Web-Enhancing Your Courses

Faith BrennerIT Associate ProfessorRichland Community College

Jill FeinsteinBiology Associate ProfessorRichland Community College

Web-Enhancing Your CoursesLearn how to use the World Wide Web to provide your students with additional learning resources and give them interactive learning activities they can access through the Internet.  This workshop will show you what resources are available for web-enhancing your class, the types of resources and activities you may want to put on the Web to supplement your face-to-face classroom, and discuss the benefits for you and your students of web-enhancing your class.

You will specifically learn about the use of learning objects in your classroom. It will show you what learning objects may already be available for you to use, how to make simple reusable learning objects using tools that are readily available, and how learning objects can enhance the your student's learning.

What is a Web-Enhanced Course? A course that has part of its

components delivered via the Internet Can range of the use of supplemental

sources online to delivering major content and assessments online

Makes use of the technology that is now readily available to most students

Why Web Enhance Your Course? Helps engage students who are

already using technology for social interactions

Addresses a variety of learning styles Visual-verbal – reading/writing Visual-nonverbal – using graphics,

symbols, images Auditory (aural) - listening Kinesthetic/tactile – doing, experiencing,

practicing

What Can Be Offered Online?

Online CommunicationsOnline Course ContentCollaborative ActivitiesOnline Assessment

Web-Enhanced Courses – Possible Online Components

Online Syllabus Online

Communications Threaded Discussions Blogs Journals Chat Sessions E-mail Online Office

Collaborative Workspaces Wikis Google Docs

Online Assessments Quizzes Exams Surveys

Online Course Content Resource material Learning Objects

Audio files Video Demonstrations Animations Narration Simulations

Online Communications E-mail – most students are comfortable

with this type of communication now Chat sessions – may be used for quick

communication with one or more students in real-time (synchronous communication) while online A number available through various hosts

AOL Instant Messenger MSN Messenger (now has audio chat capabilities) Skype (also VOIP for audio chats) Twitter Elluminate

Online Communications

Online Office Hours Can use any chat room facility Elluminate V-Room

Free 3-person online conference room/office from Elluminate

Can be used for meeting with students online and online tutoring sessions

http://www.elluminate.com/vroom/register.go

Online Communications Threaded Discussions

Also know as a discussion board Allows students to post their responses to an

assignment publicly and allows them to comment, respond, react to the posts of others

Designed for group discussions about particular topics

Any member can add a new topic or reply to a previous post

Create a threaded topic for a more traditional online discussion.

Users post and reply to messages. Replies that are associated with the same post are

grouped together, creating message threads that can be expanded and collapsed.

Online Communication

Blogs•Online shared journal in which a person post any topic and others can comment on those individual topics•Posting of new topics is usually limited to one person•Create a collaborative blog (weblog) space by allowing participants to post a chronological series of entries on a particular topic. •Participants can then add comments to any blog entry.

Sources for Creating BlogsBlogger

http://www.blogger.comEdublogs

http://edublogs.org

Online Communication Journals

Usually private, reflective posts to record reactions to the learning experience.

Reflection journal can be a summary of what the student feels has been the most important points covered for a given instructional module and relate it to his/her own learning goals in the course.

The reflection journal has three functions: It helps the students reinforce and synthesize the material covered. Each student personalizes the material, adapting it to his/her own

specific professional needs and goals. It gives insight to the instructor to understand what parts of the

course have been effective and what may need to be taught in more depth or reinforced.

A journal can also be used as a creative writing assignment by giving students a topic and using the journal as a place for their own writing.

The journals can be kept private between the student and the instructor or shared with the class for peer review.

Collaborative Workspaces

An online workspace where students can work on collaborative projects and activities asynchronouslyWikis •A wiki is a type of computer software that allows users to easily create, edit and link web pages (Wikipedia definition); an edit history is kept so no content is lost as user make additions/changes to page•Examples•Wikispaces: http://www.wikispaces.com/•PBWiki: http://pbwiki.com/

GoogleDocs •Online documents that allow collaboration•Text documents, spreadsheets, drawings and diagrams, file sharing, presentations, calendars, photos

Online Assessment Self-Assessments – quizzes that are

scored for the student, but not counted toward a grade; may be used to help student for a graded exam

Quizzes – short assessments given online for a grade; most effective if set up so that it gives immediate feedback to student

Surveys – polling tool Exams – online assessments that may be

timed, can be set up to self-score and give immediate feedback to student; scores used to give grade to student

Online Assessment

Many book publishers are now supplying “Test Banks” that can be used for developing tests.

