Effective Online Tutoring

This online course provides prospective online tutors with an opportunity to develop the skills and experience they need to teach effectively online.

The target audience for the course is teachers delivering education online, academics looking to develop new skills for teaching undergraduate and postgraduate-level courses online and organisations involved in Continuing Professional Development who wish to improve the effectiveness of their distance learning courses. The course is also suitable for individuals looking to deliver training online or those interested in facilitating online collaborative spaces.

The course provides a practical introduction to the social, administrative and pedagogical techniques of teaching online. Focused specifically on teaching, rather than on designing or developing online courses, this course will introduce you to the role of the online tutor through selected reading, group discussions, role-playing, case studies and other activities.

The course will last for seven weeks with the course materials being made available to students for a week at the end of the course for consolidation and reflection. The first week of the course will be self-paced (tutor support will be available if required during this week) and weeks 2-6 will be tutor-led. The course tutor will also be available during week 7 to answer any outstanding questions from students, but there will be no formal course activities during this week

In this course we will: explore the online learning environment; identify the responsibilities and practical skills required by online tutors; look at techniques for managing and facilitating online activities; and consider the challenges of teaching online.

Learning by doing is a key concept of this course, and you will have lots of opportunities to try out new skills and techniques and share your experience with other tutors.

The total study time of the course will be 30-48 hours to study the core content (5-8 hours per week for each of weeks 1-6) plus any additional time students spend reflecting on the course in week 7. Note that the course offers additional optional material during weeks 2-6.

• Introduction & learning outcomes – Each unit will start with a summary of the topics to be covered and will include a list of learning outcomes for the unit.
• Topics – Three to six topics will be explored in each unit. Topics will include an overview of the subject with a range of activities (some individual and some group) to explore the topic in more detail.
• Adobe Acrobat Connect Professional tutorial – Units 2-6 will include a synchronous tutorial using the Adobe Acrobat Connect Professional software. Note that tutorials are normally performed either Tuesday or Wednesday evenings at 8pm GMT. You will not be required to purchase this software.
• Summary & reflections – Each unit will include a summary providing an overview of the key points and will also include a ‘reflections’ discussion forum to encourage participants to reflect on their experiences and what they have learnt so far.
• Further reading – Most units will conclude with a list of further reading

Note that Unit 2, an Introduction to Teaching and Learning Online, is available as a free trial unit. To access the free online trial, please go to our website.

There will be no formal assessment for this course.To successfully complete the course, participants must actively take part in the group activities, complete the tutor-marked assignments and participate in a minimum of three of the four core online tutorial units.