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September 27, 2010

Hello Developers,

Today marks the 50% completion date for your new developments. I will be going into your courses this week to see how things are coming along and will be in contact with you individually regarding your progress. Please contact me if there is anything I should be aware of prior to reviewing your course.

Because all of you are currently working on courses that are part of the Internet Marketing curriculum, I though I would post a few resources this week that maybe helpful for you in identifying some external resources for your course materials:

ClickZ - Marketing News & Expert Advice. According to their About Us section, ClickZ "is the largest resource of interactive marketing news, information, commentary, advice, opinion, research, and reference in the world." In exploring the site, I think all of your could find articles or information that would apply to some aspect of the course you're developing.
TopRank’s Online Marketing Blog - an award-winning blog that provides insights, resources and commentary on a range of digital marketing and public relations topics including: Search engine marketing and optimization, Social media marketing, Business blogging and marketing, and Online public relations.
Reve News - a blog-type site that offers discussion on various topics elated industries such as online marketing. In reviewing the site, some of the conversations look like they may be good for jump starting a discussion board topic.

I know there is an overwhelming amount of online resources available to you; hopefully the above suggestions are helpful to you in supplementing your course content.

Have a great week!
Kelly

September 17, 2010

Hello Developers,

With the new development cycle in full-swing, I am excited to see that all of you have a solid start on your courses. Since most of you are seasoned developers who know the ins-and-outs of online development, I'm looking at this cycle as an opportunity to go a little more in-depth with what I write about on this blog. As well as challenge myself to find creative ideas for you to implement....since a couple of you (ahem - Amy and Heather) are the ones who taught me most of what I know!

So, here we go....

One of the first steps for many developers is organizing the reading assignments and plugging in the publisher PowerPoints. Don't get me wrong - ppt is a really useful tool and the slides that accompany the textbook are great for helping students identify the key points in the reading. But, we all know how exciting ppt can be [insert sarcasm here]....especially when, as an online student, you are just reading through the slides on your own. And, what if the textbook for the course you're developing doesn't have pre-made ppt resources? As a developer, it's up to you to create some kind of outline or locate some other supplement for students to help guide their reading for that week.

Enter: Prezi

Perhaps some of you have heard of this tool and even dabbled in it a little....but for those of you who have not, Prezi is a cool web-based tool that lets you create unique presentations on a single canvas that can be designed in a non-linear, zoom-in-and-out fashion. It is a fun alternative to consider if you're looking for a way to present information, ideas, or concepts in a visually appealing format that is less "concrete" than our old BFF, PowerPoint.

To find out for myself how Prezi actually works, I created this one as a supplement to the Staff Information area of my courses...just something simple to help students learn a little about me as their instructor. There is no audio, but using Jing, I could screencast my Prezi to include an audio component. I haven't decided yet, if I'll do that, as I think it functions nicely as is....but, it's certainly a good option to have.

Prezi has the potential to "spice up" your courses a bit and could be really useful for facilitating week one icebreakers, engaging in concept mapping, or presenting a lot of visual/pictorial examples. I encourage you to check it out...play with it a little and peruse the Explore section of Prezi for some inspiration on how this tool might work for you and the course you're developing. And don't be intimidated by it...my husband has his students do a project using Prezi, so if a 6th grader can do it, so can you!

For some additional insight about Prezi and it's use/relevance to higher education, these articles are good food for thought:
http://chronicle.com/blogPost/Challenging-the-Presentation/22646/
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/trends-in-higher-education/prezi-a-better-way-of-doing-presentations/

Enjoy!
Kelly

August 6, 2010

Happy Friday!

I hope you all have plans to enjoy the weekend ahead....hard to believe how fast summer has gone by. My husband and I are sticking around home this weekend, which rarely happens for us during the summer months....

Anyway, I thought I'd do a second blog post this week for a couple reasons:

• Three weeks from today is the deadline for redevelopment projects, so I thought you may need a little inspiration to keep moving along with your course(s)....
• I ran across a useful article, Ten Best Practices for Teaching Online, that does a great job summarizing much of what we hope to see in the content and design of our courses...plus, any article in the form of a Top Ten List has to be worth reading, right? :-)

Here are few points from the article that I think are particularly applicable, but please take a minute to visit the link and read the whole thing....it's a quick read and worth the time.

