Introduction to Online Teaching and Learning
with Joshua Stern
Monday, July 6, to Friday, July 31
Are you thinking about teaching online? In this course, you’ll learn online instructional techniques and develop a plan to deliver your course online. You’ll learn what distinguishes distance learning from face-to-face instruction, strategies for online learning, ideas for course design, and the nuts and bolts of implementation—to improve your students' success. You’ll also get tips on course management software options, building community online, and learning styles. Using case studies and a historical perspective of the dynamic evolution of online teaching, you’ll leave this course with your own plan for online instruction.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Develop online, collaborative exercises with confidence
- Accommodate different learning styles and a diverse student population in your online classes
- Demonstrate Internet research skills by locating Web-based resources for online education
- Identify course management systems and online teaching resources that will work for you, both on campus and beyond
- Develop a plan for your own online course or program
Requirements for Completion: a passing performance on the following:
- Participation in all required discussion
- Submission of a "Student Role and Expectations" paper
- Submission of a syllabus for the proposed online course
Hours Required
This is a 4-week course. Course completion, including reading, online discussions, and assignments will take a minimum of 10 hours per week.
Recommended Skills
- Basic computer skills (use of word processor, e-mail, file management)
- Basic Internet skills (use of browser, searches, uploading and downloading files)
- Familiarity with discussion boards
- Familiarity working with images is a plus
Technical Requirements
- Fairly recent Mac or PC (not more than three years old) with a current operating system and current browser (Firefox for the Mac; Internet Explorer 6 or later, or Firefox, for PC users)
- Internet connection, preferably broadband (DSL speeds), but a 56k modem will do
[ Register now for Intro to Online Teaching and Learning]
Introduction to Teaching with Blackboard
with Greg Beyrer
Monday, July 20, to Friday, August 14
Are you interested in learning how to use Blackboard to teach online? In this course, you'll experience Blackboard from both student and instructor perspectives, while creating your own online course. You'll also learn how to include content from a variety of sources (including multimedia) to give you more teaching power. This course is recommended for faculty new to using Blackboard, or for those would like to learn more about new features. This course is taught using Blackboard v7.3.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course you will be able to use Blackboard to implement Chickering and Gamson's "Seven Principles for Good Practice in Undergraduate Education" in the following ways:
- Encourage contact between students and faculty—by creating a faculty profile to share your contact information
- Develop reciprocity and cooperation among students—by creating a community of discourse on the discussion board
- Encourage active learning—by constructing individualized learning paths through the use of adaptive release criteria
- Give prompt feedback—through the use of immediately scored exams
- Emphasize time on task—by adding events to the course calendar
- Communicate high expectations—by outlining your course's learning outcomes in an online syllabus
- Respect diverse talents and ways of learning—by presenting content in a variety of formats
Requirements for Completion: a passing performance on the following:
- Participation in all required discussions
- Completion of quizzes and reflection activities
- Completion of assigned, hands-on exercises in course shells
Hours Required
This is a 4-week course. Course completion, including reading, online discussions, and assignments, will take approximately 10 hours per week.
Recommended Skills
- Basic computer skills (use of word processor, e-mail, file organization, and compression/decompression)
- Basic Internet skills (use of browser, searches, uploading and downloading files)
- Familiarity with discussion boards
- Familiarity working with images a plus
- Access to a Blackboard account after the workshop
Technical Requirements
- Fairly recent Mac or PC (not more than three years old) with a current operating system
- Internet connection, preferably broadband (DSL speeds), but a 56k modem will do
[ Register now for Intro to Teaching with Blackboard ]
Introduction to Teaching with Moodle
with Joan Van Duzer
Monday July 6, to Friday, July 31
Are you ready to become a Moodler? Moodle is an easy-to-use, open source, course management system for online, hybrid, or face-to-face classes. In this course you'll learn how to enter a Moodle course shell and organize and present content—including graphics—all without needing to know HTML! You'll discover handy tools for site, course, and student management functions, as well as tools for creating quizzes, assignments with due dates, grades, and interactive forums. You'll not only finish the course with a working knowledge of Moodle, you'll also walk away with the foundation for your own online course.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Adjust Moodle course settings to create a customized online learning environment
- Identify basic features in Moodle
- Experience Moodle as a student, to see the result of deployment of various Moodle features
- Add content to a new Moodle course by incorporating Moodle activities and resources
- Implement Moodle's basic communication and assessment tools
Requirements for Completion: a passing performance on the following:
- Participation in at least three discussion forums
- Completion of assigned activities and exercises
- Completion of assigned quizzes
- Completion of required elements in sandbox course
Hours Required
This is a 4-week course. Course completion, including reading, online discussions, and assignments, will take approximately 10 hours per week.
Recommended Skills
- Basic computer skills (use of word processor, e-mail, file management)
- Basic Internet skills (use of browser, searches, uploading and downloading files)
- Familiarity with discussion boards
Technical Requirements
- Fairly recent Mac or PC (not more than three years old) with a current operating system
- Current browser (Netscape 7, Firefox 1.0, or Internet Explorer 6 or later)
- Internet connection, preferably broadband (DSL speeds), but a 56k modem will do
[ Register now for Intro to Teaching with Moodle ]
More about Moodle
with Joan Van Duzer
Monday, August 3, to Friday, August 28
The “Introduction to Teaching with Moodle” course introduced a variety of Moodle tools. However, there is much more to this flexible open source program! Are you curious about what else is "out there"? Are you ready to learn “More About Moodle”?
