Online Course Development

Well, I’m not talking about weddings here, though I do feel lots more tightly connected to our wonderful helpers in Ecampus from these weeks of learning. 

This week we’re talking about engagement, but not just general engagement in getting to know each other, but more focused, in terms of learning more online strategies.  Although I love the big sharing in the discussion board, I did get overwhelmed with all the threads going everywhich way and found it hard to follow 12 different conversations as I checked in again.  I guess I lost the thread a few times.  Like this yarn unravelling.

Yarn ball unravelling

  So, the one-to-one sense of someone talking to me in the narrated PPTs with a tighter linear focus have helped me follow along all at one sitting to get information.  And I am working on creating my own right now.  I sent in a stack of PPT drafts to get started.  Those have engaged me well.

• This encourages me to think that my own students will like the narrated PPTs that I make, with Ecampus help. 
• I am also encouraged to add my two-cents more often in the discussion board, even if it doesn’t seem that anyone replies to my post. (They usually reply to each other).  I’m going to work on that.

Now here’s an interesting question.  I know I’m not the most dazzling leader of a whole class discussion, so I usually work with small groups first and get them to discover things and report back.  So, I’m wondering if there is a way to do the small group student/content/student – reports back to the whole class – effect work online.  I will have to think about this.

The students in Science Writing were engaged Wednesday on a hunt to discover whether the magazines we were reading used “you” in the articles or just first and third person.  Their other task was to find out whether the articles referred to people by last name, first name, or with title, such as Dr. or Professor.   Results?  Rarely is “you” used.  None of the students found the title used beyond the first introduction.  Because the students found out for themselves and reported back to the class, I hope they will remember better for their own work. 

As we finish our workshop, we will continue to be connected to our colleagues and helpers in Ecampus, because it is “life long learning.” 

I’d like to share that two of my Science Writers have profiled scientists about their teaching skills – one who teaches in Ecampus, Dr. Richard Nafshun – in this YouTube, if the link will work http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHe1xBpwiTg .  The other student is profiling her high school teacher.  Both are studying the science of teaching science and are great models for us.  What’s great to see is that my two students are so engaged by their teachers that they want to write about their teaching methods.  I would hope to be as inspirational one day.

• Note: here’s where the yarn image came from reclaimyourlifenow.net

Right away I was skeptical about finding online content that is really relevant to my Environmental Law class. Of course, there are so many things about the environment out there, but it sounded like a bit of a long shot to find really targeted and effective content that speaks to the narrow topics in class, specifically about law or policy (not just cool science) that is at a level appropriate for undergrads. Or would take a long time to sift out, and heaven knows that I just don’t have the time.

I am familiar with TED content from personal use, so my first step was to browse the “Environment” tagged videos. Most were too science and application oriented for my Environmental Law class, but I came across a TED debate on nuclear energy right pretty quickly (http://www.ted.com/talks/debate_does_the_world_need_nuclear_energy.html).

Using outside content is helpful because (a) Some people (much smarter than me) have thought very hard about these issues and can say it faster and better than I can, and (b) I can’t provide a debate in my class when it’s just me! Giving them a different perspective of both content AND process is incredibly valuable. Especially when we are dealing with highly controversial issues, such as whether we should be encouraging expanded use of nuclear power.

The web is an amazing resource, but as I get older I notice that I am now teaching people who have only known on-demand media and I realize how much it has actually narrowed our world in some senses. We all have the ability to search out the material that confirms our own perspective, and we don’t have the patience to sit through the material that challenges our perspectives. I think that dynamic is reflected in our highly polarized society, and it is only going to get worse. With a resource like a 20-minute TED debate, we MUST listen to both sides, and if I can get my students to even look at the other side of a debate, I consider that a hit. If they took the steps to seek out more information about the other side, that is a home-run. So maybe I should do a little before and after essay with this—a paragraph about your opinion on the use of nuclear energy before watching the debate, then a paragraph arguing the other side after watching the debate!

