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The Changing Landscape of Online Education Report No. 4

Changing Landscape of Online Education

If you’ve worked in higher education, you know that change is inevitable. It’s a fact of life in many industries, but higher education has seen meaningful changes in the last few years. A massive rise in online education has placed new strains on higher education institutions. Many education leaders struggle to keep abreast amidst this changing landscape of online education.

The Changing Landscape of Online Education Report, also known as CHLOE, is a report that helps online educators understand the current state of the industry and future trends. To help maximize your time and allow you to better prepare for the continually evolving online education industry, Instructional Connections noted some key findings from CHLOE Report 4. The original research can be linked here but read on for some topline summaries. 

Specific & Unprecedented Challenges For Higher Ed

The coronavirus emergency forced higher education institutions to change their online infrastructure in days and saw a massive shift to online education. This lateral brought thousands of students into online education who might not have otherwise considered it. 

While many have returned to the classroom, the infrastructure to support massive online education is still up and running. More institutions are offering a more significant number of online education courses. Students, particularly non-traditional students, are increasingly leveraging these courses as they fit into busy lives better than in-person learning. 

The Changing Landscape of Online Education Report 4

CHLOE 4 attempts, like previous CHLOE reports, to shed more light on higher education institutions’ priorities, challenges, and successes as they navigate a constantly evolving online education environment. 

Previous CHLOE reports have noted that online education has continuously evolved – considerably in the past few years – and there is no single way of mainstreaming online education. New needs and challenges force online education leaders to respond and adapt, and CHLOE attempts to chronicle those adaptions. 

The Chief Online Officer Role 

The title of Chief Online Officer is a crucial focus of online education studies. This role suggests an organization committed to interweaving online education as part of the fabric of its modus operandi. Research has highlighted that most of these positions were created within the last decade. While some 15% of roles were established before the millennium, most were created post-2010. 

The rise of this role is in line with the specific duties and responsibilities that Chief Online Officers face. CHLOE 4 looked at self-reporting work duties of Chief Online Officers and found that some 61% of Chief Online Officers found their tasks and workload increasing. Only 4% found their duties decreasing. This research shows that Chief Online Officers are becoming increasingly important in online education. 

CHLOE 4 analyzes third-party Online Partner Managers (OPMs) as a potential resource for higher education institutions. Some 24% of the CHLOE sample used third-party OPMs in the latest sample, up from 15% from CHLOE 1 in 2017. 

Upon further investigation, the reasons Chief Online Officers turn to OPMs appear varied. The most common reasons higher education institutions turn to OPMs include additional OPM expertise, rapid scaling of online education programs, and rapid development. Indeed, the function of the OPM partners used by online education providers is even more diverse in the CHLOE 4 sample. Depending on the specific partner, OPM duties varied from marketing online programs to helping faculty build programs to proctoring exams. 

Learnings & Next Steps

The critical goals of CHLOE 5 are varied. Student needs for online education, specifically by region, institution, and type, will be analyzed further. CHLOE 5 also aims to investigate where the most significant potential for future online education lies, and CHLOE 5 will study differences in field of study and degree type. 
Instructional Connections is proud to sponsor this research and is thankful for the opportunity to support the CHLOE studies.

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The Role of Our Academic Coaches: A Guide

Academic coaches working on a computer

Online learning is becoming increasingly popular, and it’s easy to see why. Many factors, such as technological advancements and an increase in the number of working professionals seeking career advancement through education, have all combined to make online learning a viable and more desirable option for students. 

Higher education institutions are investing more and more resources into properly supporting and scaling their online learning environments. That’s a wise decision. All relevant forecasts suggest that online learning will only continue to rise in subsequent years, and higher education institutions would do well to invest in their online learning methodologies, processes, and partners. 

However, every opportunity presents new challenges. Many higher education institutions have turned to new avenues to help properly support their faculty and instructors in managing larger online learning environments. Instructional Connections’ Academic Coaches are one such method. These dedicated and highly qualified instructional support staff offer unique benefits to the institutions, their faculty members, and the students within the online courses and programs. Read on to learn how our Academic Coaches help higher education institutions maximize their faculty and provide the best possible classroom experiences and outcomes. 