Some have the ability to create online tests

Example – ExamView Has the ability to create self-assessments,

study sheets, paper exams, and online exams

Online Course ContentOnline Course Content Online resources – supplemental Internet

readings Written Text – chapter notes and outlines

of text PowerPoint Presentations Podcasts – audio lectures Video casts – video lectures and

demonstrations Flash Movies – demonstrations and

simulations Online Instructional Games Computer Simulations and Animations Learning Objects

PowerPoint Presentations Easy to develop More effective as learning objects if they are narrated

PowerPoint has a built-in utility to add narration to a presentation

Can be made to be interactive – example1 example2 Many templates available to create educational games using

interactive PowerPoints http://teach.fcps.net/trt10/PowerPoint.htm http://www.internet4classrooms.com/on-line_powerpoint.htm http://www.elainefitzgerald.com/gametemplates.htm http://www.getworksheets.com/samples/powerpoint/games/index.html http://homepages.ius.edu/dschwei2/handouts/powerpt/gamelinks.htm http://facstaff.uww.edu/jonesd/games/

Some of the games you can create with PowerPoint templates are: Jeopardy Concentration Wheel of Fortune Who Wants To Be A Millionaire

Podcasts (audio) Develop a script Record the script using microphone and

computer Can link to the audio file from a webpage –

example : Welcome Students can download and use a multimedia

player to listen to the podcast Audacity

Free, easy-to-use software for recording and editing sounds

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/

Videos and MoviesVideo

•Record a classroom lecture or a short “pre-lecture” video•Can use an inexpensive web cam to record to computer in format that can be link to a webpage and played on a multimedia player once download

Flash movies and animations•Takes a little more skill to develop unless you have special software like Camtasia

•http://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.asp?CMP=KmsnCStmhome•Camtasia allows you to create flash movies by recording what is happening on your desktop •Examples of Camtasia use:

•Flash movie demonstrations using screen capture – Swap Using Respondus

•Flash movie using a narrated and annotated PowerPoint lecture - http://www2.richland.edu/jfeinste/biol106/chp02a/biology106_chp02a_fa08.htm

Videocasts and Flash Movies

Adobe Captivate http://www.adobe.com/products/captivate/ Allows you to create simulations and

scenario-based training by recording computer screen movement

Microsoft Producer Combines PowerPoint Presentations with

audio and video MS Producer is a free plug-in for

PowerPoint Example of Use

Instructional Games and Simulations

Interactive PowerPoints (previously mentioned) Do Internet search on PowerPoint games templates

and you will find many resources available Source for making online games and simulations

http://people.uncw.edu/ertzbergerj/msgames.htm http://jc-schools.net/tutorials/gameboard.htm http://www.georgetownisd.org/benold/hubamb/Links%2

0to%20Educational%20Game%20Templates.htm http://www.murray.k12.ga.us/teacher/kara%20leonard/

Mini%20T's/Games/Games.htm There are many resources available for games and

simulations on the Internet – some already created and ready to use; others have templates to assist you in creating your own

Course Management Systems Basically a virtual classroom, where all material

and components can be organized. Post syllabus, handouts, assignments, class

announcements, online discussions, online quizzes, etc.

Password-protected Has many utilities/tools for both instructor and

students Password-protected gradebook and attendance

records Some are costly; others are free Must have technical support to use Examples:

Angel Blackboard/WebCT Moodle

Course Management System – A Closer Look at Angel Features

Blogs, Wikis, Journals, Discussion Forums Password-Protected Grade book and Attendance Record/Roster Online quizzes, exams (can create or import from test banks) Surveys/polls Game and web page creation tools Student activity tracking E-mail and announcements Chat rooms and Live Office capabilities Instant messaging Learning Repository and Master Courses File management tools “Agents” for automating some functions Grading Rubric (to be improved in next version) that interacts with

grade book Resource links Future Features – Electronic Student Portfolio and Outcomes

Assessment

Alternatives to Course Management Systems Course can be web-enhanced without the

use of a course management system through the use of a faculty course website Online Syllabi and links to resource materials can

be made easily using a simple web page Some textbook publishing companies will

allow instructors to set up online classes on their server

They may also offer a online student companion website with their books to supplement the textbooks:http://bcs.wiley.com/he-bcs/Books?action=index&itemId=0471689343&itemTypeId=BKS&bcsId=2287

Learning Objects Learning objects are a new way of thinking about learning

content. Traditionally, content comes in a several hour chunk. Learning objects are much smaller units of learning, typically ranging from 2 minutes to 15 minutes.