• Best Practice 4: Use a variety of large group, small group, and individual work experiences
• Remember that many of our students are working adults...let them share their experiences and knowledge through assignments, class discussions, etc.
• Best Practice 7: Prepare Discussion Posts that Invite Questions, Discussions, Reflections and Responses
• This is so important! If the discussion questions in your course can be answered with "yes" or "no" then they need to be updated! Or, if students are asked to respond to something factual, that only has one right answer (i.e. a math problem), mix things up or find a way to rewrite the discussion topic so there is actually something to discuss.
• Best Practice 8: Focus on content resources and applications and links to current events and examples that are easily accessed from learner's computers.
• Every unit should have "additional resources"....look for news articles/videos, interesting blogs (check the source for reliability), audio lectures available free online (check out Academic Earth), etc....the web has countless opportunities for integrating course material to the world around us.
• Best Practice 10: Plan a good closing and wrap activity for the course.
• Avoid the trap of Unit 12 just being a final exam and easy discussion...find a way to really bring the course to the close for the students - reflecting on an "Aha! moment" or discussing how far they've come in terms of mastering and applying the content can be a good form of closure for everyone.

Thanks for all your hard work - enjoy your weekend! And, as always, contact me with any questions.

Kelly

August 2, 2010

Hello Developers and Happy Monday!

Hard to believe it's August already - I hope you're enjoying these hot summer days....the crisp fall air will be here before we know it!

Those of you developing brand new courses....Today we begin our last week of development - your courses are due to be completed (and ready for peer review) a week from today: Monday, August 9. If you are having any last minute problems with your development, please contact me sooner rather than later...I'll do all I can to help!

Those of you working on redevelopments (lifecycle updates, book changes, edition changes), welcome to the Course Development blog. If you haven't been here before, this blog is aimed at providing development resources and communication regarding online course development here at GEN. Over the years, Amy and Heather have compiled some fantastic resources for developers...I've been adding to the blog for the past quarter and will continue to do so in my role as Manager of Online Course Development. Feel free to use the topics on the right to explore the blog.

I'm going to keep the topic pretty straight forward this week, since I would like all of you focusing on getting a good start (redevelopers) and making a strong finish (new course developers) on your development work: please take time this week to review the Course Development Checklist to ensure that your course is in tip-top shape...ready for peer review and, ultimately, ready for students. Redevelopers, this checklist will come in handy as make changes within your courses - you won't necessarily be checking all these items off, but being familiar with the checklist will help you keep your course order and make any needed updates to the layout/organization of the course material.

If you have any questions, please let me know. Have a great week!

Kelly

Online Course Development Checklist (updated for Fall 2010)

UNIT INTRODUCTIONS AND OBJECTIVES

• Introductions and objectives do not contain such things as unit assignments, due dates, etc. They provide an overview of content learned in the unit.
• Introductions are written in paragraph form
• Objectives are directly beneath introductions and each section is labeled simply with the words Introduction and Objectives.
• Objectives are in number form rather than bulleted
• Unit Dates (HTML Code) is present in each of the units
• There are 12 units for 12 unit masters and 10 units for 10 unit masters; for graduate level courses, there should be 6 units for 6 unit masters and 5 units for 5 unit masters.

READING ASSIGNMENTS

• All Units have a reading assignment labeled “ Reading Assignment”
• The reading assignment description includes the full title of the textbook (in italics)
• The reading assignment description includes the names of the authors and edition of the text
• If a chapter is assigned, the word “chapter” is spelled out completely (not abbreviated “ch”)
• If page numbers are assigned, the word “page” is spelled out completely (not abbreviated “p” or “pg”)
• All reading assignments are appropriate for the level of the course (100 level, 200 level, 300 level, etc.)
• There is some form of a lecture included in every unit (word document, audio lecture, power point presentation, etc.)
• If a reading assignment includes a text from Books 24x7, directions on how to access the text are included

DISCUSSION BOARDS

• Each course unit has at least one discussion board
• If there is more than one discussion board in a unit, they are labeled “ Unit X Discussion Board A,” “Unit X Discussion Board B,” etc.
• Discussion boards are posted within each unit as well as in the Class Discussion area; the discussion board topic is the same in both areas.
• All discussion boards are linked to the grade center. You will know this because it has a “grade” icon (looks like this: ) to the left of the “Modify” button. If it doesn’t, this means the discussion board isn’t linked to the grade center.
• All discussion boards have a Post: and Respond:
• The Post and Respond requirements match the requirements listed in the Course Expectations document found in the Course Expectations and Grading Criteria Folder

ASSIGNMENTS

• All requirements of assignments are clearly described. For example, page requirements, expectations, point values, etc.
• All assignments are labeled “ Assignment”
• If there is more than one assignment in a unit they are labeled “Unit X Assignment A,” “Unit X Assignment B,” etc.
• Assignments are creative and engaging – they are interesting for the students
• If appropriate, a rubric is included for the assignment
• Students are directed to Smarthinking (online tutoring resource) for help/feedback on any research paper assignments

ANNOUNCEMENTS

• If an announcement needs to be made to the students in a unit, it is labeled “Unit X Announcement.” If there is more than one announcement in a unit, they are labeled “Unit X Announcement A” and “Unit X Announcement B.”
• If there are more than three announcements in a unit, they are put in folder titled “Unit X Announcements” or a “Course Packet” or something similar is created.

