To be a strong virtual professor
requires high technology and high pedagogic knowledge of the subject matter
(McAnally-Salas, Lavigne, & De Vega, 2010). Low technology skills and high
pedagogic knowledge didn’t work well as professors couldn’t share or express
their knowledge. Likewise, high technology and low pedagogic knowledge limited
depth of explanation. Both technology and knowledge must blend together to
create effectiveness.
Online professors don’t have the same level of wiggle room
than traditional professors and must navigate an environment that is more concise. As professor’s online knowledge increased it was found that they were
more exact, shifted toward the Socratic Method, and created multilogues with
students (Coppola, Hiltz, & Rotter, 2002). The very structure of online
courses changed the core abilities and competencies of professors to be more
finite.
Online professors are very good at task management as their
work becomes integrated with their lifestyle. Some may be checking class postings on
their cell phones while waiting at the grocery store and others could be
sitting in a coffee shop spending an hour correcting papers. The life of an
online professor affords more flexibility throughout the day but requires a higher
level of self-motivation and commitment.
All of this integration between technology and life
generally means a person could be working longer into the evening even though
the intensity of that work may be less. With blurred home-work boundaries it may seem as though they are more
likely to experience stress and burn out. According to a study of virtual
academics online professors are less likely to get burned out than their
traditional colleagues (McCann & Holt, 2009).
The nature of today's academic is changing with the times. Virtual professors will have more flexibility with their time as classes are 24/7 asynchronous but also must check into their classes on a regular basis. They will be conducting research at different times of the day and evening while still grading papers. The lifestyle of the new professor is one that requires a new way of looking at occupation and work. There is a blend of life and purpose other occupations may not offer and has spawned a whole new way of educating students.
Coppola, N., Hiltz, S. & Rotter, N. (2002).
Becoming a virtual professor: pedagogical roles and asynchronous learning
networks. Journal of Management
Information Systems, 18 (4).
McAnally-Salas, L., Lavigne, G. &
De Vega, C. (2010). Online course instructional design from the professors’
pedagogic knowledge and technology skills. Problems
of Education in the 21st Centure, 19.
McCann, J. & Holt, R. (2009). An
exploration of burnout among online university professors. Journal of Distance Education, 23 (3).