Problems Institutions of Higher Education Face

Larger Class Sizes

A larger class size is certainly a good problem, but can pose a problem nonetheless. Larger class sizes come with a broader assortment of tasks and responsibilities for the faculty member. This is true whether in person or online. 

However, online courses can typically allow more students to enroll than traditional in-person classes with physical space limitations. A typical in-person classroom setting might be confined to only 20-50 students, while an online course could accommodate up to 100-200 students. As a result of these larger class sizes, faculty members might find themselves overwhelmed and struggling to keep up with the rigorous demands associated with supporting and managing the increase in student enrollment. 

Decrease In Quality

Rushing to enroll students in online learning can come with challenges. The more students there are in a course, the harder it can be for the faculty members to meet their needs adequately. The volume of emails, messages, and grading necessary increases with every student, and many faculty members cannot run the course the way they would if they had fewer students. The result is that the course might become more streamlined, auto-graded and simplistic. This makes the class more straightforward to manage but can lessen the quality of the class if it is not done with intention and in alignment with the best practices to assess each student’s learning properly.

Delays

Virtual communication is critical to online learning. Digital forms of communication help give students answers, impart feedback, and keep classes abreast of deadlines. However, while digital communication makes many an online learning course, it can quickly become overwhelming for the faculty member. 

An online learning course instructor could receive dozens and dozens of emails from students. Keeping up with that volume of work in and of itself can be a daunting task. It quickly becomes too much for many faculty members as they also are trying to grade, plan coursework, attend continuing education, and teach while having some semblance of a personal life. This usually results in delays in responses, which can hurt student outcomes and leave students feeling disenfranchised. A question left unanswered about course material can leave a student discouraged and disgruntled. 

This becomes especially problematic when leading an online learning course with non-traditional students (working professionals). These students are much more likely to send emails/questions late at night or over the weekend, which is usually when faculty members are trying to catch up on grading and make time for their family life. Understandably, instructors may be less likely respond to email questions in a timely manner over the weekend. Still, it’s understandable that students might be frustrated if it takes a few days to answer a simple question. Even more so, if the student is unable to get an answer regarding an assignment before that assignment is due.

How Our Academic Coaches Can Help

Saving Time

Our Academic Coaches are an additional asset for the faculty member to provide some instructional support, which multiplies their effectiveness as a course leader and faculty of record. When pressed about their challenges, course instructors are likely to put lack of bandwidth as a critical challenge. When an Instructional Connections Academic Coach works under the direction of the faculty, the Academic Coach can assist with some forms of correspondence with students, grade assignments per the faculty rubrics and inter-rater reliability, and aid with some of the more tedious and time-consuming course tasks. This frees the instructor to focus on being more strategic with their course, ensuring academic integrity, increasing student satisfaction, improving student outcomes, and making the class more enjoyable for all parties involved. 

Increasing Quality

With this amount of time back, instructors can focus on improving the quality of the course. What was the average score on the last test? How does that compare to past tests? What areas are students struggling to comprehend? Do I need to work directly with the identified at-risk students and/or need a referral to other university resources? With additional time, instructors can focus on higher-level concepts to improve student outcomes.

Providing Quicker Responses and Grading

An online course can go by in the blink of an eye, especially if it is not a traditional semester, 15-16 week course, but an accelerated course (5 to 9 weeks long). Delays in providing instruction support or grading assignments an additional week or two can significantly impact student outcomes. Many higher education online courses will have one or more assignments and graded discussion threads due each week. Failure to provide feedback promptly might result in students making the same mistakes on consecutive assignments. Instructional Connections Academic Coaches provide additional instructional support to ensure that grading and substantive feedback are given in a timely manner as assigned using inter-rater reliability activities prescribed by the faculty, resulting in a more streamlined and effective course. 

Partner with Instructional Connections

Are you an institution of higher education looking to support your faculty within their online courses? Our Academic Coaches are perfect for supporting your instructors and improving student outcomes and experience.

Our Academic Coaches are:

  • Industry Professionals with graduate degrees in their area of expertise/subject matter area.
  • Fully Vetted and Contracted by Instructional Connections
  • Approved by the university and programs for which they are assigned with the online courses.
  • Strategic partners to our institution’s leadership and their faculty members.

