Online Instructors & Online Adjuncts

Pay Scale

singh — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:06:32 GMT

Hi,

Just curious to know how much U of Phoenix and Aspen Uni might be paying to instructors for a single course of MBA? Any idea?!

Cheers,

singh.

Online teaching with an Associates degree?

astrick89 — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 22:50:06 GMT

I have a Associates in Computer Information Systems. I am 8 classes away from a Bachelor of Applied Science, Resource and Technology Management . I also have a diploma in Micro-Computer Specialist & Micro-Computer Software. I am A+ certified and have experience in the computer field a total of 9ys.
Wanting to know it if anyone knows of schools that hire for online instructors with an Associates degree. If so can you let me know which ones.
Thanks,
astrick99

2 quarters away from Masters...online adjunct instructor position possible?

PPConsulltant — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 13:48:02 GMT

Well my subject line said it all....

I'm 2 quarters away from completing my Masters in Counseling, is an online adjunct instructor position possible at this point? I'm looking to teach at a associate's level online program in either in psychology, sociology, human services, etc. I do have some teaching experience.

Looking for Online or Distance Adjunct Position - School of Education

Brypearl22 — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 17:29:56 GMT

I recently received my doctorate in education administration and am a school administrator.

I am looking for an online or distance adjunct position in education administration, foundations of education, elementary education, gifted education or similar.

Any suggestions of where to look (good sites) and/or particular schools?

Also, how much do these positions typically pay per class? Is this something where one can do this full-time (even splitting amoung multiple schools)?

Thanks very much for your help!

Bryan

Looking to hire University Staff

lreyes — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 23:00:09 GMT

Does any one know where I post an employment ad for Adjunct Faculty, Upper Administration aimed for Educational staff. We are having difficulty finding qualified individuals in Southern California.

A new Online Distance Education University will be opening up this year and we are looking to staff up. All positions from Deans with Ph.D, to Instructors, Course Developers and Administrative Assistances.

Thanks for your help.

Luis

living abroad

Paul23 — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 14:02:44 GMT

I’m considering teaching courses online. However I live abroad. I’m a US citizen and return to the US every three months for a week or two. Would I be disqualified as an adjunct instructor because I live abroad? How do online universities feel about instructors living in a foreign country?

Thanks,

Paul

Best option to search on the net!!!

brian — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 09:42:15 GMT

Hi everyone, I am working as a research analyst in a laboratory that deals with developments in the area of plants and nature. I have to look on the net to assist me in my research but as I don’t access it frequent I find it difficult to get the right things online. Can anyone help me to find any kind of tool that will help me to get results better and faster?

So you wanna teach online ...

helenh — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 11:57:08 GMT

Here is a two-part blog post written by yours truly about how to get started as a virtual adjunct:

So You Wanna Teach Online: About Becoming an Online Instructor, Part I
http://community.elearners.com/blogs/elearnersnews/archive/2006/06/12/285.aspx

So You Wanna Teach Online: About Becoming an Online Instructor, Part II
http://community.elearners.com/blogs/elearnersnews/archive/2006/06/13/So-You-Wanna-Teach-Online_3A00_-About-Becoming-an-Online-Instructor_2C00_-Part-II.aspx

Enjoy!

ANY SUGGESTIONS?

bodaps — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 16:30:43 GMT

Is theer an online RN programme that i can take my med surge class (my final class/rotation) and do my clinicals at a desgnated hospital? Any comments/help etc?

NY Times Article: "An Online Economics Professor Reveals All"

helenh — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 00:38:32 GMT

October 15, 2007, 2:38 pm

An Online Economics Professor Reveals All

By Stephen J. Dubner

Online education is seriously on the rise, garnering praise from congressmen and even gaining share among elementary school students. In the realm of higher education, more and more schools are offering online degree programs as an alternative to in-class courses, with some schools creating online-only engineering and law degrees as well as bachelors’.

But have you ever wondered who’s on the other side of the computer, teaching these online students?

Jamie Gladfelter is an online economics teacher for schools across the country, including Midstate College in Peoria, Ill.; Lake Tahoe Community College in South Lake Tahoe, Calif.;Forsyth Technical Community College in Winston-Salem, N.C.; Southeastern Illinois College in Harrisburg, Ill.; and North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton, N.D. After getting his B.S. and M.S. in economics at Illinois State University, Gladfelter took a job at Midstate as an institutional researcher, and started teaching online courses. He lives in Chicago, but that is pretty much irrelevant. Here’s a look at his current sphere of influence:

Gladfelter agreed to answer some questions about his online teaching.

Q: How do you put together your various teaching positions and your curriculum?

A: I taught an online class or two at Midstate College, where I was hired as an institutional researcher out of graduate school. I found out that I had to move from the area and began asking myself questions such as: “Why couldn’t I still teach my classes from Chicago?” This led to the question, “Why couldn’t I teach classes at any school in the nation from Chicago?” Almost every higher-education institution in the country offers an introductory micro or macroeconomics class. Community colleges and smaller private colleges are experiencing a lot of growth from their online course offerings. Community colleges also rely heavily on adjunct instructors. I decided I was going to specialize in online introductory economics classes and target community colleges. Talk about division of labor.

