In this scenario Trinh has fallen victim to over-accessibility. With advancements in technology there are more methods of communication than ever. Most people have multiple email addresses, phone numbers, and social media accounts making it increasingly challenging to stay on top of communication. In a desire to be accessible, available, and helpful Trinh gave her students multiple avenues to connect with her (a mistake most of us have probably made at one point or another). I believe part of Trinh’s challenge is the perception of availability in an online course. Since the course is online and always “live” there is a perception that course content and resources (including the instructor) are always available. While this perception is hard to alter I believe there are some guidelines Trinh can set-up to help her deal with the communication overload.
I would first suggest that in her introductory module, Trinh clearly outlines what methods of communication are acceptable. I would suggest using 1 central email for course queries. If Trinh wishes to share her blog or Twitter handle she must make clear that it is for general interest and resource sharing as opposed to Q&A. Trinh should also set student expectations in terms of response rate (e.g. within 24 hours on weekdays and 48 hours on the weekend). If Trinh will be away or unavailable for longer periods of time she should notify students.
As some of you have already suggested, Trinh should also create a general Q&A discussion board for the class. That way students can assist each other with challenges and Trinh can direct people to the discussion board for questions that have already been answered. Putting more emphasis on class collaboration will really help relieve some of Trinh’s communication burden. Trinh can also try holding live chats periodically throughout the course. That way students with questions or concerns can connect with Trinh in real time (much like what Natasha did for our LMS project). These live chats would be optional but Trinh can advertise them ahead of time and hold them almost as virtual office hours.
In terms of mandatory live streaming, I see that causing a lot of unnecessary hardship. Knowing that her course has a very large international presence she should not make participating in live streams mandatory. Instead, Trinh should continue to hold live streams – as they add another level of dimension to an online course – but she should record them and post them for everyone to view at their convenience. In order to ensure students view the live streams, Trinh can generate discussion questions or assignments based on the content of the live streams and required students to complete them within that course week.
Lastly, I think Trinh needs to limit the number of registrants in her course. 150 students per 1 instructor is a bit outrageous. I have never been in a virtual class of more than 30 students per one instructor. Perhaps Trinh can cross train a few colleagues so they can facilitate additional offerings of the course. Alternatively, Trinh could offer the course in multiple terms (with smaller class sizes) to help keep up with the demand. An online medium can feel isolating and impersonal to students even in a class size of 30. I think it will be more beneficial for both Trinh and her students if the class sizes are smaller allowing for personal connections to be made between classmates and with Trinh.