How present are you in your classes? If you teach face-to-face or hybrid sections, you may have an easier time responding to this question than if you teach fully online. When physically present in the classroom, it’s easy to take it for granted that students are able to see you, hear you, and respond to you. But in a fully online environment, especially one that doesn’t hold real-time sessions, it can be a challenge to establish your presence as the professor. 

Enter the weekly video update. The authors of a widely cited article published in The Internet and Higher Education report that asynchronous video “made their instructors seem more real, present, and familiar… similar to face-to-face instruction.”  This finding should resonate with instructors, who despite teaching online in increasing numbers still report feeling that online learning is less effective than face-to-face teaching.  

For an example of how one DePaul professor uses weekly updates, watch how Matt Ragas, who teaches in the College of Communication, gives updates to his students in his online public relations class earlier this quarter.

A few observations for what makes this video so effective:

• Using a simple prop to grab and maintain attention, Matt tells a story about how his mom bought him a big fluffy hat for Christmas. Telling stories or anecdotes such as these can help build common ground between instructors and students and create a welcoming environment.
• Referring back to the previous week’s assignments, Matt offers additional recommendations and clarifies points of confusion. He also praises exemplary student work, highlighting specifically what makes it stand out.  
• Matt also offers a preview of the next week, reminding students of the readings and assignments that they need to complete. He stresses the importance of keeping up with deadlines and underscores that the first exam will occur after the next module.

Matt is able to do all of this from his home office in under 7 minutes. Of course, planning for the video took longer, but keeping the video brief while still delving into substantial issues is key.

Do you do something similar in the courses you teach? Feel free to share your own example in a comment. You can even embed a video if you’d like!