I found a great resource that would help me in this goal. I sent my resume and cover letter out to several hundred institutions from coast to coast, and was denied by 99 percent of the schools. I was, however, able to make contact with a few deans and department chairs who were looking to hire adjunct faculty for economics. Some of the schools already used remote employees, but others I had to convince. In a field as new as online education, experience is a trump card. As I added courses, I became more appealing to other colleges. I also invested in top-of-the-line software and hardware with which to market myself. I am now at the point where I turn down classes because I don’t want to overextend myself.

Q: Who are your competitors?

A: Personally, I am competing for course assignments with anyone who traditionally teaches at a community college: the middle manager M.B.A. at a local corporation who wants some extra money and wants to take on a class or two to boost his resume; or the full-time faculty member at the college who has no incentive to take on extra courses because it doesn’t affect his salary. I don’t know of anyone else who specializes to the degree that I do, so competition with like-minded individuals is negligible.

"Reducing the Online Instructor’s Workload" -- good article

helenh — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 12:01:44 GMT

Reducing the Online Instructor’s Workload

Tips on designing and administering online courses can save faculty valuable time while producing high-quality content

By Rick Sheridan

Teaching an online course can be exciting, yet time-consuming to the point of infringing on an instructor’s other responsibilities and personal time. Faculty typically put many hours into designing and administering an online course, especially the first semester it is offered. I’ve heard many horror stories about the massive time faculty spent designing a new class only to practically start over when they discovered the need for a few changes in the content or format. Fortunately, there are ways to cut back on the time put into developing and teaching online courses. After teaching both an online and a hybrid course, I have discovered several ways to deliver high-quality content while reducing the typical workload requirements.

My first online teaching experience was with a hybrid class at California State University, Chico (CSUC), a social science course called Introduction to the Information Highway that I taught in 1999. The class met once a week, and the students used my Web site to complete some of the required work. I have also taught an entirely online Internet Healthcare Research class through the College of Marin Extension for the past five years. This class allows students to start at any time and work through the four modules at their own pace. The course also has performance objectives, case studies, and a reference section. Students who complete the course receive relicensure credit from the California Board of Registered Nurses.

Pros and Cons of Online

Most instructors are already familiar with the many advantages and disadvantages of online learning, but it’s worth going over a few of them here. Online courses are self-paced; students can speed up or slow down as needed. They can skip over material they already know and focus on topics they most want or need to learn. Geographical barriers are eliminated. For example, most of my Internet Healthcare Research students did not live in the area. They also appreciated the flexibility of the online format, since many of them had day jobs and family commitments. In addition, I have found that it is easier for some people to communicate through writing. In the hybrid class at CSUC, at least one shy student preferred sending e-mails or posting materials on the discussion forum to speaking face-to-face with an instructor or another student.

Despite the obvious advantages of online education, several disadvantages stand out. Often, both students and instructor must master a technological learning curve. Some students may be at the very beginning stages of understanding how to use the Internet, and the requirements of operating the online course may frustrate or overwhelm them. With online training, students have little or no direct contact with the instructor or support personnel. This makes it more difficult for a student with questions or one who does not understand part of the training to seek and obtain help.

In some cases, online students do not have the incentives and pressures of classroom-based students; they can become lazy and unfocused. I had several students who quietly dropped out of one of my online classes and later contacted me to ask for an extension. Online drop-outs are more difficult for an instructor to notice than in a classroom situation where daily attendance and participation indicate a student’s involvement.

Occasionally, bandwidth or browser limitations restrict student participation. Some students simply can’t afford a fast Internet connection, and they can get frustrated with the slow browsing experience. Finally, students sometimes complain about on-screen readability.

Managing Time for an Online Course

One way I learned to save time both for me and for students was by setting up a “What’s New” section at the beginning of the online course. In the past, I added content to whatever section seemed appropriate. Students either complained about not finding the new material or they simply did not respond adequately to the new assignments or lecture notes. Indicating what has been added at the beginning of the site makes it much easier for students to focus on the new material, and it also provides me with a quick reminder at the start of class about what needs to be covered in the discussion.

To make these courses easy to administer, I set up a discussion forum where students can post questions, comments, difficulties, and advice for other students. This encourages teamwork on some of the projects and allows students to “blow off steam” when they get frustrated. Another technique I use is to post a reference section that has more than 150 links to health-related sites, an explanation of basic and advanced Internet research techniques, a bibliography, and case studies, along with other resources. As students work through the modules, they see an occasional link to the reference section for additional information. This structure prevents the individual modules from becoming cluttered with too much general reference material while allowing me to quickly add related materials as they become available.

I have used the design structure of the Internet Healthcare Research class as a template for several other online courses. Although the content is much different, I use the same structure of four modules plus reference section. I simply add lecture notes and other resources into the template and modify the content to match the new performance objectives. This way, all the links and anchors work, and the course can be loaded easily to any available server.