For the past couple of semesters, my online history courses have not gone well. Part of the problem is a systemic issue over which I have no direct control. But, even if this were the only issue—which it is not—I still need to take responsibility for what have become two poorly taught courses.

Launching stevenlberg.info gives me the ability to put my course materials online. This is one fix to the systemic problem because I will not have to wait until the BlackBoard course template is created for me to begin doing my course preparations. As a result, I will no longer be adding materials to BlackBoard at the last minute; a situation that makes it too easy to make mistakes. Nor will I be in a position where I need to be designing course modules at the same time I am teaching the course. Because I will not be in a position where I am correcting mistakes and preparing materials during the semester, it is less likely that the classes will become overwhelming for me.

The second problem deals with structure. My Nineteenth Century American History (HIST 152) course had overlapping modules that caused a great deal of confusion for students. Unfortunately, it has taken me a couple of semesters to figure out the problem. The first time I taught the course after the last time I revised it, I had one of those awful classes where the vast majority of students simply did not participate. The second time I taught the course, I got fairly ill and some personal issues interfered with my teaching and I incorrectly identified the source of the problems students were having. But when some problems surfaced this semester, I was finally able to identify the structural issue and know how to fix it.

Although my Early American History (HIST 151) is based on a very successful structure I developed when I first began teaching online, the discussions have become boring. We essentially have the same discussion format week after week after week. I have the skills to add more variety—and thus more interest—for my students.

The first class I began to prepare in the teaching section of stevenlberg.info was HIST 151. Using the dynamic html available on my web site opens up exciting possibilities for improvement. I looked forward to finishing HIST 151 and then starting on the improvements for HIST 152.

Course development is a very time consuming process. Unfortunately, I had to accept the reality that there was no way that I could finish the revisions for my online history classes—while also fulfilling other responsibilities–in time for the new semester. If I were to offer the courses during Winter 2007, I would have to use the flawed designs.

Teaching my online sections of HIST 151 and HIST 152 with integrity means not teaching them next semester. Therefore, a few weeks ago, I asked the Distance Learning office to find another instructor for them.

–Steven L. Berg, PhD