Instead, the university created a resource guide on the Internet called Faculty Development 101 . On the other hand, the Faculty Development 101 resources page has worked well for many faculty members at Penn State and elsewhere, says Mr. Ragan. The page tells professors how to create an online course as well as how to teach one. It explains such things as how faculty members can establish themselves as the focus of a course even though they're teaching without a lectern. It also gives advice on leading interactive discussions over the Internet.
Courses created by companies take much the same tack.
Parker Hudnut, director of operations and client service for the department of academic partnerships at University Access, says the company provides a two-week Web course that teaches faculty members both how to use new technology and how to succeed at online teaching. University Access offers the Web course to help faculty members teach the online business courses the company sells to universities. Faculty members learn how to use the software, and the company adds a component on how to teach more effectively online. One of the best ways instructors can learn to teach online is to see what their students will be seeing, he says. He says faculty members who take the course generally respond positively to the additional training.