Let's see if I can live tweet the panel discussion on Inclusive Teaching Online - @Barbiepanther12 is chairing the panel today! (is there a hashtag?)

We're starting with a "poll" of the room - how long have we all been teaching online? Using the Zoom "raise hand" function to gain a rough idea of who's in the room. Barbie doing a great Zoom tutorial at the same time.

Attendees had the option of submitting questions prior to today's panel and they have been collated. But we can also ask questions on the fly.

First q is to one of the student panel members - why did they choose to study online & what helped? Kim's response was that she liked the ability to "pop in" and "pop out" - so clear instructions, learning objectives, ability to directly interact with tutors.

Wow! Erica would have otherwise taken 5hrs to travel to uni so she attended from the local library. Access to the internet was limited. Meant that she had to do streaming activities while she was there - downloading would have been really helpful.

Also - outdated technology meant that she had some difficulties in trying to get some newer programs to work, which increased the amount of time she had to spend on her studies waiting for things to fix themselves.

A/Prof Jan West is now sharing her experience putting her practical classes online. She had about 6 days to sort it out...including videoing all the pracs for the semester. It was a slog but they got there in collaboration with techs & demonstrators.

In addition to the videoed pracs (which provided students with the data required for their assignment), they ran Zoom sessions during the prac times so they could interact on top of discussion forums. Initial feedback from students found that it was a good format.

Barbie now brings us around to the idea of inclusivity in online environments. The big difficulty which the pre-questions picked up on is how do you get a sense of who your students are online?

Naomi David from NIKERI points out that there are many groups of students who might not prefer online learning, but have to do it now since this is the only thing possible. To enable sharing of situations - Naomi says she usually shares something about herself first.

And then she links this with a collaborative exercise - something about thinking, doing, or feeling, where everyone considers their own experiences. If we want students to be open, we also have to be open ourselves as teachers.

In addition to this @Dr_JoElliott reminds us to pre-plan these types of activities, and assume that some students might not know how 'online learning' works. You can then pre-empt some of the common queries and dilemmas. Building this into design will help a lot.

Now @brettmclennan summarises it well - we need to acknowledge & show our vulnerability in this online world in terms of getting to know each other. Consider also what is appropriate to share, what isn't, for a particular context.

Student Erica also says that making yourselves relatable is really important. It makes you feel accessible and approachable, and that you are human. Icebreakers are a great idea (with leading questions) to get everyone involved. Make it a little more bounded.

Eek. Peter Vuong chairs a first year accounting unit with now 1400 students online. Online design is important - ensure it's easy to use. Also need more frequent communications (more than weekly announcements) - emails, discussion forums, video messages.

Also, mix up the content mediums. In addition to readings, powerpoint slides, videos, can also look at polls, online resources, library textbooks, H5P content, gamification.

Accessibility online: Student Kim reinforces the point about design. Naming conventions are important, also where they are stored within the system. Reduce the friction of the system!!! And contact is also really important on an individual basis.

Different students do like to engage in different ways - @Dr_JoElliott reminds us that it's not just students with hearing impairments that can benefit from transcripts. Can also help with low bandwidth issues. EAL students might want to double check jargon. Also provide the ppt.

Also, podcasts and audio content might be helpful if students aren't able to access a screen, or if they need to have their eyes elsewhere. WRT to discussion forums, it's okay if students 'lurk' - doesn't mean they aren't paying attention! Could be shy, likely still to be reading

YESSSS. @brettmclennan says Learning Styles are Not A Thing. Students might have preferences but it's not an all or nothing thing. Context and situation determine how students get things done. Consider multiple resources. Videos can be clumsy and challenging.

Now we're on to group assessments. :'( Student Erica felt disheartened when people weren't on the same timeline and contributing to a group assessment. Requiring an agreed plan for group contributions at the outset helps with this. Focus on participation rather than product.

hehee. Naomi David points out that universally group work is disliked so you know that everyone will be on the same page. Consider carefully how you set up the task to make it relevant to students' future potential lives.

