2.1.2 Communication Guidelines

The following is a generic outline for my individual communication plan:

Welcome email
My welcome email will be warm and inviting. I will keep it generic so I can save the text and use it with all courses taught. In the email, I will discuss instructions for accessing course content and I will briefly explain how an online course works. In this welcome email I will also provide students and parents with my contact information including my telephone number and school email address.

In an attachment to this email I will attach course specific information that will vary with each course taught. This information may include the course syllabus, scheduled synchronous sessions, a course schedule, and calendar.

Personal notes vs. mass communication to stakeholders
I will save personal notes for when I need to provide personal feedback to individual students and/or parents regarding a student's progress in class. Personal notes will be more time consuming because they are specific to the individual, but they are an essential part of making students and parents feel welcome as well as providing individualized feedback. I plan to use mass communication when I need to communicate with all stakeholders information such as a change in the planned schedule or a reminder of an upcoming project.

Stakeholders
It is crucial to remember to include parents in online learning communication. Sending mass communication out to parents as well as students will increase the likelihood that the message is received. In addition, it is very important to personally call parents as well as the student when the child is in danger of failing a course. Better yet, it is important to call home regularly BEFORE it gets to this point.

School policies regarding communication
I plan to keep accurate records of all communication with parents and students. This will include the phone numbers called, the date and time of communication, the person(s) with whom communication occurred, the subject of the conversation, and the followup information for the future. This will also be the procedure I will follow for email communication with parents and students.
I will make it my policy to create my own benchmarks for communication. Every 3 to 4 weeks, student progress should be evaluated and at that time I will place calls, emails, etc. for those students who need a personal note of communication.
I will also make it my own policy to personally communicate with students and parents when a child is struggling or needs additional practice in the course.

Tools available for effective communication
I plan to use email and telephone calls for personal communication. For mass communication, I plan to use email, text messaging, and a service such as Dial My Calls or Remind 101. I believe these tools will help me get a generic message out to all in a timely manner.