Poster presented at Stanford University's Psych One Conference, July 14, 2016. This presentation offers resources that can foster Social Connectedness and a Collaborative Spirit in courses (specifically, online courses).

1. Distance education continues to evolve since its origin in the early 1900s.
Distance education is of great benefit, in that it provides a flexible and
creative connection to learning that may not be accessible traditionally
due to several external factors (i.e. funding, crowded classrooms, military
duties, or work-life balance). Although distance education provides
several benefits, there are two factors that can hinder the experience, the
lack of social connectedness and a collaborative spirit. This poster
presentation defines social connectedness and collaborative spirit and
provides elements that can be used to increase both concepts (i.e.
providing a personable instructor profile and welcome message, learning
styles inventory as an ice breaker, weekly advising messages and quotes
to students, incorporating movies and poll everywhere to engage student
learning, and providing useful feedback) to offer the online student a
more personable learning experience.
Social Connectedness
“The measure of how people come together and interact” (Wikipedia,
para 1, 2015).
Collaborative Spirit
“The process of two or more people or organizations working together to
realize shared goals”, (Wikipedia, para 1, 2016).
Introduction
Social Connectedness and Collaborative Spirit
3 Instructor Profile: A personable aspect of you
Ways to Foster Social Connectedness
7 Inspirations and Quotes: Share Quotes/an Inspiration (via
Email/Announcements) Once a Week
8 Incorporating Real-Life Events or Movies
9 Using Poll Everyone to Engage Your Students
10 Engaging Feedback
Ways to Foster Collaborative Spirit 11 Additional Tips for Student and Instructor Success
References
Banks, R. (2016). Psych One Conference Stanford University. [Video file]. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORCPARgSQ_E
Belinkie, M. (2008). 40 inspirational speeches in 2 minutes. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=d6wRkzCW5qI
Bixler, B. (n.d.). Learning styles inventory. Retrieved from http://www.personal.psu.edu/bxb11/LSI/LSI.htm
Canvas LMS. (2015). Humanizing online instruction. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Us7w1b7UVwU
Education Planner. (2011). Learning styles quiz. Retrieved from http://www.educationplanner.org/students/self-
assessments/learning-styles-quiz.shtml
Educause. (2013). 8 Lessons learned from teaching online. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Bp4BG4Me7TU
FacilitadorTube. (2010). E-learning: How to deliver an engaging virtual classroom presentation. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxY22IhbaH4
Faulkner, B. (2013). The Devil Wears Prada downward social comparison. Retrieve from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3gGkiWSzvg
Kulowiec, G. (2011). EdTech Teacher Poll Everywhere tutorial. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=ZZwPL8Ef-CY
Getzlaf, B., Perry, B., Toffner, G., Lamarche, K., & Edwards, M. (2009). Effective instructor feedback: Perceptions of
online graduate students. Journal Of Educators Online, 6(2).
