The theoretical and practical resources below offer an overview of online teaching in general. Many of the strategies and best practices may be adapted to the teaching of writing in creative ways. The resources below are divided according to the resource’s main purpose.
Theoretical Resources
- EdTech Books is an open textbook publishing platform, which offers a variety of e-books including, but not limited to topics such as online, hybrid, universal design, etc. You have a limit of downloading 10 e-books, but may email the publisher to request more access.
- Yao, Jijun, et al. “What Role Should Teachers Play in Online Teaching during the COVID-19 Pandemic? Evidence from China.” Science Insights Education Frontiers, vol. 5, no. 2, 2020, pp. 517-524.
This is an interesting, current paper that compares teaching with pre-recorded videos and synchronous teaching. - Zimitat, Craig, and Nian-Shing Chen. “Differences in the quality of learning outcomes in a F2F blended versus wholly online course.” Beyond the comfort zone: Proceedings of the 21st ASCILITE Conference, edited by Roger Atkinson et al., 2004, pp. 175-179.
The paper looks at the difference in learning effectiveness between online and on campus courses. Students enrolled in the F2F course made much less use of the e-learning resources than those in the virtual course and there was no significant difference in post test scores.
Practical Resources
- Barkley, Elizabeth F., et al. Collaborative Learning Techniques : A Handbook for College Faculty. Second ed. San Francisco, CA, Jossey-Bass, 2014.
The book (available online through the BU Libraries) provides an overview of collaborative learning and recommends techniques for in-class collaborative learning activities. Each technique has an “online implementation” as well (Part 3). - Bower , Matt, and Jodie Torrington. Typology of Free Web-Based Learning Technologies, Educause, 29 Apr. 2020, https://library.educause.edu/resources/2020/4/typology-of-free-web-based-learning-technologies.
This 2020 typology of technologies provides a variety of free technologies divided into pedagogical categories. As part of their selection criteria, the authors have chosen tools which are “freely available”, “openly accessible” and are “educationally applicable”. - National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (2018, February). The Assignment Charrette Toolkit. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois and Indiana University, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment (NILOA).
This site offers a toolkit with many resources, including guidelines for conducting sessions, email invitation templates, and surveys. - The Online Learning Consortium is a professional association for teachers and other educators interested in online education. The website lists upcoming workshops, conferences, and other learning opportunities, as well as reports and other publications on digital teaching.
- Online Learning Consortium, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, and Every Learner Everywhere. Delivering High-Quality Instruction Online in Response to COVID-19: A Faculty Playbook. 2020.
This book, which is publicly available online, is a guide for faculty teaching online during. The book discusses best practices for online teaching in regular online courses, as well as during emergency situations, such as the coronavirus pandemic. The covered topics range from course design, to assessment, to issues of equity in online education. - Smith, Blaine, and Cynthia Brame. “Blending and Online Learning.” Vanderbilt University: Center for Teaching.
This teaching guide overviews key research on online and blended teaching, including best practices and affordances of online teaching, as well as tips and strategies for organizing such courses. - Stanford, Daniel. “Remote Teaching Resources for Business Continuity.”
This Google spreadsheet offers a list of resources on distance and remote learning. The linked sources are websites from US universities and other educational bodies that offer models, tools, sample courses, and other resources related to online instruction.