This is a hands-on course where students learn more about Moodle’s capabilities in a highly interactive environment.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Set up separate “Groups”
- Try out chat, wiki, database, and glossary activities
- Increase functionality to an online course with additional blocks
- Create Web pages directly in Moodle
- Identify ways to improve visual appeal
- Experiment with more advanced capabilities of Moodle’s text editor
- View customizations available for Moodle installations
- Explore support resources in the world-wide Moodle community
Requirements for Completion: a passing performance on the following:
- Collaboration in classmates’ “sandbox” courses
- Completion of assigned activities and exercises
Hours Required
This is a 4-week course. Course completion, including reading, online discussions, and assignments, will take approximately 10 hours per week.
Recommended Skills and Prerequisite
- Completion of “Introduction to Teaching with Moodle” course or equivalent experience using Moodle
- Basic computer skills (use of word processor, e-mail, file management)
- Basic Internet skills (use of browser, searches, uploading and downloading files)
- Familiarity with discussion boards
Technical Requirements
- Fairly recent Mac or PC (not more than three years old) with a current operating system
- Current browser (Netscape 7, Firefox 1.0, or Internet Explorer 6 or later)
- Internet connection, preferably broadband (DSL speeds), but a 56k modem will do
[ Register now for More About Moodle ]
Building Learning Communities Online
with Michelle Pacansky-Brock
Monday, July 13 to Friday, August 7
One of the major factors that contribute to a student’s failure in an online class is the perceived absence of belonging to a community. As an online instructor, understanding the value of community in your class is critical to cultivating a successful learning environment for your students. This class will explore the essentials of building online community and provide you with a robust toolkit of tips, learning activities, and creative uses of new technologies for you to integrate into your course design. Throughout the class, you will converse with your classmates through voice and video conversations, connect through our own closed social network on and collaboratively build a wiki.
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Identify the critical roles of social presence, personalized learning, and collaboration in building learning communities online.
- Design an online course that promotes an inclusive sense of community.
- Design an icebreaker activity for your online class that promotes socialization.
- Identify the relationship between the stages of online group development and the cultivation of community.
- Evaluate the use of emerging technologies (Ning, VoiceThread, wikis) to foster online community.
Requirements for Completion: To earn university credit or to earn a completion certificate, you must earn a minimum of 130 of the possible 185 points.
Hours Required
This is a 4-week course. Course completion, including reading, online discussions, and assignments, will take approximately 10 hours per week.
Recommended Skills
- Completion of “Introduction to Teaching with Moodle” course or equivalent experience using Moodle
- Basic computer skills (use of word processor, e-mail, file management)
- Basic Internet skills (use of browser, searches, uploading and downloading files)
- Familiarity with discussion boards
- Basic PowerPoint skills
Technical Requirements
- Fairly recent Mac or PC (not more than three years old) with a current operating system
- Current browser (Netscape 7, Firefox 1.0, or Internet Explorer 6 or later)
- Internet connection, preferably broadband (DSL speeds), but a 56k modem will do
Other
- You will be asked to create three free online accounts that will enable you to utilize VoiceThread, WetPaint (a wiki site), and Ning (a social networking tool). We’ll be using these in class.
- While not required, a USB microphone and/or a webcam is strongly encouraged.
[ Register now for Building Learning Communities ]
Multimedia
Video and Vodcasting for Teaching
with Donna Eyestone
Monday, July 6, to Friday, July 31
Make your lectures come alive for your students—without using an expensive studio! Learn how to create compelling video content by recording, editing, and packaging your content in easy-to-access vodcasts. We’ll also generate ideas about how to use video in your on-campus, online, or hybrid course, and explore general issues surrounding using Vodcasting in education.
In this 4-week online course, you’ll plan your production and shoot video footage. Then you'll edit the footage using software that's already on your computer. Add titles and music to your video to create a professional-looking episode. You’ll also learn how to compress and upload the files to a web server. Add in a little XML and by the end of 4 weeks you'll have your own vodcast channel!
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Enhance face-to-face and/or online courses with video content
- Find existing vodcasts that may be useful in your courses
- Understand what makes a video file a "vodcast"
- Use software on your own computer (iMovie or Movie Maker) to shoot, edit, and compress video files
- Use a text editor to create XML files
- Publish an original podcast episode
- Create a PDF transcript or outline of your video and publish it
- Upload files to a Web server
Requirements for Completion: a passing performance on the following:
- Participation in all required discussion
- Completion of all assigned activities and exercises
- Completion of all assigned quizzes
- Production and publication of vodcast channel with at least one video episode and one PDF
Hours Required
This is a 4-week course. Course completion, including reading, online discussions, and assignments, will take approximately 10 hours per week.
Recommended Skills
- Basic computer skills (use of word processor, e-mail, file management)
- Basic Internet skills (use of browser, searches, download/installing applications)
- Familiarity with discussion boards
- Familiarity with audio production helpful
Technical Requirements
- Fairly recent Mac or PC (not more than three years old) with a current operating system
- Current browser
- Internet connection, preferably broadband (DSL speeds), but a 56k modem will do
- Your own video camera, or access to one for the duration of the course (webcam will be okay)
- iPod or other portable video player (optional)