This module focused on Maximixing the student output and was very informatve. The key taake away here for me was when students encourgaed to use multi media devices they become more dynamic and critical thinkers. Students then feel empowered and feel their ideas are valued. When this occurs, students tend to stay fully engaged.
Cheryl
I like the idea that spending more time on a course does not equal a course having more work or working harder. I also like the move away from mid terms and finals to equally weighted assignments taking place in a variety of formats throughout the course.
Nancy Tosh
A concept I want to work on is the student not only learning individually but providing useful knowledge to classmates, instructors and those outside of this class. This can be facilitated in a variety of ways including project based assignments and wikis / blogs. I am also interested in pursuing the students having access to the whole course content from the beginning.
I believe the most important point to remember from this module is remembering the multitude of platforms that students will be utilizing to access the course. As I create the course, I need to ensure that whether the student is accessing the content on a computer, tablet, or cell phone the content must be easily navigated and pleasing to the user.
This information is useful when trying to incorporate different methods of instruction in different platforms to engage the student.
I am a big fan of E-Portfolios because this allows our students to showcase thier work and it also gives perspective employers a chance to view the potential new hire.
This was very informative. It was a reminder that projects should be based on the real-world and that multiple forms of communication should be utilized to interact with students, especially in the virtual world.
Great information reguarding challenging students
What I have learned is:
1) That my breaking up of the midterm and final into weekly mini-exams is a good strategy. Yes, the students complain about the workload, but it is the same workload spread out, as opposed to two main weeks of effort. Glad to see that this has been noted by others.
2) That there are plenty of tech-based ways to enhance student engagement, and I need to explore them.
The requirements of learning online have become clear after this program. This factor is essential since it has taught me about the best strategies of connecting students who are learning online.
The most interesting bit of information in this reading, for me, was the following:
"The more students become "producers" of knowledge, the more they will realize the value of what they are learning and see the application to their own lives, thus supporting transformative learning outcomes in the process (Mezirow, 1997)."
I think that students should absolutely be a part of their own learning and that less structure should be thrust upon them by instructors/teachers. Of course this does not work for every student, and there must be some structure. I feel that loosening the reigns, so to speak, on student learning is invaluable.
This was a very enjoyable course and one that can easily be put to practice. I do agree that allow students to demonstrate the knowledge gained in the form of portfolios and not just exams is a great way to evaluate them.
I have gotten some great ideas from each section. I enjoying the sections over heightened interaction and project-based learning.
Interactive whiteboards allow students to interact with the learning material. They become a part of the lesson and can even teach each other. Educational games can be played by entire classrooms. They also provide immediate feedback, so students and teachers can easily assess student progress.
Ensuring that instructors provide relevant material to aid in student success is highlighted in this section.
Students benefit from a variety of assessment opportuntities, including group projects, portfolios. blogs, wiki's. There is a difference between discussions and conversations. Get the students talking and digging deeper. Provide the opportunity to customize their learning space, collaborate, cooperate and communicate.
I see value in the holistic assessment as a way to introduce and ingrain basic concepts as well as the ability of the student to personalize those outcomes.
I found this was an excellent chapter in the training. I use these strategies in course design consistently. Specifically, I find project-based learning where authentic assessment and outcomes are communicated to students at the outset is effective. Communicating the relevance of a project is done in two ways: the first is through an informative video from the instructor where the relevance and expectations are clearly communicated, and the second is with clear text. I find the instructor can communicate industry use and relevance in a way that connects with students and is less cumbersome to absorb than text. The specific outcome and what precisely students will do is communicated with text.
I would add one key strategy to this chapter; scaffolding. I find that introducing individual skills to students with low stakes assignments and then designing projects where these skills are synthesized as high stakes projects is effective.
biggest take away is definitely ….When ideas are valued, students are empowered in the process. We can all remember teachers who made us feel inadequate and we can also remember teachers who made us feel valued in the learning process.
I have learned that differentiation is so important to meet all student needs. I also learned the importance of the 3 C's. Portfolios are a great tool to use to document student performance that I plan to use with all my classes.
