Business, Online Classes
Starting an Organization: On-Boarding Teachers and Learning Curves
Prior to adding my company (Teacher Jade’s Writing Academy LLC – formerly Ashante Academy) to Outschool, I had teachers that offered courses on my website. When Outschool started allowing individual teachers to switch to an organization, I decided to change my account. If you are interested in starting an organization, there are some on-boarding methods you may want to take into consideration.
- This might seem like common sense, but make sure you have a legit and legal business. If you’re not sure, that means you probably don’t and you need to complete those steps first.
If you do have a legal and legit business, you are ready.
Let’s get into it:
1. Get your application ready and think about the process you want your potential teachers to go through. I use a simple application but I request writing samples, a video submission (after all, these are online classes), and a resume.
2. The Interview: How do you want to interview your potential teachers? Video, phone, in person?
3. Training: You found the perfect match, but you have to prepare them to teach your courses OR you may decide to let them develop their own courses to teach. What will training look like? Will there be follow up training? Professional development?
Basic On-Boarding (in no specific order):
- Prepare your teachers for their classes. Provide mock training or a 1:1 session.
- Make sure you have all your paperwork in order (and theirs too).
- Determine each teachers tasks and roles.
- Setup payments and determine scheduling. Pay attention to those time zones.
- Review their classes and provide feedback.
- Make sure they have the material to teach the class if they are using your curriculum. Review their curriculum if they are making their own.
I’m going to get a little personal here.
LEARNING CURVES
- Scheduling
I mentioned hiring teachers from different time zones and scheduling. I found it easiest to let them send me their schedule, then I adjusted the times listed to my time zone to avoid conflicts. My teachers also offer their own classes (and have lives outside of teaching), so I wanted to make sure they could teach when they wanted to and around their schedules.
2. Substitutes:
This is probably my biggest one. I was sick most of September. Luckily, I didn’t have many classes scheduled to teach. I had a teacher that was able to cover for one of my classes. One class, I had to reschedule and I had to cancel another. One benefit of having an organization is having teachers that can potentially sub, but I want to hire someone that can be on-call for these types of situations.
3. Pay
I’m just going to leave this here: Gusto.
Have you started teaching online or are you thinking about expanding?
Join my MASTERCLASS: Launch an Online Course!
Have you already started?
Drop a link to your courses in the comments and one tip you’d give someone that wants to hire out.