Interested in learning how our Academic Coaches can help your institution better student outcomes? Contact Instructional Connections today to learn more!

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5 Online Learning Challenges and How to Overcome Them

Online Learning Challenges and their fixes

Despite the popularity of online learning, it’s not for everyone. While online learning offers flexibility, convenience, and access to a broader range of courses, it also presents challenges for virtual teaching assistants, professors, and students. Let’s explore the everyday challenges of online learning and strategies to overcome them.

Online Learning Challenges Experienced by Students

1. Technical Difficulties

It’s common for students to experience frequent technical issues during online learning. These technical issues can range from poor internet connection to malfunctioning hardware or software, which can cause delays and disruptions that make it difficult for students to follow the lesson plan and complete their assignments on time.

One strategy to manage technical difficulties is ensuring students have access to reliable technology, including a good internet connection, up-to-date hardware and software, and adequate technical support. It is also helpful for faculty to provide professors and students with clear guidelines and resources for troubleshooting technical issues.

2. Time Management and Staying Motivated

Online learning requires self-discipline and time management skills. Without the structure of a physical classroom, it can be challenging for students to stay on track and avoid procrastination. Aside from that, the lack of face-to-face interaction with professors and peers can lead to feelings of isolation and demotivation.

To help improve time management, professors should provide students with a clear schedule and expectations for coursework and assignments. Professors can also encourage students to create their own daily or weekly schedule that includes time for coursework, assignments, and other responsibilities. Another option is to establish regular check-ins to support and give students accountability.

To stay motivated in online learning, professors and students should set goals, establish a daily routine, stay connected with peers, take regular breaks, and celebrate achievements. These strategies provide direction, structure, support, and positivity to help overcome the challenges of virtual education and stay engaged throughout the learning process.

3. Students Being Left Behind

Distance learning can also pose a challenge for students who struggle to keep up with the course pace, particularly those with learning disabilities or diverse learning styles. In-person support from professors isn’t always available in online courses, which further accentuates these challenges.

To avoid students getting left behind, professors can provide additional resources and support for struggling students. This can include tutoring services, online resources, or small group sessions.

4. Distractions Everywhere

Many distractions can interfere with studying and learning. Social media, email, and other online platforms can quickly distract students from their coursework and make it challenging to stay focused.

Professors should set clear guidelines for online behavior during class to overcome distractions – like turning off devices and avoiding certain websites. Encouraging a dedicated study area and using productivity tools like apps or browser extensions can also aid their focus.

5. Socializing With Peers

The lack of face-to-face interaction with professors and peers can lead to feelings of loneliness and disconnection, which tends to happen with students who thrive on social interaction.

Professors should facilitate opportunities for students to collaborate and connect with peers, including online forums or discussion groups, virtual study groups, and group assignments. Regular office hours, social activities, and community-building exercises can foster these connections.

Simplifying Online Learning With Instructional Connections


Online learning challenges are common among students. By understanding the challenges and implementing strategies to overcome them, professors and students can successfully navigate online learning environments.

At Instructional Connections, we understand these challenges and do our best to simplify the online learning experience. We offer a unique Academic Coaching Model that provides universities with student-centric and faculty-centric support. Our services are designed to address the needs of universities facing the 21st-century demand for online degree programs and courses.

Let us help you overcome these challenges. Call us at 888-221-2418 or contact us through our website.

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Five Common Questions About Virtual Teaching Assistants

Virtual Teaching Assistants working on a laptop

Every college or university faces online-learning difficulties due to its various challenges. Teaching in a distance learning environment can be overwhelming, but it’s extremely rewarding for all parties involved when done correctly.

Since many universities and colleges pursue online teaching or have a hybrid system, Instructional Connections focuses on improving virtual learning with teaching assistants. 

In this article, we’ll answer the top five questions about teaching assistants and explain how they benefit university programs.

What are Your Teaching Assistants’ Qualifications?

At a minimum, all Instructional Connections Teaching Assistants (TA) have a master’s degree, but many have doctoral degrees. Our TAs are familiar with university lectures in virtual environments and understand how to improve student learning by encouraging their independence.

Professors can expect diligence, professionalism, and extra support from our TA to carry out the lectures successfully despite all online challenges. In other words, the TAs assist in grading and potentially monitoring discussion threads.