EXTERNAL LINKS

• All links open in a separate window to comply with copyright regulations
• There are no external links embedded within text; rather, students are directed to the appropriate link in the appropriate additional learning resource folder
• If there is more than one external link in a unit they are grouped into an Additional Learning Resources Folder
• The first letter of each word is capitalized on all external links
• All external links work

COURSE CALENDAR

• The course calendar total points matches the total points in the grade center
• All assignments listed on the course calendar are included in the units as well as in the grade center
• The course calendar is loaded as an HTML document

Miscellaneous Throughout Course

• Each course unit contains a Discussion Board, a Reading Assignment, a lecture item, and at least one External Link or Additional Resource
• All attachments are titled “Click Here”
• All attachments are loaded as HTML documents (where appropriate)
• The word “Week” is avoided and the word “Unit” is used instead
• Abbreviations are used as little as possible
• The course is free of spelling errors
• The course is free of typos and wording errors
• Words in all-caps are used sparingly or not at all
• Students are directed to the GEN Online Library when appropriate
• Assignments in the grade center are in the order they are presented in the course
• Font type/style is consistent throughout every item in the course (use Arial or Times New Roman)
• Any documents added as attachments to assignment directions uploaded as HTML files or, if necessary, are saved as compatible with Office 2003
• Only approved colors are used

July 16, 2010

Hello developers!

Monday marks the 75% completion deadline, so I will be going into your courses to check things out and then providing each of you with feedback on your progress. Next week is also the time of the development cycle when I start seeking peer advisers to review newly developed courses; this is a great opportunity to receive valuable feedback from other online faculty and it provides a catalyst for making some finishing touches on your courses before they are officially complete. I'll be sending an email to all faculty about peer advising, so if you are interested in peer advising on another course that is currently being developed, just let me know! It is a great way to see what other developers are doing in their courses.

Speaking of what others are doing...don't be shy about adding comments to this blog if you have ideas, questions, thoughts, etc. about development - it might be a good way to bounce ideas off one another and generate some dialog among you as developers.

Moving on, this week I want to talk a little about assessments in our online courses. Hopefully all of you were able to attend the Online Regional In-service yesterday and listen to Dr. Ernst and Dr. Mitch discuss our Learner Outcome Assessment initiative. They delivered an excellent presentation and it got me thinking about ensuring quality assessments in our online courses - beyond the formal LOAPs for each program. So, as a developer, there a few simple things you can do that will go a long way to ensuring that the assessments in your courses are effective in assessing student learning:

• Clear, detailed instructions - Be sure to explain to students how to complete the assessment and include any necessary resources. For example, I just worked with an instructor yesterday on updating an assignment requiring students to create a "concept map" based on a course reading; in the instructions, we directed students to the Additional Resources where we posted several links with explanation and examples of concept maps as well as a tutorial on how to use the drawing feature in MS Word so students could create their own map. It may take a little extra effort on your part, but clear instructions are crucial to a student's success on an assignment.....in the online world, student may be hesitant to ask questions and, if they do, they may need to wait for an instructor's response via email...so the less question marks, the better!


• Specific expectations - Be sure to tell students exactly what you expect from an assignment....this might include concrete expectations such as page length requirement, number of resources use, font size/type, time limit on tests, etc; or, expectations may be in reference to the more abstract components of an assignment: level of analysis, types of examples, whether to define or describe, etc. Regardless, it's very important to explicitly state what you expect a student to demonstrate through their submission of a particular assessment. In my time as DOF, I can easily tell you that most of the student concerns about scores or final grades could have been avoided if expectations had been more clearly laid out for the student in advance.


• Rubrics - Amy has blogged about rubrics in the past, but I think it's a good time to talk about them again. I want to strongly encourage you to create a rubric for any assignment you develop - rubrics are a great tool for students, as it helps them clearly see what is expected of them (see #2 above), but they are also an equally valuable tool for faculty...with a rubric, faculty are more likely to grade consistently and evaluate student learning more accurately. Below are a number of links with information about rubrics and resources for easily creating your own...please take a look! Also, if you would like my assistance, I'll be glad to help create rubrics for your course - just let me know!
  


• http://www.rcampus.com/indexrubric.cfm


• http://rubistar.4teachers.org/index.php


• http://www.rcampus.com/indexrubric.cfm
  

I hope some of this will be helpful as you work toward the completion of your developments over the next month. As always, please contact me with any questions or concerns!

Kelly