Transition to online learning has been an interesting challenge for faculty. Learning new technology, creating an interactive online experience, and maintaining that in-person connection from afar are just a few learning curves faculty members have been navigating over the past few weeks.
Theo Stratopoulos, Associate Professor of Information Systems at the School of Accounting and Finance, has been teaching an accounting analytics course in California since February. When COVID-19 hit, he had a total of "one weekend" to switch his class from in-person to online.
Unfortunately, it wasn't exactly a seamless transition, according to Stratopoulos, admitting that the "first week was challenging," but quickly adapted to a new way of online learning using Zoom. Despite teaching from a distance, Stratopoulos has seen some positive aspects, including a constant attendance rate of 100% since moving online. His "office hours," which are for providing students with extra help, have also gone from students not using his services to an average of 4 to 5 students showing up every week "that's huge progress."
After returning home from California, Stratopoulos realized he would need to train his students to become comfortable with being an active participant using Zoom. His reasoning was simple; once the crisis is over, the education system and financial industry may want to continue using online tactics for holding meetings and presentations. Therefore, he made one substantial change to his curriculum "every week from that point forward; a weekly assignment had to be presented via Zoom."
Students certainly felt hiccups and glitches during their first presentation. "They did not know who was going to share his or her screen or who would advance the screen, so it was kind of a disaster in a sense." Knowing the issues, Stratopoulos encouraged his students to practice and "figure it out" before their next presentation. They did.
Moving forward, Stratopoulos is making it his priority to ensure his students have a "good experience" in the Fall Term. That includes making his course as interactive as possible and adding a personal component to ensure his students know that it's not just "some machine that's talking to you" instead, it's someone who "cares about you." He hopes by doing so; it will make online learning a positive and rewarding experience for all his students.
