Students are more likely to stay engaged if they see you as an expert who cares about their progress through your course. In online courses, the instructor is sometimes hidden behind all the preparatory work of curating and producing course content. As we begin the summer term, here are some strategies for establishing yourself as an active instructor who is engaged in the learning process for each of your students.

Introduce Yourself

A friendly introduction can help to build connection between you and your students. A short video is a great way to let learners get to know you as a person, but a written bio in your Canvas course works also. Tell them your background and what excites you about your research and teaching. How do you prefer to be addressed? Feel free to include your personal interests and how they can expect you to communicate with them throughout the course.

Welcome Students

At the beginning of the term, a welcome announcement is a great way to let learners know that your Canvas course is published and ready for them. Use some space on the home page to tell them how to get started in the course and what to expect. This demonstrates you have been planning this course for them and anticipating how they will interact with you and one another.

Provide Individualized Feedback

Regular, individualized messages—whether through email, discussion boards, or direct feedback—can make a profound difference in student experience, motivation, and success in digital spaces. Canvas includes many tools to make this easier for you, even with large classes. SpeedGrader allows you to leave voice or video comments on submitted assignments as well as within individualized comment boxes. The gradebook and inbox allow you to message students who have not yet completed an assignment or who score below a certain threshold. Letting students know that you are paying attention to their progress in the course helps reassure them that someone else is invested in their learning.

Make Regular Announcements

Show students you are anticipating their needs and reacting to their progress through short announcements that go out to everyone. These are a great opportunity to connect upcoming content to previous topics and the overall learning objectives for the course. You can remind students to be working ahead on longer-term assignments and encourage them to attend your student hours to discuss their ideas and questions.

Participate in Discussions

Discussion boards provide a great opportunity for learners to talk to one another and learn from their peers. As the facilitator of these discussions, feel free to jump in to reinforce good ideas, raise questions students haven’t considered, and draw higher level connections between what others have said. You don’t have to respond to every post, but contributing regularly to these conversations will encourage students to see them as more engaging learning opportunites instead of simply a task to check off.

We Want Your Feedback!

Clemson Online would like to hear from you about workshops and trainings you may have attended. If you haven’t attended any of our events, we would still like to know your thoughts about session topics and types. Please consider filling out the Training Survey; we will use this information to shape future events.

Upcoming Events

Quick Hits: Kaltura Video Quizzes

 Friday, May 9, 2025 3:00-4:00pm

Join us for “Quick Hits: Kaltura Video Quizzes” on Friday, May 9, from 3-4:00 pm! Join this training to learn more about how to create a video quiz in Kaltura with various question types, how to add a video quiz as a Canvas assignment and how to view quiz results. When registering, please include any questions you have about this training topic

Facilitated by Gray Jackson, Sr. Learning Tech Specialist.

Register here to receive the Zoom link.

Clemson Online Drop-ins

Monday, May 12, 11am-12pm; Tuesday, May 13, 2-3pm

Drop in for one-on-one support with Canvas. Whether you have a quick question or want support working on your own Canvas course, Clemson Online is here to help!

Click here to join via Zoom! Ensure you are logged into Zoom with your Clemson ID to access this meeting. 

Contact Millie Tullis with any questions. 

Clemson Online Summer 2025 Events Calendar

Review our Summer 2025 Events Calendar to see what Online Instruction Development opportunities await!

We have a robust lineup of topics and live training formats to support your use of Canvas and other e-learning tools. Topics cover demonstrations of using Kaltura, engaging your students, and workshops to get your Canvas site ready to teach!

All of our live training is recorded. Registrants will automatically receive a link to that day’s video after it has been processed.

Contact Millie Tullis with any questions regarding these sessions.

Clemson Online – Where Tech and Teaching Meet