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Going the Distance:

Management & Technology Tools

GOING the DISTANCE: Mentoring Program

  1. Goals & Objectives

  2. Criteria

Upon enrollment in the Going the Distance Orientation Course, participants will be provided with a survey regarding prior professional experience and areas of interest. This information, along with formative and summative assessment information from the orientation course and a post-orientation participant self-reflection, will be used to match participants with an experienced online facilitation mentor.  The formal mentoring relationship requires weekly check-ins during the mentee's first online teaching experience and semi-weekly check-ins during the second teaching experience.   
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Goal: Mentees will enhance their skills as online facilitators and develop a deeper understanding of effective online instruction.
Goal: Mentors will develop their leadership skills and become more reflective of their own practice.
Objectives:
  1. Working alongside their mentors, mentees will anaylze their current practice in the online classroom.
  2. Working alongside their mentors, mentees will evaluate the effectiveness of their current practice in the online classroom. 
  3. Working alongside their mentors, mentees will formulate strategies for increasing the effectiveness of their online facilitation.
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Criteria to Be a Mentor:
Mentors will have demonstrated the "master" level of online facilitator development, as described by Palloff and Pratt (2011).
  • Highly experienced online facilitator (at least 3 years and 6 courses)
  • Development of at least two online courses
  • Flexible use of online technology, appealing to multiple learning modalities
  • Effective use of stategies for online learner engagement, participation, and collaboration
  • Effective design and use of authentic formative and summative assessment 
  • Completion of Going the Distance Mentor Training Program
  • Active participation in the Going the Distance Developmental Network for at least 3 months
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GOING the DISTANCE: Developmental Network

In addition to the mentoring program, participants will be supported by the Going the Distance Developmental Network.  Network access will be granted upon enrollment in the orientation course and participants may immediately begin exploring the site and building their support network.  Forum members will consist of practitioners in the field of online corporate training with varying areas of expertise and years of experience.

(Source: Adapted from Palloff & Pratt, 2011, p. 121)

GOING the DISTANCE: Facilitator Management & Evaluation

Facilitator Management:
Facilitation of online learning can be just as isolating for facilitators as it is for learners.  Going the Distance Facilitator Management Program was created to support, mentor, and connect orientation course facilitators (Palloff & Pratt, 2011).
  • Facilitators will supported by a mentor highly experienced in both effective online instruction and online course development.
  • Facilitators will be required to actively participate in the Going the Distance Developmental Network.
  • Facilitators will be connected to Going the Distance program developers and administrators for technological and pedagogical questions.
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Facilitator Evaluation:
Orientation course facilitators will receive constructive feedback during and following each session of the course.  Additionally, there will be a formal evaluation by program administrators following the first orientation course session and annually after that date.
Sources of Feedback Information
  • Observation by program administrator
  • Observation by mentor
  • Participant end-of-course evaluations
  • Instructor self-assessment
  • Course summative assessment data
Facilitator Competencies
  • Clarity: expectations, policies, assignments
  • Engagement of learners
  • Community building
  • Discussion facilitation
  • Assessment & feedback
  • Incorporation of technology
  • Selection of content & resource materials

GOING the DISTANCE: Technology Integration

Knowledge Management Systems (KMS):
Going the Distance is formated to meet the needs of the corporation participating in the program.  Facilitators must be familiar with Blackboard, Moodle, and Edmodo.  Ongoing technology support for both facilitators and learners is provided by the Going the Distance Developmental Network.  Additionally, orientation course facilitators are required to provide an introduction to the approriate KMS as part of Module 1.
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Engaging Participants and Enhancing Learning with Technology:
Online courses lend themselves well to integrating a variety of technology tools.  Faciliatators may use the resources provides for each module, but are also expected to locate appropriate resources and develop engaging content independently.  Below are some suggested tools for engaging participants and enhancing learning.
Zaption: Present content and integrate learner participation
Piktochart: Design infographics to creatively present content
Screencast-o-Matic: Capture screen content and record audio to create tutorials
Quizizz: Build interactive quizzes and get feedback on learner performance
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