Are self-contained – each learning object can be taken independently

Are reusable – a single learning object may be used in multiple contexts for multiple purposes

Can be aggregated – learning objects can be grouped into larger collections of content, including traditional course structures

Are tagged with metadata – every learning object has descriptive information allowing it to be easily found by a search

A detailed explanation of learning objects can be found at:  http://www.reusability.org/read/

Sources of Learning Objects – Create Your Own

Learning objects can be anything that you create for your students that they can use independently and which can be saved and reused – usually online. Examples (previously mentioned):

PowerPoint Presentations (narrated and interactive) Podcasts (audio) Video Flash movies and animations Instructional games and simulations

Possible Resources for Developing Online Resources and Learning Objects

Audible Camtasia Adobe Dreamweaver & Flash MS PowerPoint (ready-made and templates) MS Producer Adobe Captivate Course Management Systems Many free (or costly) resources can be found on the Internet to web-enhance

courses

Sources of Learning Objects –Learning Object Repositories WISC Online

http://www.wisconline.org/ Merlot

http://www.merlot.org Quia

http://www.quia.com Collections of Learning Objects

There are some other repositories out there, but the above are the main ones. With a Google search you can find other repositories and some of them are specific to a subject matter such as “medicine.”

•Wisconsin Online Resource Center•Collection of learning objects searchable by topic categories•These are flash based instructional objects with introductions, instructions, opportunities for feedback and (often) results emailed to the facilitator for assessment. •Can create a username and password quickly. •Browse the various learning objects for multiple disciplines. •Notice that Wisc-Online has used a "template" learning object system that is "reusable." In other words, they all look the same and operate pretty much the same. •They all are done as a SWF file which can be accessed through an internet browser through the Flash plug-in. In other words, it's immediately accessible online and downloadable for use in other curriculum. •Be careful though, some learning objects aren’t all that great, that is why they have a peer review area to rate the learning object.

•Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Teaching Online•Collection of learning materials, assignments, and activities searchable by topic •Create a membership quickly. •After you sign up, do a search for anything you want. See what you come up with to see how it works.•Get an idea of what they are and what people have done in the past. •Be careful though, some learning objects aren’t all that great, that is why they have a peer review area to rate the learning object.

Create 16 types of games and learning activities:

Matching game Flash cards Concentration game Word search puzzle Battleship Challenge board Columns activity Hangman game Jumbled words Ordered list activity Picture perfect activity Pop-ups Rags-to-riches game Scavenger hunt Cloze activity Patterns

Create quizzes with 10 types of questions:

Multiple choice True-false Pop-up Multiple correct Fill-in Initial answer Short answer Essay Matching Ordering

Learning Object Examples

Window and Desktop Elements In this interactive object, learners identify the elements of the Windows platform in a drag-and-drop exercise. http://www.wisc-online.com/objects/index_tj.asp?objID=IAT1505

How To Send E-mail Learning Object for showing how to send e-mailhttp://www.wisc-online.com/objects/index_tj.asp?objID=CIS703

Learning Object Examples Binary to Decimal Number

Conversion This is a learning object to help you better

understand how binary numbers can be converted to decimal numbers

http://www.wisc-online.com/objects/index_tj.asp?objID=DIG902

Binary to Decimal Number Drill Learning object to practice binary to decimal

number conversions. http://www.wisc-online.com/objects/index_tj.a

sp?objID=DIG6905

Learning Object Examples

EMT Basic Refresher http://www.wisc-online.com/objects/index_tj.asp?objID=EM

S806

Virtual Chemistry Lab http://www.chemcollective.org/vlab/vlab.php

DNA from the Beginning http://www.dnaftb.org/dnaftb/

Control Structures Instructional Games Match Game Flash Cards Identification

Wrap UP – Why Web-Enhance Your Courses? Because students expect more

technology in their learning environment, even in a “traditional” classroom

Take advantage of the technology students are already familiar with or using

Future Virtual Classrooms – Second Life?? Video – A Vision of Students Today

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o

Questions?

For a copy of this PowerPoint presentation with all links, go to: