tips for successful planning and facilitation of creating an e-classroom

Tips for successful planning and facilitation of creating an e-course or virtual classroom & On-Screen marking - January

2013 – Marius Pienaar

Tips for successful planning and facilitation of creating an e-course or virtual classroom & On-Screen marking

No “one size fits all”

A well-organized course and a clean course with expert content is the FIRST step to retaining students!


Pitfalls in online course design

An “online course” is the electronic version of class hand-outs (dumping site)

All materials a student might have viewed on paper are now read onscreen, etc.

Reading course material on a computer screen does not make for a memorable learning experience



Don’t let the LMS drive your thinking

The empty myTUTor template makes you think you must fill it with text-based information only

Open your mind to wider possibilities

Think about the kinds of learning experiences you want to create rather than letting myTUTor define a more limited view of putting a course online



Many lecturers expect their students to consume knowledge rather than create it

Most online courses do not support students in making knowledge their own through practice, experience, and play



Many lecturers ignore the ways students learn from each other

Many online courses assume a two-way dialogue between student and lecturer

Wikis: students can work together. Include assignments: students share ideas and resources, present topics to each other, and critique each other’s work


Course design

Does it make sense to students?

Are you giving clear directions to your students?


Course design

Make sure you have a warm welcome message for your students

Keep Announcements and Calendar currently dated

Include email address, office phone number, office hours, as well as a photo (150x150 pixels)

Connect with online students. Use Blackboard IM, schedule office hours and meet students virtually


Course design

The first course content area = “Start Here”• Lecturer’s expectations of students• Contact instructions• Put everything here just as if the lecturer was meeting with students face-to-face on the first day of class

Consider including a photo of the textbook along with the ISBN number as an aid to students.


Navigation Basics

Consistency, consistency, consistency

Be mindful of the amount of navigational areas in a course

Organize, combine, and delete if necessary

20 is too much

4 is not enough

9 or 10 is substantive yet not overwhelming

Consider merging duplicate areas


Navigation Basics

Keep it concise, neat and crisp

Clean up duplicate items in every course area.

Keep the course organized and easy on the students!

Design names that are distinct and clear. Stay clear of words that can be confusing or too broad. Be specific. Be consistent

The less clicks the better

The less downloads the better


Objectives

Every assignment, Learning Module, activity, reading, etc. is to help students achieve a specific course objective

Organize all the course items around those objectives and state them clearly for the student


Chunking with Learning Modules

Course content broken into “chunks”

Content organized in conceptually related blocks

Allows for easy navigation

Consistent, logical, clear, common sense

Let the content control the chunks


Chunking with Learning Modules

Why Modules?

Easier to find course content

Allows students to focus on content rather than form

Content becomes manageable

Prevents information overload


Discussion board

Keep it current

Include an Ask the Lecturer Forum for student questions

Include a Student Lounge Forum for a place where students can meet with each other


Blog and other reflection tools

To learn from experience

Reflection integrates. Take the fragments of a course and pull them all together

Reflection takes stock

Reflection helps continue learning as well as teaching

Reflection occurs in a private space where what is learned can more easily be defined by the student


Tests and Pools Area

Keep the area clean with no duplicate exams for confusion

After a course copy, check the test area to make sure the tests copied over correctly

Although the tests will show up, you must still deploy your tests


Onscreen Marking

Enhanced communications

Save time

Raised marking quality/consistency and accuracy

Reduced administrative error

Improve the overall efficiency and effectiveness of the assessment process

Provide meaningful feedback and comments as an invaluable contribution to students’ learning. Administrative tasks like adding marks etc. can hamper this

tips for successful planning and facilitation of creating an e-classroom

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