How do you Choose Teaching Assistants?

We value knowledge, dedication, and respect for the educational system. We are dedicated to improving virtual courses and employ only quality matches that recognize and appreciate our profession. Therefore, we conduct a strict pre-employment process before we assign you a TA. 

We review each applicant thoroughly, and if we consider them a good fit for our board, we invite the TA for a 4-6 hour-long screening process. During the screening, we assess their methodology, knowledge of online courses, and ways they could improve as a virtual assistant.

How Does the Academic Coaching Model Improve the Virtual Classroom?

One of the most common issues with virtual classrooms was passiveness due to isolation, resulting in low motivation among students. Many professors simply need to engage students and improve the atmosphere.

The Academic Coaching Model animates the class. Our TAs interact with students by monitoring discussion threads if requested. This helps them build an excellent foundation for independent learning.

How Does the Professor-Teaching Assistant Relationship Work?

The professor and TA have a straightforward relationship where the professor enlists their expectations of the approved and assigned Academic Coach. The professor has to arrange the objectives and roles of the month in advance, followed by the Teaching Assistant.

Can I Choose a Teaching Assistant?

Yes! The first stage of arranging an Instructional Connections TA is setting up a meeting. We must discuss your teaching program regardless if it’s a college, university, or course-specific type of teaching. You will have to explain your objectives, so we can match you with a fitting teaching assistant in the field. Once you choose one, we train our TAs to adjust to your program, plans for meeting the course objectives, and overall teaching methodology.

Hire a Virtual TA

Discuss your needs with Instructional Connections and see how our Virtual Teaching Assistants can enhance your distance learning environment!If you have any further questions, feel free to contact us at any time. We’re here to help!

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Time-Saving Hacks for Teachers

Time-Saving Hacks in education

Time management is an essential part of everyone’s life. This is especially true for academic coaches with specific duties requiring careful planning. Many faculty report working around 54 hours per week, 

One can find numerous time management advice and solutions that could help with the organization of tasks. Yet, there is no magic recipe for managing time for any specific area.

Here are some hacks that can help academic coaches stay organized and manage their time better. 

Organization is Key

Time management means organizing all aspects of your life at home and work. Ideally, you’d want to do all tasks structured and efficiently. To have uninterrupted flow in your daily tasks, arrange and label items in your working environment in a way that structures your day but does not overwhelm you. 

To-do List and Routine Tasks

Check which of your routine tasks can be automated, delegated, or adjusted. Identify the most important ones and find ways to deal with the rest to save time.

Little organizational reminders like writing down your to-do list to avoid forgetting something can help. Remember to write even minor tasks, especially if they are time-sensitive. Once done, list the tasks by level of importance and plan your day accordingly.

If you benefit from an Academic Coach or Teaching Assistant assigned to your online course, delegate some tasks to them, such as grading or answering simple emails.  Be sure to provide detailed rubrics and inter-rater reliability activities to ensure the grading will be consistent with your standards and expectations.

The Importance of Planning Your Day

Try to estimate how much time you’ll need to complete a certain task. Allocating sufficient time to complete a task and ticking it off the to-do list will allow you to promptly complete it and move on to the next. This way, you can focus on completing one task before starting another and getting your work to flow smoothly.

Avoid picking one task, completing it halfway, and starting on something else. This will only create a chaotic and unproductive day.

Utilize Technology to Its Full Extent

Technology was invented to make our lives easy. Use all the available relevant technology for your online course. Use online planners for yourself and reach out to social groups or forums to share best practices or resources.

Enjoy all the help you can get from relevant programs. This will make your job easier and allow you more time to complete other tasks. 

Procrastination Is the Enemy

Putting off things we don’t like doing for later is another way of wasting time and still having to complete those things. Finish the things you must do before the things you enjoy doing. Remove all possible obstacles interrupting you during working hours and obtain a tunnel-vision mentality – focusing on one task at a time. 

For example, people spend a lot of time reading emails and not replying immediately, only to re-read them so they can respond. Email notifications can interrupt your working process, so turn them off. Choose a time when you will read and answer emails so you don’t feel distracted and aren’t split-tasking, which will slow you down.