Lane, E. (2015). Collaborative Spirit of Millennial Generation may benefit Big Science. Retrieved from
http://www.aaas.org/news/collaborative-spirit-millennial-generation-may-benefit-big-science
McDaniel, A. (2009). Online student experience. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=nWPI35WGsTc
Smith, V., & Palenque, S. (2015). Ten Tips for More Efficient and Effective Grading. Retrieved from
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/educational- assessment/ten-tips-efficient-effective-grading/
Spread-The-Word. (2013). Ten free online proofreading tools. Retrieved from http://www.spread-the-
word.co.za/free-proofreading-tools/
SquaredOnline. (2015). The Squared Online student experience. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=tlPoJfXDgqc
TED. (2012). Daphne Koller: What we’re learning from online education. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6FvJ6jMGHU
The Penguin Prof. (2010). How to manage time, reduce stress and increase happiness. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4YVLkuRBe8
The Social Report. (2010). Social connectedness. Retrieved from http://socialreport.msd.govt.nz/social-
connectedness/
U.S. News Education. (2014). Online students share time management tips. Retrieved from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2FWUQvlths
Wikipedia. (2016). Collaborative Spirit. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collaboration
Wikipedia. (2015). Social connectedness. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_connectedness
13 Connect
R. Felicia Banks, PhD
ITT Technical Institute, Online General Education
Preventing Boundaries in Online Education Through Social
Connectedness and a Collaborative Spirit
4 Welcome Message: Create an inviting environment
5 Learning Styles Inventory: Serves as an
icebreaker
6 Advising Messages: Provide Quantitative (Grade Average) and Qualitative (Action
Plan) information in a Personal Email to Student (Suggested Subject Lines are Below)
Slides 3-6 focus on Social Connectedness slides 7-11 and 13 focus on
Collaborative Spirit:
Slide #3: The Instructor Profile should be personable Slide #4: The Welcome
Message, in addition to the Instructor Profile, are a means of first
impression of the instructor, therefore, they should both be personable
Slide #5: Learning Styles Inventory can be used as an icebreaker on the first
day/the first week of the course
Slide #6: Advising Messages can be used to stay connected with your
students and to keep them informed of their grade status
Slide # 7: Inspirations and Quotes: Can be used to keep your students
motivated
Slide #8: Incorporating real-life events, such as the movie Devil Wears
Prada, to convey social comparison may assist your students in
understanding concepts
Slide # 9: Poll Everywhere: Can be used as an icebreaker/to engage your
students throughout the semester
Slide #10: Providing Engaging/Constructive Feedback: May help your
students to think more critically about the topics, Smith & Palenque (2015)
provide 10 tips on efficient and effective grading
Slide # 11: Additional Tips for Instructor and Student Success: Helpful tips to
use in online learning environments
Slide #13: A one-hour youtube clip of online resources, please scan the QR
code with your cellphone to view
Greetings Everyone and Welcome! My name is Romona Banks, you can call me Mrs./Instructor/Professor Banks. I hail from North
Carolina by way of South Carolina. I obtained my bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice with a minor in Psychology from South Carolina
State University, my Masters in Business Administration (concentration in Human Resources) from Strayer University and my doctoral
degree in Psychology (concentration in Organizational Psychology) from Walden University (Research Title: Selected Predictors of
Youth Development in Boys and Girls clubs).
My research interests are inclusive to predictors of positive youth development (motivation and success), enhancing the e-
learning/distance learning process, sustainability of nonprofit organizations and predictors of workplace performance. My professional
experiences consist of the National Guard (Army and Air), a facilitator for nonprofit organizations, and banking/financial management
from 1998-2010. For the past five years I have been instructing General and Social Psychology, Research Methods, Community
Organizing and Development, and Health Communication online courses. In addition to having the pleasure to instruct at two colleges,
I am also a Career and Life Coach.
My husband and I love to travel in our spare time. We also love watching movies (we are huge Marvel and DC Comic fans), we also
enjoy television series (our favorite shows, to name a few, are Ray Donovan, Game of Thrones, Vikings, Orphan Black, House of Cards,
Black Box, Fargo, Happy Valley, Elementary, Sense 8, The Flash, and Dare Devil-Netflix series, and So You Think You Can Dance). I also
love to collect coin and exercise (I love yoga, jazzercise and walking in the park).
I look forward to your introductions and discussions! Anytime that you have a question regarding the course, please don't hesitate to
contact me via the, "Ask Your Instructor" link or email.
Prof. Banks
Greetings Everyone & Welcome to Social Psychology,
Could you please introduce yourself to your classmates and me (in the Post Your
Introduction discussion).What are your expectations from this course, and what are
some of the specific skills you wish to acquire in the next five weeks? What experience, if
any, do you have in psychology? Have you taken a psychology or social sciences class in
the past? Can you describe the relevance of social psychology to your life and career?
How do you think this course will help you reach your career goals and aspirations?
Lastly, I would like to invite you to take a Learning Styles Inventory
(http://www.educationplanner.org/students/self-assessments/learning-styles-
quiz.shtml) and discuss your findings (along with your introduction in the Discussion
Forum). You can answer any one or all of the previously listed questions. If you have any
questions, please let me know. Once again, welcome and I look forward to your
introductions!
Prof. Banks