SUNY Online Teaching Ambassador 2023: FIT – Margaret Bishop

Margaret L. Bishop is an Adjunct Faculty in the Textile Development and Marketing Department at the Fashion Institute of Technology, SUNY. Margaret is a seasoned global textile and apparel industry professional, experienced educator, and a lifelong learner. She is passionate about her students, colleagues, her rescue dog Bella, travel, and running marathons to stay physically and mentally fit. She is a textile engineer, teaching introductory and advanced textile, supply chain, and global professional practices courses in undergraduate and continuing education programs. She has taught online and remote using four different online learning systems (OLS), uses them extensively in her face-to-face courses; she also mentors other faculty in their OLS use. In 2022, India’s WOXSEN University established the Margaret L. Bishop Chair Professorship in Strategic Design and Management. She holds a BS degree in Textile Technology, a MS in Management, and a MPS in Global Fashion Management, the latter from SUNY’s FIT.

Online learning offers tremendous opportunities to expand the community of learners for any given subject or university. An online learning system (OLS) also allows face-to-face instructors to deliver content, engage students with diverse learning needs, accept (and grade) homework assignments, deliver and grade quizzes efficiently, and keep students updated on their academic progress throughout the course.

Online learning requires a different cadence than face-to-face classes; it’s not merely a once or twice a week affair. For any online learning to be effective, prompt and thoughtful (deliberate) responses or feedback are vital to building and maintaining student engagement. Prompt and individualized responses to student posts in discussion boards build student interest and engagement, and encourages greater participation. When the instructor commits the effort and time, online learning offers a terrific platform.