One question that I am thinking about as I continue to seek out media: Is it credible to pull media primarily from 1 resource, like TED or another site? Or should I make a concerted effort to bring in resources from different places? And how much?

Christy Anderson Brekken

Ok, I’ll admit up front that I did not devote what one could call ‘quality’ time to the webquest assignment involving zunal.com. That is, unless keeping one eye on the monitor and one eye on my son’s homework can be called ‘quality’. But hey, such is life. Something tells me many others out there deal with these same quality issues.

In a way, restricting the activity to simple searches on a handful of search engines was beneficial. It revealed how restrictive it is to use only general words or terms. In my case, I used the word wilderness, or term wilderness management. In future searches, I would be a bit more specific about the topic I’m seeking help with. Rather than simply using wilderness, I’ll try wilderness recreation, wilderness and fire management, or something similar.

I used four search engines: Ted.com, Merlot.org, YouTube Edu, and Science Daily. When entering the term wilderness management, only one of the four came up empty:

Success with the other engines varied. The best result was with Science Daily:

I was reminded of how liberally the word ‘wilderness’ is used in science and natural resource circles. It is seemingly used to refer to a variety of lands containing some type of wild character. Even in the Science Daily reference, I am not convinced that this technology would actually be used in wilderness areas. The Wilderness Act of 1964 mandates that no mechanized use be allowed in wilderness areas. There are caveats of course, but I don’t believe this is the case with the technology referenced by Science Daily.

Overall, though my search results this time around were less than stellar, I the exercise opened my eyes to some new sources of information. I imagine that I will use zunal.com again, or simply utilize one of the engines contained within. Of course, it pays to enter the activity with a specific, focused topic in mind. Otherwise, time slips away (and leaves you with nothing mister, but…)

This is such an exciting part of this workshop and of teaching – the finding of more information and the opportunity to integrate and synthesize material. Intellectual curiosity is one of the key concepts of critical thinking that we hope to inspire in our students, no matter the topic.

In writing classes we can have a lot of fun with questing on the web because students can choose topics, often very widely. That’s one reason why I always partner with a librarian to have a special info lit page built for my courses, and take students from on-campus classes to the library for more instruction. For many of our students, several years have passed since they took WR 121, and they may not have had to write any papers in the meantime. So their information literacy skills may be rusty. And up to 40% of on campus students have never taken WR 121 at OSU, so we do not know how much training they had before arriving in our classes.

Papers or reports in my classes always require research, and often we build assignments such as annotated bibliographies to help them gather and assess materials for their projects. Sometimes, as for Science Writing, instead of a written report, students create a PowerPoint reporting their research on the aspects and elements of articles in National Geographic or Discover magazine.

Now, I am the one web questing hunting for materials I can use to augment my class. It’s been interesting – and harder than I thought – to experiment with keywords to try to find interesting and interactive materials for the learning of technical writing.

YouTube EDU is turning out to be a really useful source. What I like is that these materials are already invented. I don’t have to re-invent materials. Also, if they are not entirely perfect, that allows me to critique and analyze

This one I can use for Unit 3 Creating Instructions with Illustrations.
INSTRUCTIONS

This YouTube I can use with new instructors to give them an idea of how (and why) they could/should make similar introduction videos for their courses each term. Do any of you have similar video introductions? Do you update them often? Victor Yee gave a great presentation for last spring’s Ecampus forum on introduction and other videos.

Ecampus made an introduction for my Science Writing last winter, but I’ll need to update it because I changed the textbooks.
SAMPLE INTRO VIDEO

And this YouTube is actually helpful to me in thinking how I can explain instructions to students – because they do not always know what I mean!

Audience Analysis

I’m eager to see the resources you all are finding and I’d love to have some feedback on these.

I’m still questing the web for me — happy hunting to all!

PS:  This note added after the original posting –>  Does anyone know about how accessible YouTube videos are for anyone with disabilities?  They might not be closed captioned.  Would we send them to Ecampus for captions?  Or we could check one out for visual clarity.  Two of the three I posted are by one professor back in NJ.  I like his clarity, though I wish there were more (some) visuals.  Still, I did just post the Instructions one for my f2f class to show tomorrow.  To show that it is there, but not show during class.