She also has a suggestion that the group task is formative, and then summative assessment is individual which includes reflection on the learning of collaboration and teamwork.

Hmm I hadn't really considered the semantics but @Dr_JoElliott points out calling it "teamwork" implies everyone has roles, strengths, things they will be bringing to the team, and that this is quite authentic to what students will be doing beyond uni. So don't call it groupwork

Peter Vuong also adds that in a team, sum of parts will be greater than individual efforts. He usually asks his students - "would you trust somebody else to take a test for you?" as part of establishing group expectations, and suggests getting written agreement.

Now @JaqiBFT chimes in - need to provide non-judgemental, safe and welcoming learning environments. Putting students in smaller groups (e.g. in BBCollaborate sessions) might help them feel they can discuss and share with just a few others, rather than 100s.

Also she likes to take things outside of the LMS setting - she thinks 95% of her unit has joined her on Facebook and it's nice to see the students where they are - helps with being personable. LiveChat and SMS are also possible individual, private strategies.

Student Erica identifies a significant drawback - if you are not participating in synchronous discussion, then you lose ability to ask live qs and make better sense of material. However she was worried about being called upon to contribute when she wasn't ready to.

So it does come back to ensuring a safe environment. Jan West also reminds us that you can compile (anonymously) all the questions and responses to circulate back to everyone, if students have approached you individually etc. Having tutors/demonstrators available also good.

Some words from @brettmclennan - it's clear there is a lot of useful information swimming out there in discussion forums - we should start to mine this and put an FAQ together. It also can act as a mirror to teaching practice - what haven't we been clear about?

Now Julia Savage is summarising the discussion for us: there are multiple ways of engaging online. Diversity in communication/interaction and content will help with accessibility and engagement. Students want to know that teachers are there with them.

Steve Morgan from DRC now reports on what the current situation is around transition to online. It can be really positive for some students, but others are feeling isolated and stressed. These are uncertain times. Useful to have the 3wk no med cert required extension provision.

We might assume that some adjustments are "solved" by take-home exams etc - but this isn't necessarily the case. Some students really value the support they receive on-campus.

Nicole, a Disability Liaison Officer also sharing student experiences - DLOs are really helpful in enabling access to education. Universities also have facilities which are valued for students in these unprecedented times - study spaces, showers, toilets.

Now onto assessments - with the switch to online most units have a combo of forum participation, written assignments, quizzes, occasional exam. If it's not possible to do one kind of assessment, would be good to have an alternate option (or otherwise need to take a hit to marks)

So here we are at choice/flexibility in assessment. @JaqiBFT describes how students were able to choose a topic that they were interested in, and multiple formats for submission, video plus written (allowing for strengths), and gave fb. I think this is it: http://newmediaresearch.educ.monash.edu.au/feedback/case-studies-of-effective-feedback/case-study-2/

Student Erica really emphasises need for clear assessment information - what does it look like, what are they expected to do, how does the platform work - so they can focus on the content. Natural when faced with new formats not to know what exactly to do.

Also @brettmclennan reminds us to consider not the "ideal student" but all students who will be using it. E.g. drag and drop matching tasks might be novel and entertaining but realistically difficult for a range of students to do (when content could be tested more simply)

First q. How do we encourage our peers (teachers) to interact more with students? Peter responds that it's difficult to get ppl to do "extra" work but suggests we act as role models - and forums like this are great.

Second q. what approach do you take to accommodate a diversity of student goals and approaches. @Dr_JoElliott suggests having activities that allow students to take pathways and explore what matters to them in depth.

Heh. @brettmclennan thinks of learning design like Victorian garden design - what are the major pathways, what are the spaces off to the side to rest, reflect, take them beyond the typical pathway? We need to ensure there are spaces to think and reflect, synthesise.

So, we're winding up. Thanks to Mary Dracup for arranging everything, and @Barbiepanther12 for chairing!