The Best Online Academic Coach for Your Distance Learning Program

Instructional Connections is a third-party service provider of high-quality, asynchronous instructional support services to colleges and universities that offer online courses and degree programs. IC provides “Academic Coaches” to institutions that offer online courses and programs with a highly effective, scalable, and affordable instructional model. This model enables the faculty of record to focus and manage their time effectively on delivering learning objectives and outcomes while allowing the institution to scale the course to meet student enrollment demands.

Contact us today for any inquiries you may have, and we’ll be happy to provide the information you need.

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What Makes a Good Virtual TA/Academic Coach?

Academic Coach working on a computer

According to data from UNESCO, more than 1.2 billion students globally had stopped having face-to-face classes by mid-May 2020. When the majority of students worldwide switched from face-to-face to remote schooling, the faculty’s workload increased. Syllabi had to be replanned because the learning methods were changing to meet online realities and needs.

But virtual teaching has been around for quite some time and requires a special skill set. This article will discuss what makes a good Academic Coach.

Characteristics of a Good Academic Coach

Whether you’re an online or offline teaching assistant, the role requires you to possess certain skills and characteristics.

Be Compassionate

Compassion is crucial feedback that affects the overall learning progress of a student. Therefore, it’s an important skill for an Academic Coach to have. Understanding the students’ struggles and the faculty’s needs is essential for successful collaboration. 

Be Flexible

Academic Coaches must be able to adjust to changes. Sometimes during online requirements, students will face various challenges beyond their control, like technical issues or additional questions. Academic Coaches must adapt to the student’s and faculty’s needs efficiently. That’s why flexibility is the second most important skill for Academic Coaches.

Be Highly Organized

Academic Coaches are there for support during online courses. The successful collaboration between the faculty and the Academic Coach depends on good organization, effective time management, and planning. Therefore, the third imperative for this role is proper time management and overall organization.

Be Able to Communicate Efficiently

Academic Coaches are the bridge between students and professors. Keeping a steady and efficient communication flow is vital for achieving the best results. It’s also essential to actively listen and connect with the students and faculty members. 

Best Tips for an Effective Virtual Teaching Assistant

We’ve gone over some skills that make an excellent Academic Coach. Now let’s go over the best ways to master the role!

Know Your Field

All Academic Coaches must have a good level of subject knowledge. Academic Coaches aren’t only there to provide instructional support to students but to help them with any issues that may follow. Also, as Academic Coaches aren’t only communicating with students and professors, it’s crucial to learn more about professors’ teaching ideologies, habits, and the communication methods they use.

Have Patience

Some people have it naturally, while others have to work on it – either way, it’s paramount. The role of the Academic Coach makes even the calmest person work on their patience. You must anticipate various difficulties, problems, and last-minute changes. But, in all cases, you must respond professionally. 

Learn More with Instructional Connections

Our team at Instructional Connections is dedicated to improving online teaching by assisting faculty and universities. Our services help educational institutions face the challenges and demands of online degrees and courses. We are known for our high-quality instructional support services for both colleges and universities. 

If you are interested in becoming an Academic Coach with Instructional Connections, please apply HERE.

 If your institution is interested to learn more about implementing our Academic Coaches for the online course offerings at your university or college, please contact us.

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How Virtual Teaching Assistants Can Help Your Distance Learning

Virtual Teaching Assistants Helping Distance Learning

The pandemic sparked an online learning boom out of necessity, but it addressed and highlighted the benefits of virtual teaching and distance learning. In some countries, distance learning is even touted as a solution to gain more interest in specific subjects, such as STEM.

Instructional Connections has always been at the front of online learning with our virtual teaching assistants for our University partners. But as virtual and online learning is changing and advancing rapidly, creating a more popular learning system that goes beyond a simple online platform, our virtual teaching assistants can assist even more in this changing climate.

Here are just a few ways our virtual teaching assistants can help in an online learning environment:

Email Communication with Students

Our virtual teaching assistants will answer emails within 24 hours, even if it’s simply to say, “I will research that.” or “I will get further information from the Professor.”

Many courses span holidays, and our 24-hour expectation is applied with common sense, as some course-related correspondence may be briefly delayed on high holidays such as Christmas day or Yom Kippur, while Thanksgiving holiday (which is a traditionally high-volume day in distance learning) correspondence will still be answered promptly.

