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TEACHING WITH TECHNOLOGY PLAN

Information is Not Instruction

Use QUALITY ONLINE: 24 Benchmarks for Success in Internet-Based Distance Education, and this guide to assist you in thinking through your "Teaching with Technology Plan"
      1. Develop the Course Mission (Purpose) Statement
      2. Develop Course Objectives
      3. Develop Student Learning (outcome) Objectives
      4. Develop Strategies & Activities to Learn About Your Students
      5. Describe Your Expectations for Participation
      6. Develop a List of Campus Resources (web and other)
      7. Develop a Course Schedule
      8. Managing Online Pedagogy
      9. Integrating Technology
      10. Organizing and Evaluating Group Work

1. Develop the Course Mission (Purpose) Statement

Describe how your course positioned within the larger context of your field of study

2. Develop Course Objectives

These are broad, general statements that describe the course content and your goals for the course.

3. Develop Learning Outcome Objectives and Identify Student Competencies

After completing your course what do you want your students come away with? What cognitive, affective and psychomotor skills do you want them to develop as a result of your course? You can use Bloom's Taxonomy, the table of Action Verbs, and the Task Wheel to help you think about the kinds of learning tasks that might help your students develop these skills.

4. Develop Strategies and Activities to Learn About Your Students

5. Describe Your Expectations for Participation

Be specific. Identify the reading(s) or tasks for a scheduled online discussion activity; describe the number of postings or contributions that will constitute "minimum" participation; develop rubrics to describe the kind and quality of contributions you're expecting, for example:

Each student is expected to contribute three responses to article 'x' over the course of this week's discussion. At the beginning of the week please submit your personal response to the issue (describe) raised by this author. During the week, review others student submissions and respond to two of their comments. Your responses should integrate at least two references to other material we've read as well as your personal experiences with this issue.

6. Develop a List of Resources (campus and web)

  • Campus Help Desk
  • Library
  • Privacy Issues
  • Online Writing Center
    • Bibliographic Research Tools
    • Copyright
    • Citation Styles
    • Integrity/Plagiarism
  • Counseling Center
  • Subject content web resources for your class

7. Develop a Course Schedule

This activity will draw on your organizational management skills.

The schedule should include dates, reading assignments, learning activities, quizzes, exams and evaluation rubrics.

Develop specific learning activities that will encourage online collaboration and build a sense of community.

Develop specific activities such as a HELP forum for peer support. Encouraging students to post first to the public (course) forum can reduce your workload and the amount of private email you will receive.

8. Managing Online Pedagogy: the Instructor as Choreographer

As an online instructor you will experience ROLE SHIFT.

You will have several roles to manage: you will serve as the intellectual guide, you will orchestrate the organizational functions, provide the social glue that holds the group together, and be called on to provide a variety of support roles. These four functions are described below.

8.1 Intellectual Role

  • Develop study guides and evaluation rubrics that clarify your expectations and post them on the web.
  • Plenary sessions for focused large group discourse to build group synergy at the beginning and end of the course and to prepare for small group work.
  • Promote effective decision-making and analytical thought by posing questions that deepen student thinking.
  • Andrew Feenberg, Professor of Philosophy at San Diego State University has written a useful guide that describes the complexities of managing online discussions:
    A Teacher's Guide to Moderating Online Discussion Forums: From Theory to Practice

8.2 Organizational Role

  • Building group cohesion through plenary sessions at the beginning and end of the course.
  • Course structure: multi-tasking; providing task focus, clarifying expectations.

8.3 Social Role

  • Netiquette: promoting effective communication and social skills through formalized "Introduction" assignment.
  • Developing student leadership skills.
  • Trust-building, communication, conflict-management.
  • Create an online pub or cafe for discussion unrelated to the course.

8.4 Support Role

  • Online Help Desk.
  • Technical support crib sheet given as a handout at the beginning of the class.
  • Describe how students are to submit online assignments. Describe processes and file formats.
  • Supportive management of project-group conflict.

9. Integrating Technology

10. Organizing and Evaluating Group Work

10.1 Structuring Learning Activities

How can we structure learning activities to promote active student participation?
Task
Structure
Divide -- do not duplicate tasks.
Dividing rather than sharing tasks creates individual accountability for some aspect of the completed project.
Reward Structure
Assign grades for participation.
Individual vs group rewards; create interdependence (peer-pressure) among group members


 

10.2 Working with Student Teams

See Handbook for Student Management Teams, Edward Nuhfer, University of Colorado-Denver.

10.3 Types of Learning Activities

Understanding the profile of the adult learner is an important first step in designing appropriate learning opportunities to meet their needs:

  • adult learners are motivated by opportunities for personal and professional growth
  • they prefer a high degree of involvment in planning their work and assessing their progress
  • adult learners typically seek learning opportunities that have a high degree of relevance to their personal life experience and goals
  • adult learners have a reservoir of experience that serves as an important resource for learning
  • see: Malcolm Knowles: Apostle of Andragogy

Below are some different kinds of activities you can include in your course to promote more engaged learning:

apprenticeships
learning contracts
brainstorming learning log
case studies panel presentations
classroom assessment techniques peer help forum
collaborative learning peer review/preview of work
debates peer teaching
Delphi techniques portfolio development
digital video problem-solving
discussion forums: problem-based learning
   o plenary sessions projectS with individual tasks
   o dyads project groups
   o small group discussions reports: individual and small group
   o cafe/pub for chat role playing
field trips simulations
field research small group presentations
guest speakers student-led seminars
help desk synchronous 'chat' sessions
introductions threaded discussion lists
interviews tutorials
journal writing web quests