hear
4. Take some calculated career risks
5. Your career is dynamic, so you need to be dynamic too

Because the flyer, my career would never be the same.  It opened up a number of life-changing opportunities for me.  Maybe you have some opportunities coming your way too.  Would you recognize them?  Be open-minded and give them a chance. Lastly, take a quick glance at your junk mail before you throw it away.

What I Wish They Told Me Before I Taught My First eLearning Course

With online learning being so popular now, many trainers and college faculty are learning to teach their first online class.  Today a number of great resources are available to beginning online teachers.  These resources range from blogs and websites dedicated to this to entire books on the subject.  Additionally, there are numerous great courses now that help you learn how to teach online.  I taught my first online graduate level course over ten years ago.  The resources were not as plentiful as they are now.  I was given a syllabus and an empty course shell in Blackboard.  I think someone wished me good luck. That was about it.

Looking back there are a number of things that I wish someone told me before I taught my first online class. Here are some of them:

1. Know Your Students - It is important that you get to know your students (and their motivations). For example, do they need your course to graduate this semester?  Are they working three jobs and taking care of kids?  Are students taking your course because they love the topic?  Or did they register because all their other class choices were filled?  Have they taken online classes before?  Beware the students taking you class because they think that online classes are "easier".

2. Be Deliberate About Communication - Have a plan about how and when you communicate with your students.  For example, I tell my students to expect a response from me in 24-48 hours when they post a question or send me a direct email.  Don't leave them guessing.  Over the years I have received numerous VERY long emails from students.  They have dozens of questions and concerns about their performance in the course.  Rather than respond via email, I usually ask them to talk on the phone with me.  It gets to the point quicker and helps to deal with any issues directly.  Additionally, it may be a good idea to have a course FAQ.

3. All Students Will Not Read the Syllabus - As teachers we are very proud of our course syllabi. Be prepared that a number of students will not read it.  How do you deal with this?  You can structure an assignment that forces them to read the syllabus (scavenger hunt).  Or you can award bonus points if students can answer questions about your syllabus.  Remember that the syllabus is the contractual document between the students and the college.   When there are issues over grades, the courts always refer back to the syllabus.

4. Technology Will Fail You and Your Students - No matter what you do, technology will not work at times for you and your students.  Murphy's law mandates that this failure will happen at the worst possible moment.  Encourage (require?) your students to have access to a backup computer. Additionally, have them save everything in MS Word first before they post it.  It's also a good idea to have them save files online using tools such as Google Drive and others.  This will minimize issues such as "my hard drive died and my assignment is gone".

5. Check Your Course Every Day - I originally thought that checking my course every few days would be more than enough.  Wrong!  What I discovered was that it makes much more sense to check in online every day, even if it is only for 20 minutes or so.  Students constantly want feedback in a timely matter.  Additionally questions may pop up that are time sensitive and need to be addressed quickly.

6. Simple Is Good - My original course design was much more complicated than it is now. I used to think that "more was better".  What I discovered over the years was that I sometimes confused students by giving them too much information. They didn't know what to do or where to go on the course site.  Now I've really scaled my course design back.  The lesson I learned was "it's not about the technology".

7. Students Know How to Take An Online Course - Even though the first online course I taught was in 2004, I really thought that students knew how to take an online course.  Boy, was I wrong! Taking a course online is a completely different experience than taking a face-to-face course. What I've learned is that just because I have a lot of experience teaching and taking online courses, it doesn't mean that my students do. We sometimes forget that everybody does not use a computer every day.

8. Students Will "Disappear" - I was surprised to learn that a handful of students simply "disappeared" from my course.  What I discovered was students simply stopped showing up or stopped participating in the class.  Even worse, they never even told me why.  I had to seek them out myself. What I found out was they had work issues, personal issues, medical issues, etc.  Some stopped participating just because learning online wasn't for them.

Over the years, I've learned that online courses are not for every student, nor are they for every instructor.  As an instructor, it is helpful to keep an open mind and realize that you can always learn and get better.  Ten years from now, who knows what I'll write about this topic.

For more info, check out my video on this topic check out my video at http://www.gregwilliams.net/GregWilliams/Videos.html

How To Choose An Online College Program - Insider Tips

It's Hard to Choose!

A Poor Choice Can Be Costly
The growth of eLearning has exploded.  More students than ever before earn entire degrees online.  But have they made the right choice?   Most people really don't know how to assess eLearning programs.  It is easy to choose the wrong program.