Our virtual teaching assistants may scale back some aspects of their course assistance on the day of a national holiday, but will still check their emails at least once for time-sensitive questions. If they will be unavailable for 24 hours, they will always let the professor know in advance, though this is a rare occurrence.

Answering Course Content Questions

Your virtual teaching assistant can answer content questions from students as their specialty or professional experience will match with course content or subjects.

Additionally, in a weekly meeting between your virtual teaching assistant and the faculty of record, answers can be approved in advance or additional material provided to help the flow of information be expedited while keeping accuracy. On the same weekly calls, grading expectations for upcoming assignments can be discussed to ensure that the grading standards are met.

Answering Technology Questions

Your virtual teaching assistant will quickly become familiar with the LMS to be able to guide your students through common technology issues. Your virtual teaching assistant will thoroughly read online manuals and resources available for your LMS.

Further, your virtual teaching assistant will easily assist students in submitting documents, locating online readings, and other routine technology needs. They will provide the first level of technical support, saving hours and frustration for the faculty of record and the student.

Reporting Technology Glitches or Student Problems According to University Guidelines

Your virtual teaching assistant will report any glitches or issues seen over a course duration. All glitches are recorded and addressed, whether strictly technical or a typo in the information provided. Problems within the LMS used are rare but can be calmly responded to as the class or student waits for a repair.

Errors are also reported in order to check on the same issue in other sections or future courses. Your virtual teaching assistant contributes to the goal of continuous improvement of all courses – which means their input, the faculty of record, and student input is valued.

Additionally, if a problem emerges with a student or from a student, your virtual teaching assistant can turn to their chain of command and the faculty of record. A timely acknowledgment will be provided to the student, even while further guidance is oncoming from the supervisor or faculty of record.

Grading & Assignment Feedback

Your virtual teaching assistants are also able to respond and grade student submissions within 72 hours so that students may benefit from feedback before their next assignment is due.

Our virtual teaching assistants begin grading early submissions as soon as they arrive, which ensures grades are promptly returned. All teaching assistants also familiarize themselves with rubrics ahead of time to assure more accurate grading.

Grading is assigned by the faculty of record. This means that grading is not simply following a rubric, but also through additional directions provided by faculty. This includes completing inter-rater reliability activities with the faculty to ensure that all grading with be consistent with the faculty’s expectations.

Our Virtual Teaching Assistants Are Here for Universities & the Future of Higher Education Distance Learning

Instructional Connections believes in bolstering the advancement of virtual learning through communication, knowledge, and teamwork. Our company provides University students with talented virtual teaching assistants who can adapt to educational needs and employ different resources to foster better distance learning results and success.

Contact us today to learn about our virtual teaching assistant services, and discover more about the high level of teaching assistance we offer our University partners.

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The Role of a Virtual Teaching Assistant in Online Learning

Role of a Virtual Teaching Assistant in Online Learning

More and more people are finally taking notice of online learning’s many benefits, with some finally accepting that many students perform better in this learning environment. However, there’s no denying how hard the shift to online learning is for some students and teachers.

This is an excellent opportunity for virtual teaching assistants to showcase how much their profession can contribute to this new way of learning in university and college courses.

But what exactly is a virtual teaching assistant’s role in online learning? This article discusses some of the essential roles virtual teaching assistants play in the online learning environment. 

Dealing with Online Course Documents

Online documentations have become a crucial part of online teaching. Whether that’s reports, assessments, records, and learning materials, all of these have moved into the digital space. Despite the shift to digital copies, these documents are still just as important as ever.

For virtual teaching assistants, one of their roles is to familiarize themselves with all the different types of digital files needed for their online learning course. These could be documents, spreadsheets, presentations, or PDF files.

Teaching assistants must know how online documentation works to help teachers troubleshoot issues, store documents to the Cloud, and do other tasks related to digital paperwork. They also maintain all compliance with federal and state laws regarding confidentiality and the security of protected information.

Fostering Student-to-Student Discussion & Interaction

One of the first possible casualties of online learning is student-to-student interaction. During an online course, most students are limited to interacting with the teacher only. Meanwhile, the teacher may be preoccupied with creating and delivering lessons.