A Guide on the Side, that’s one of the best things to be when you teach.

At least, that’s what I heard.  As a guide on the side, you never ignore the ways students learn from each other (and do not fall under a #5 pitfall of designing an online class!).  You center your perception around student learning rather than your own teaching.  I like this idea, but perhaps it’s the “on the side” part of the metaphor that throws me off; perhaps the “guide” part is more important.  I would like to guide students on their own path of learning toward the class learning outcomes. But what exactly does it mean to be “on the side”?

Sure, there was a Sage on the Stage, who, probably, was one of your favorite professors ever.

Wasn’t there? Well, mine was, because there were no other kinds. My schooling happened in traditional dimly lit classroom environments in Eastern Europe (former USSR) where classroom activities were not encouraged.  Even the chairs and desks wouldn’t move. However, the professors were passionate for teaching and learning, and they were inspired, inspiring, enthusiastic, and came across as a “students’ revered and primary access point to the desired knowledge”.  Many students held them as role models and wanted to become as bright and knowledgeable.

In graduate school I took classes from the US professors who came to teach to the former USSR countries. They were no less impressive in terms of how much they knew in their chosen discipline, yet a different breed altogether. They structured classes between lecture and discussion; they let students bring in what was important for them, but they always made sure that some topics got developed and some died out. Perhaps, the concept of a “content curator” describes this approach which shaped my learning in graduate school.

In the context where the word curator is used most often, that is, in museums, the curator is the one who has a lot of power and authority over visitors. The curator is the one who has the last word on what gets included in an exhibit and what gets taught in a program.

I have rejected being a sage on the stage, so I won’t want to fall for a curator.

I do like the way Elizabeth St. Germain continues talking about it, “the one who prunes and trains the branches that extend from your expertise out into the world”.  I like the idea of students growing the thoughts and ideas and me suggesting, “Feed this one with the works of C. Wright Mills, and it will flourish.”  “This idea needs some time in a dryer environment.”  “If you want to grow this, it might now grow here.”  Can I be a master gardener in an online classroom?

Being a master gardener in an online classroom means supporting the branches that lead us toward the learning outcomes. Perhaps, sometimes branches that lead away in a way that is putting the entire plant off balance can be snipped.  We all do it, and it seems to me that it is easier to do in the classroom face to face than online. What is said in the classroom disappears in the air if it is not supported by the instructor and the rest of the students. Online, it is written down on the discussion board.

How do you train and prune the branches on the discussion boards?

Hey Everyone

I haven’t read anyone else’s blog posts yet, and hope there’s not much in the way of redundancy here.

While nothing beats face to face interaction with a student, I do enjoy teaching within the online environment. One of the reasons has to do with that lack of interaction. Specifically, how to overcome it. Students can hide quite easily, and I enjoy reaching out to them via general announcements and individual emails. I’ve called students as well, which on some occasions has shocked them. For the most part, they have enjoyed this effort to welcome them and encourage their involvement.  

Coming into this training, I’ve considered myself fairly competent with regard to Blackboard navigation and overall use. I’m immediately reminded that I’ve kept things fairly simple in the online courses taught so far, which has its benefits for the student user. They don’t need to work too hard when trying to find presentations, assignments, assigned readings, etc.

On the other hand, maintaining the status quo can make things a bit stagnant, and perhaps I need to challenge myself a bit more when designing courses. There are other tools I should start to use, including blogs and journals.

Regarding those blogs,  I’m still not quite sure what the difference is between a blog and a Discussion Board Forum. I’ve definitely gotten used to using the Discussion Board for student interaction, but have a slight hunch it’s perceived as archaic by some students. Kind of like insisting on using a VCR when everyone else has moved on to streaming video. Does anyone else have an opinion on Discussion Board vs. Blog?

I plan on using blogs in the future, but am not certain if I should use it as a replacement for the Discussion Board, as a supplement, or something completely different.  Thanks all.