About me (Dr Deniese Cox)
As you've already seen, I'm absolutely passionate about evidence-based professional development for educators who want to learn actionable, practical teaching online strategies.
But I get it. Before you commit to spending your time with me, you want to know a little more about who I am and where I came from. That makes sense!
The hard part for me is knowing what part of ‘me’ interests you most.
Some of you care that I have the ‘right’ pieces of paper on the wall (I do – including a Master of Learning & Development, a PhD in online teaching, and even an MBA), while others care that I have first-hand experience teaching and learning online in a variety of contexts (I’ve definitely got buckets of that), while yet others simply want to know that all the PD you'll do with me is evidence-based (it sure is) while also being super engaging and practical (clients tell me that's true too).
So here goes, a little about me…
First things first, having worked as an online educator in diverse vocational, workplace training, and even university contexts, I know what it’s like to balance the demands and quirks of the organisation you’re working with, alongside student needs and expectations, and your own ideals about ‘good’ teaching … while also learning a whole range of new skills to bring your teaching into the online world. As an educator, I was always looking for effective ways to ensure my online students were actively engaged and genuinely learning. Let’s face it though, some of the ‘best practice’ strategies out there seem to read well in a textbook, but they’re simply not realistic when faced with a real-world teaching load, student needs, and resource constraints.
When I was doing my Master of Learning and Development in 2014, I got to experience being an online student for that whole program – and let me tell you, that did more for my understanding of what doesn’t work online than a dozen textbooks ever could (that study happened to be when I was teaching online for the first time at work too, so talk about immersed in all things online!!).
Today, my favourite part of delivering professional development webinars and coaching is helping busy educators cut through the noise around what goes into great online education. It’s not about technological wizardry. It’s not about fitting a one-size-fits-all model. It’s about learning practical, proven strategies that can be adapted to meet the needs of your unique context.
For me, an effective online strategy is one that works for learners and the educator. Teaching online (and learning online) can and should be more rewarding than frustrating.
My PhD research with online VET educators helped me learn even more about the day-to-day decisions being navigated and frustrations being experienced. I actively continue to research what is and isn’t working for real online educators and students because I’m committed to keep bringing you the most up-to-date insights to ensure that you have the tools to be the educator you want to be online.
That’s where you find me today. Thoroughly enjoying getting to spend 50% of my time doing research, and 50% of my time transforming that into professional development that really does make a difference for educators and their learners. I’m ably supported by my amazing husband (Jason), slightly neurotic cavoodle (Charlie), and the mob of kangaroos who visit our backyard daily here in the beautiful Scenic Rim region of south-east Queensland.
So there you go, as promised, a little about me. Feel free to read more about my specific work experiences at https://www.linkedin.com/in/deniesecox/
I look forward to meeting you and hearing more about where you’re at and where you want to be.
Please do get in touch anytime. Simply use the contact me page, drop me an email via Deniese@TeachingOnline.com.au, or book a Zoom meeting so we can meet to chat.
All the best,
Deniese