Virtual teaching assistants are in the perfect position to lessen the teacher’s tasks and foster student discussion and interaction. Teaching assistants may help the teacher conduct student-to-student dialogue during the course.

Teaching assistants may help the teacher provide instructions for when, where, and how students can participate in virtual discussions.

It could be done by dedicating time from lesson delivery to activities like group discussions or turning a classroom session into an open forum. These activities may prove too much for teachers; teaching assistants can help in these activities.

Maintaining Clear Lines of Communication

Communication is an integral part of classroom education, even more so in the digital space. Students may have questions, clarifications, and feedback, but these can often be neglected due to a teacher’s hectic schedule.

Virtual teaching assistants can help maintain student-teacher communication by acting as the person in the middle. Teaching assistants can answer students’ questions, take note of feedback, report at-risk students or other issues for the teacher to address.

Teaching assistants can also monitor online class forums and message boards for any messages or posts. They can be the go-to person for students requiring clarification regarding projects and activities, which frees the teacher from extra tasks while providing students with someone they can reach out to.

Virtual teaching assistants are essential in modern education, especially since the world is quickly becoming digital. It’s more important than ever for teachers and educational institutions to invest in the many benefits teaching assistants can provide

.Instructional Connections is a leading provider of high-quality instructional support services to colleges and universities. If you’re interested in our virtual teaching assistants, contact us today, and our team will answer all your inquiries!
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Five Major Trends in Online Education

student working in an Online Education class

Education technology has experienced steady growth and adoption even before the pandemic, with edtech investments reaching $18.66 billion in 2019. However, the COVID-19 crisis has affected around 1.6 billion students, most of whom migrated to online platforms to continue their education.

More than a year into the pandemic, online learning has seen enormous changes. And despite the crisis slowly receding, experts believe online education will continue to grow. 

Here are five major online education trends that will shape the learning landscape globally.

Nano-Learning

Nano-learning is a learning modality where the student receives condensed, bite-sized information across a shorter time frame. It provides learners with quick and entertaining content that holds on to their notoriously shortening attention span. 

Examples of nano-learning include short soundbites or one-minute videos seen on platforms like TikTok and Twitter. 

Researchers argue that nano-learning is effective because it follows the Pareto principle: 80% of learning outcomes result from applying 20% of effort learning. In addition, nano-learning supports different learning styles, including visual and auditory learning.

Micro-Credentials Powered by MOOCs

Massive open online classes or MOOCs saw exponential growth during the pandemic. Coursera, for instance, recorded 640% more enrollments from mid-March to mid-April 2020 compared to the same period in 2019. Meanwhile, Udemy also recorded a 400% enrollment surge between February and March.

MOOCs continue to gain traction among employees, who use online learning platforms to earn micro-credentials and nano-degrees — both qualifications that demonstrate mastery in specialized skills. 

MOOCs are a powerful tool for professional advancement that brand giants like Amazon and Google partner with Udacity, a popular MOOC provider, to give their employees an avenue to earn marketable skills. 

Gamification

Gamification is a strong contender in the future of online education. It’s the use of game-based elements like point scoring and competition to improve learning outcomes. And it has been enjoying steady growth. In 2015, the gamification industry was valued at $2 billion, but experts predict that that figure will increase to $11.42 billion by the end of 2021.

The factor that makes gamification effective is that it increases engagement. In a 2018 survey, 89% of participants said that if their task is gamified, they feel motivated to complete it. In fact, it gets them into a competitive mood!

Students also perform better when learning is gamified. A 2020 study showed that challenge-based gamification enhanced student performance by up to 89.45% compared to only attending lectures.

Open Education Resources (OER) 

Open Educational Resources or OERs are learning and research materials stored in the public domain or released under an open license. These can be used and distributed by learners at no cost and with no or limited restrictions. 

More and more higher education instructors are aware of OERs. And faculty awareness of OER increased by 5 percentage points from 2019 to 2020. These faculty also expressed a stronger belief in the quality of OERs.

With students paying an average of $1240 on books and supplies every year, OERs are expected to be an enduring online learning trend in higher education distance learning courses. And because OERs are free, students don’t have to deal with the effects of high textbook costs, like taking fewer courses or getting lower grades due to working more hours.

