Teacher Presence in the Online Course - Application Ideas

Canvas Ideas

Develop Positive Relationships with Your Online Learners

An important part of being present is getting to know your learners and allowing them to get to know you. Consider the following:

• Be authentic. Being the same person in your online class as you are in person develops trust.

• Include a current profile picture and biography in Canvas. Ask your local S&I representative for help on how to do this if you are unsure.

• Share aspects about your life that will help the class get to know you better. Share personal pictures or videos; personal or family stories; favorite hobbies, movies, or music; and so on.

• Create a “getting to know you” survey or discussion board in your course. Consider including this in week one of the course.

• Create a class list using a spreadsheet or other document. Record something about each learner that you read in a discussion board or assignment submission. Look over these lists before the remote gathering to help you connect with individual learners.

• Find opportunities to celebrate accomplishments and important events with your class, such as holidays, anniversaries, birthdays, Church events, general conference, and so on.

Communicate Frequently

There are many ways to communicate effectively with your online learners:

• Use the messaging inbox feature, announcements, community pages, and discussion boards in Canvas to communicate.

• Be conversational. Talk to them like you do with your friends and family members.

• Learn their names. Always use their names when you communicate online or in person.

• Use emojis to help convey meaning. Online communications can be misunderstood more easily than in-person communication. A visual emoji can help clarify and humanize your intent.

• Speak to learners in a positive, uplifting way. Avoid all sarcasm and negativity.

• Review and respond to assignments and discussions promptly.

• Use the tagging feature in Canvas discussion boards to respond to learners’ discussion board posts (see Canvas Help Guide).

• Express your gratitude when learners contribute.

Use Audio and Video When Possible

Learners benefit from seeing and hearing you (see Mosiah 2:1, 6–7). Recording audio and video to use throughout the course is one of the best ways to engage with your class and create a strong teacher presence. You can incorporate audio and video in a variety of ways:

• Create a video introduction of yourself at the beginning of the course. Put it in your first announcement.

• Create weekly video announcements using the video feature in Canvas or another video-sharing platform. These short videos could be used to add insights to the lesson or bear your testimony of the gospel principles being taught. For ideas on what kinds of video software you can use, ask your local S&I representative.

• Record audio or video feedback on assignments instead of text.

• Respond to discussion board posts using audio or video recordings.

Optional Canvas Help Guide

• How do I record media using the Rich Content Editor as an instructor?

Remote Gathering Ideas

Many of the suggestions listed above work great for your online Canvas class. They can also be used to facilitate remote gatherings. Consider using some of the following suggestions in your remote gatherings. If you are not sure how to apply these ideas, ask your local S&I representative for help.

• Start remote gatherings 10 minutes early to chat informally with learners as they arrive.

• Stay in the gathering after the class time has ended to answer questions or chat informally with learners.

• Speak to each person individually as they enter the remote gathering. “How are you, Shelly?” “Welcome to class, Elijah!” “Good to see you, Hugo!” “How was your weekend, Tanner?”

• Read “Five Things Good Listeners Do” (Ensign, June 2018, 6–9) for ideas on how you can show learners you are really listening as they share.

• Collect learner comments from the Canvas online discussions and assignments. Use them in the remote gatherings.

• Be open to adjusting your teaching plans to spend more time on principles that are meaningful to those you teach.

• Ask follow-up questions in Canvas discussions and during live gatherings. Share your own insights from the scriptures and from the teachings of living prophets.

Discuss with Your Supervisor

Ponder the following questions and how they might apply to your teaching. Prepare to discuss them with your local S&I supervisor.

• How can I get to know my class better? How can they get to know me?

• How can I improve my communications with my class?

• Ask your S&I supervisor: “What would be a good day for you to review my Canvas course or observe a remote gathering (live or recorded)? I would like you to evaluate my presence in class and offer advice on how I can improve and what I am doing well.”