As someone who manages and teaches in an online graduate program I probably have some insight that most people don't. Before you spend a lot of time and money at the wrong school, you should consider these issues.

Your Career Goals

What are your career goals?  Does the program help you to meet them?  Will it help you get a job or a promotion? Identify the type of job you want to have five years from now.  Through your network (or through LinkedIn) find people that are doing this job.  How did they get there? Does anybody have a degree from the school you are investigating?  Ask employers if they hire candidates from that school.

Accreditation 

Is the college or university accredited?  Hopefully, it is accreditation by one the major six regional accreditation associations.  Sorry, but these are the only ones that really count in my opinion.  I had to deny admission to a young lady who graduated from a school that was accredited by the Association for Biblical Higher Education.  She tearfully told me "they said they were accredited". Unfortunately for her they were accredited, but it wasn't the type of accreditation that really counts. Additionally, accreditation is awarded to the university overall and not to an individual program in most cases.   

Reputation

The reputation of the institution and the program is very important and can cut across many areas.  For example, what do alumni say about the program? Do employers hire their graduates?  What do people say about the faculty? Today with LinkedIn it is fairly easy to find people who maybe graduates of a particular college.  Additionally, if an organization is hiring you can ask them if they have a history of hiring graduates from particular schools. 

Program Design and Format
The format and design of the program can differ greatly in online programs.  As a learner you will be spending a lot of time and money, so you want to make sure the program is a "fit" for you. Does it have synchronous, asynchronous or blended course delivery?  What are the course deliverables for students?  Do yjur ise pares and academic case studies, or more applied projects.  I think project work has many advantages over tests and papers. Do they require a comprehensive exam or portfolio of work samples?  In my opinion professional portfolios are the way to go. They can demonstrate your skills and competencies to potential employers.

Student and Career Services

If you are an adult student you probably are very interested in getting a job.  Does the college have career services oriented toward working adult students?  Do they have connections with employers and professional associations? Who hires their graduates? Can you actually talk to student service reps on the phone, or do they push you to search online for everything?  Do they have so many students that they cannot prove adequate service?

Academic Policies

Can you start the program and/or graduate in any semester? Or do they only accept new students in the Fall semester?  Do they allow you to take any electives, or is it a lock-step program with little choice?  What is their policy concerning transfer of credits?

I've posed a lot of questions. You can find answers to most of them by talking to current students, alumni and employers. Additionally, you can find a number of answers on the college website and using LinkedIn. Of course don't forget the obvious.  You can simply call and ask them. In the end, it is worth the time and effort to research potential schools and programs. Make the right choice. Your career may depend on it.

You Don’t Need a Degree in Instructional Design to Get a Job

This blog article might get me fired!

In my position as the director of a graduate program in instructional design (OK there’s my full disclosure), I often get the question “Will this degree get me a job?” My answer is no. That response may be heresy for a college professor.

In reality, I am not sure that ANY degree guarantees you a job these days. If people truly think that a degree alone will get them a job, then they are wasting their time and their money.

Employers look at a number of things besides your education. That may include your work experience, your skills and competencies (as documented by a professional portfolio), how well you work in groups, how you solve problems, your creativity and much more. You should never overlook the importance of career tools and such as your resume, your references, your relationships within the professional community, how well they interview, etc. They too play a part in getting a job.

My academic colleagues may not like this, but everyone doesn’t need a college degree. If someone really wanted to they could get comparable knowledge on their own. They could do this by reading and studying and practicing on their own, taking appropriate professional development courses, getting feedback and coaching from professional colleagues, working with a mentor, etc. This might give them similar benefits that may compare to the content of a college degree. Are there exceptions to this? Of course there are! The truth is that most people don't have the self-discipline to do this.

The older you get, your degree becomes less critical in getting a job. As you gain experience, employers look more at your accomplishments and your body of professional work, far more than your degrees. There are some employers who use the degree as a screening tool to eliminate candidates from a large pile of applicants. However, in some workplace environments degrees are very important (higher education), while in others they are not (e.g. sales).

It is very possible that you may not need a degree at all. There are a number of people in our field (instructional design & eLearning) who are very accomplished and don’t have a degree. The difference is they have accomplishments and a body of work that showcases their skills.

As with many questions in life, the answer to this question often is “it depends”. Before you spend a lot of time and money on a degree, think about what you will put into it (time and money) compared to what you will get out of it (raise, new job, skills). In the end, you are in charge of your own career, so weigh the pros and cons carefully.

Speaking of careers, I wonder if I still have a job?