Faculty-Student Interaction Playbook

Are you wanting to increase student engagement in your courses? Looking for ways to revamp your announcement schedule? Here are a handful of strategies for utilizing the announcements feature in your online classroom and connecting with your students in meaningful ways.

Prior to Day One - Welcome to Class

An effective welcome announcement helps students start strong by offering a roadmap to success in your class. Wondering what to include? Think about what you would tell your students before they packed their bags to head out of your first class meeting. You would remind them about the readings they need to complete, the video they should watch, and upcoming due dates. The more information you can share about the first few days, the more likely they are to put in the effort.

• Keep your welcome letter to one to two pages – avoid overwhelming the student.
• The goal of the welcome letter is to be welcoming – put your introduction and contact information first, and then cover “policies”/resources.
• Direct students to NU resources: Dissertation Center, ASC, Library, etc. rather than including additional attachments.
• PDF your welcome letter to maintain formatting

Anytime - Add Your Personal Voice and Expertise

You are the content and professional expert. Students benefit from understanding how the course learning outcomes are applied in the real world. Share your personal experience or application to the weekly outcomes or objectives. You can add relevant content or highlight current topics that support the weekly learning objectives. Ensuring relevancy and connections to the assignments and topics improves student motivation and interest.

Every Sunday - Provide a Week-at-a-Glance

As students prepare for the coming week, post an announcement that summarizes the plan for the week including upcoming deadlines. By outlining the main points, students can focus their attention on those areas with more confidence. Try to explain how what they have learned so far in the course or in their program is the foundation of what they will learn next. If you have any supplemental resources that you believe will enhance the student experience (articles, videos, websites, podcasts, etc.), share them, as well.

As Needed - Address Student Questions

When one student reaches out to you with a question on an assignment or reading, it is likely that others have a similar question but may be uncomfortable speaking up. NU’s Office of Teaching and Learning Strategies has developed a series of handouts that you can share with your students to support them in many different situations. Need writing help? Study tips? Blackboard help? There’s a handout for that! Share these resources widely, whenever your students need a little extra guidance and support.

Teaching Presence

• Provide context for the week’s topics.
• Scaffold learning from previous lessons.
• Make connections between old and new knowledge.
• Discuss common mistakes and offer ways to improve.

Social Presence

• Provide encouragement by reinforcing the positives.
• Encourage study sessions or academic coaching. 
• Share your own experiences.

Cognitive Presence

• Encourage students to apply knowledge to real-world situations.
• Provide guidance for additional topic information. 
• Provide examples of ways to apply what students are learning to their lives. 

For more information and examples please review the Best Practices for Creating Effective Announcements handout located below.