On the topic of how to manage online teachers, I appreciated how the article "Evaluating Online Teachers is Largely a Virtual Task" explained that there is a lot more data to examine, in a more timely fashion, than for traditional teachers. I wonder how TC teachers who teach online classes are evaluated. I know that we do course evaluations at the end of both online and face-to-face courses so I assume that is part of it, but I wonder whether the evaluations differ in other aspects depending on the forum. The article also noted that administrators can take steps to immediately help teachers fix the problems they may be experiencing and how much oversight is enough or too much?
In "Managing Teachers You Can't See", the article noted that most online teachers work remotely which creates a unique challenge for supervisors, but this is very similar to corporate organizations that allow individuals to work from home. I was part of a program at Sun Microsystems known as iWork where I worked from home or other remote offices most of the time. Many years, I had supervisors who were not based in the same location as I, and evaluation never seemed to be a problem. I think the same applies to online teachers and their supervisors.
I really like how the article notes that customer service is a big priority at virtual schools (FLVS in this case) because the student is the customer (or the consumer really) and everything we do as teachers needs to focus on that, just as it would in the corporate or retail worlds. FLVS also mentions that accountability is critical for online teachers so they ensure students success. I wonder how different this is than in traditional schools where teachers "pass" students because of underlying politics. Everybody wants students to succeed, and accountability is not specific to virtual schools. They also mention that the leadership team checks in with instructors on a daily basis. I think this seems like too often. It is a very "hands-on" approach. Personally, I thrive in an environment where the manager is "hands-off", understanding that success ensures a continued need for my skills.
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I don't remember doing any evaluations last summer?!? Where was I?!?!
ReplyDeleteI am conflicted about the hands on/off approach. I agree with you in that I work well alone and don't need anyone hovering, but I also do feel very disconnected from you guys sometimes. I am trying to figure out when that is...
I wonder how long it would take for a professor or classmate to contact me if I didn't report in for a week or so?
Perhaps the difference between evaluating staff who are working remotely and evaluating teachers who are working remotely is that the corporate world is interesting in the final outcome (product, plan, etc.) while the education world is also interested in the process--and that's the piece that is challenging to evaluate. When NCLB shifted the focus almost entirely to product (test scores), then process became almost entirely test prep. This could be the case online as well, which to my mind would be a real pity.
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