ED392+Assignments

=Project Map: Instructional Unit Design/Reflection Essay=

Over the course of the semester you’ll be developing an instructional unit for an online class of your choice, including establishing objectives, presenting material and building in practice and assessment activities, including opportunities for group interaction.. Along the way you'll keep track of your experiences, and at the end of the process will prepare a brief reflection on what went into the design of your unit. A bit on both of those tasks:

Instructional Unit
By the end of the term you'll develop a unit of instruction for online delivery. The unit should focus on a specific, well-focused subject. Think of something you'd likely teach in a single class or two in a face-to-face course -- a single skill or concept. The goal will be to apply the principles of sound instruction -- with which you're likely familiar already (I'll list them below just to make sure we're using common language) to the tools and methods we'll explore together.

Those elements of sound instruction, as laid out in the MCCLVC Rubric which we'll be using throughout the course, are:

motivational techniques objectives overview demonstration or information practice or exploration with feedback a summary/transfer and assessment Reflection Log and Essay

Being an English teacher, I’ve got a deep, irresistible urge to make students journal. Think of me as a salmon looking up the river, feeling that tug and getting ready to give in, even though that bear on the shore is making absolutely no attempt to hid the fact that I’m on the menu for dinner.

I won’t, however, collect your journals. To be at all useful, they must, I believe, be private space. You need to feel comfortable reflecting honestly on what’s working and what isn’t working for you, without having me looking over your shoulder.

Instead, at the end of the course I’ll ask you to review that log and prepare a brief (3-5page) essay reflecting on the process you went through to develop your instructional unit. As you begin developing your course materials, also start recording your thoughts on the process. In the early weeks of the course, you might find yourself using the journal to record ideas that strike as we’re exploring the basics of online interaction; as you begin working on the components of the instructional unit, this space might also serve as a place to express excitement or frustration, to record what worked and what didn’t, to map out the next steps. It’s up to you. When I use these sorts of process journals in writing classes, I advise students to take a few minutes at the end of every writing session to reflect on what they’ve just worked on; it might not be a bad idea to do the same. When you finish working on the course for the day, set aside a little time to jot down your thoughts while they’re still fresh.

While you’re free to reflect on whatever you’d like in the journal, the essay itself will focus on a few specific areas:
 * What came easily for you? What didn’t?
 * Why did you make the choices you did about content, practice and assessment?
 * How does the instructional unit meet the learning objectives?
 * How might you tweak the unit before using it in your course?
 * What resources proved most helpful along the way? (Sources should be cited in either MLA or APA format).

=Emerging Technology Presentation=

ED 392 is a course about pedagogy, but any discussion of the pedagogy of online learning must also include conversations about the technologies available to us as we design instruction for delivery in this medium. Our weekly work will focus on the capabilities of the Learning Management System -- currently, that's Educator. But the LMS is only the beginning: there are a world of very cool (and often free) tools out there!

Our first of two major assignments for this course will offer you the opportunity to explore and share a technology that you could see using in your own online classes. Here's what to do:

Decide whether you'd like to work with a partner or on your own. If you'd like to pair up, use the Koffee Korner to konnect (er..."connect"...) Explore the resources linked to in the "Beyond the LMS" external links folder in this packet. You're also free to venture out on your own! Find a tool, technology or technique that you'd like to share with the group.

Head on over to the "Emerging Technology" discussion board. First, make sure no one else has selected the same technology. Then create a New Message, identifying the technology with which you'd like to work. If you're working with a partner, only one of you needs to post -- but be sure to name your partner in your message!

Over the course of the next two weeks, you should:

Become familiar with the technology you've selected.

Develop something appropriate for a course you (or your partner, if you've paired up) teach. Yes, that's vague -- but what that "something" is will depend on the technology you've selected! You might actually create something using the tool -- or you might simply design an assignment that will require students to make use of it. Feel free to continue using the "Emerging Technology" or the "Help!!!" boards to ask questions as you work!

On Week 5 I'll create a "Presentations" discussion board. There you should share a brief description (300 word or so) discussion of the technology you've been working with, as well as whatever you've developed using that technology. Your post should (a) briefly describe the technology (b) identify possible uses for the technology in the online classroom and (c) introduce whatever you've developed -- explain how it would enhance your own online course. During Week 5 be prepared to answer questions on your techology.

Learning Objectives:
This assignment directly addresses Course Outcome 4, getting the ball rolling on developing that file of internet resources. Monitoring responses to your post will also provide an opportunity to dabble in directing an asynchronous discussion. Finally, each participant’s expertise and interests will bring unique opportunities for learning.