Artificial Intelligence

eLearning Industries predict that over 47% of learning management tools will be enriched with AI capabilities within the next three years. AI, after all, delivers a significant impact on online education.

  • 24/7 Access to Learning. One advantage of online education is that it lets students learn at their own pace. With AI, the student can revisit their learning materials without waiting for an educator.
  • Personalization. AI could make up for the decreased level of personalization when education shifted from face-to-face to online platforms. 
  • Quick Responses. AI allows students to receive a quick response to their questions. They don’t have to wait for their educators.

With these powerful trends in online education, it can be difficult for institutions to keep up.

To help you stay ahead of the curve, get high-quality online teaching assistants from Instructional Connections. We provide online TAs who are trained in the online education landscape and always in the specific industry or program needed. Inquire today!

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Online Teaching Assistants: What They Do & Why

Professional Online Teaching Assistants
Online teaching assistants from Instructional Connections can be hugely helpful for your online courses – and we’ve been doing this long before COVID-19 moved many University courses online.

Instructional Connections built a model of flexibility and customization by providing support for the online course and curriculum needs of our University partners through the use of our online teaching assistants.

Our online teaching assistants give your faculty more time to focus on student success! Through our innovative model, we are able to provide the highest flexibility for your faculty, as our online teaching assistants perform varied duties depending on your distance course needs.

But our high levels of customization often lead to questions about our services, such as what an online teaching assistant can do, what their duties are, how they can help transform an online course, and how our online teaching assistants can best help remote learning environments and student success.

What is an Online Teaching Assistant?

An online teaching assistant is meant to aid the faculty member of record, or professor, that is teaching an online course. This gives your faculty the time to focus on student success, engagement, and course delivery.

Additional responsibilities include any course issues as defined by your faculty or any needs that relate to online and distance learning. Our online teaching assistants are flexible – so your faculty member simply needs to provide us with instructions on their needs and expectations for the course, and our online teaching assistants deliver.

What Our Online Teaching Assistants Do: Duties, Roles, & Responsibilities

  1. Our online teaching assistants will complete any inter-rater reliability activities that are prescribed by your faculty. This ensures that that the TAs grade to the faculty’s standards and expectations.
  2. Our online teaching assistants are able to grade assignments per a detailed rubric and faculty direction. Our TAs grade materials with substantial feedback and return them within 72 hours of the due date. This means no more waiting for grades and no rushed grading for your faculty or missed deadlines for online submissions of graded assignments.
  3. Our online teaching assistants may monitor and participate in asynchronous discussion threads per the discretion and direction of your faculty. They will facilitate conversations, answer questions, and help the students discuss deeper into the subject matter. For many online courses that are largely writing and discussion-based, our online teaching assistants are invaluable! Our TAs save your faculty time while helping students understand the material.
  4. Our online teaching assistants will answer and respond to all inquiries, emails, messages, and calls within 24 hours, seven days a week! Even if their answer is to simply let the student know that they will have to perform their own research or consult with the faculty. No correspondence will be left unanswered for more than 24 hours, even on weekends.
  5. Our online teaching assistants actively participate in weekly faculty and online teaching assistant conference calls. That way, they may review the faculty’s expectations, grading, rubrics, failing or at-risk students. This also allows for discussing any issues in the class, scheduling, or upcoming needs and assignments.
  6. Finally, our online teaching assistants maintain compliance with all university policies and regulations, including FERPA.

Our Online TAs Are Tremendous Resources to Students in Their Related Field…

Under the leadership and direction of your faculty, our online teaching assistants may assist with grading, management of discussion threads, approved announcements, and day-to-day tasks. Additional responsibilities may include course issues related to distance learning, as well.

Plus, each of our online teaching assistants is a highly qualified, experienced professional in the appropriate academic discipline. Each and every one has earned at least a Master’s degree. Each teaching assistant also, has 14 years of industry experience in their field of instruction.

This means our online teaching assistants possess the academic credentials and the experience to become an immediate asset to your faculty and students.

Instructional Connections has been evaluated by regional accreditors during partner University site visits and is consistently found to be both innovative and effective for distance learning and student success!
Contact Instructional Connections for More Information on Our Online Teaching Assistants Today!