All communications between students and instructor was done via the Internet. Those who have taught in the conventional expository method in which the instructor is the primary disseminator of information are forced to rethink their methods when offering a virtual course. Actively engage students by getting them involved in team activities and exercises. Do not transcribe lecture notes in text form. Present small segments of your lecture accompanied with exercises requiring student participation.
Timely responses are essential.
Establish schedules and divide the course into segments so that students can plan ahead, sign on, and complete assignments. The virtual classroom enables students to ask questions privately, encouraging students who would never venture to speak out in a traditional classroom to do so. Experts from around the world can be asked to participate in virtual lectures. For EDF 4998, the cost of asking a business technology entrepreneur to speak to the class was prohibitive. Arranging the presentation via the Internet was a far less costly alternative.