http://www.merlot.org:80/merlot/ A search of MERLOT materials Copyright 1997-2013 MERLOT. All rights reserved. Wed, 22 May 2013 17:43:44 PDT Wed, 22 May 2013 17:43:44 PDT http://www.merlot.org:80/merlot/images/merlot.gif http://www.merlot.org:80/merlot/ 44 34 http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=490638 Dr. Bugallo received a grant from Hewlett Packard (HP) of 21 tablet PCs and audiovisual equipment that she uses in her classroom. Students use these computers to take notes which include illustrations and graphs, and to do programming and simulations. Matlab is used for simulations, Word, OneNote and Journal are used for note taking. In addition, students use the laptops to gather data in the field during research projects. The Tablet PC enables Monica to use math simulation software for live exercises in the classroom. Monica finds that students at all levels (high school, under grad and grad) adapt quickly to using the computers and that her classes have been transformed from a purely theoretical approach to applied problem solving. Dr. Bugallo’s students use Wikis to keep a log of activities, pose questions to her on the content and reflect on their learning. The advantage of online Wiki’s over a paper-based approach is that it enables students to share knowledge among them and review each other’s work. They are also more motivated as they often show their work to friends and family. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=490613 Dr Engelmann teaches physics to life science students in a large lecture setting. This course has undergone major redesign with the aid of funding from a SUNY partnership with the national Center for Academic Transformation. He delivers his course content on CD which must be reviewed by the students before coming to class. Students must complete a quiz on the material prior to the class. Rod then uses the performance on the quiz and student email questions about the material do guide the discussion in the classroom. Rod was an early adopter of classroom response systems (clickers) which he uses extensively to pose questions to the students, to determine dynamically if the students are getting the concepts of the course and to deliver classroom quizzes. Rod also uses Maple TA, software that analyzes symbolic responses (the formula) to math problems, to deliver and grade homework online. He discusses the challenges and potential solutions to students being ill prepared in mathematics to take advanced physics courses. Attendance at lectures has increased significantly as a result of the modifications. Rod is joined by Ying Xiong, educational assessment specialist within the TLT Faculty Center. Ying discusses the difference between assessment and evaluation and the tools used for each. Rod plans on assessing his course using surveys and in-class focus groups. The faculty guided process for planning change is discussed and are the resources that can be brought to bear on the process. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=490630 Dr. Goodman discusses why syllabi are such important documents and what a syllabus should contain. In addition to the standard description of class schedule, textbooks, objectives and grading, the syllabus should clearly define what the instructor expects of the students and what they can expect of the instructor. Learning objectives help focus the students and provide structure to the course to ensure that appropriate material is covered. Norm constantly refers to the syllabus as he teaches and makes it available to his students in the Blackboard course management system. Dr Goodman is joined by Dr. Patricia Aceves, director of the TLT Faculty Center. Patricia discusses the depth to which learning objectives should be written and to what degree students can or should participate in this process. She also discusses the use of objectives to guide course evaluations and how objectives can be written to the different cognitive expectations of a course. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=490385 Dr. Larry Ragan is the Director of Faculty Development at Penn State’s World Campus. Larry discusses the skills that faculty need to teach well in online and blended courses, how to select appropriate content for each delivery mode and the relative strengths and weaknesses of each. The role of instructional design and other support staff in helping faculty be successful teachers online and in the classroom is also covered. Larry talks about techniques used to create healthy interactions between faculty and students in the online environment and how reflecting on learning and can impact the learning process. Larry also covers his current area of research on competencies for online teaching success (COTS). He talks about the most important skills that are needed; understanding how teaching and learning occur in an online course, understanding the operational mechanics such as submitting grades online, and technology aptitude. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=490640 Dr. Gatteau discusses his experience in converting a face to face class to an accelerated format. His biggest challenge was the loss of student behavioral queues about their grasp of the material. Rick chose Blackboard discussion groups to provide a format to replace face to face discussions. He designs discussion questions so that they facilitate in-depth dialog and analysis, and not just regurgitation of information. Dr. Gatteau found that all students were engaged by the online discussions and the quality of the discussion was higher that he had experienced in his face to face classes. He uses class participation points as part of the grade for the course. These points are greater in his online course than in face to face as the effort required is greater. He also requires students to respond to other student’s posts. He finds that it is important to establish rules of communication up front – civility and respect in discussions etc. Student online presentations can be challenging and require improvement in technology and writing skills. His students use online survey tools to evaluate group performance and presentations and the Blackboard grading center to collect and distribute student assignments. Online courses have advantages and challenges. They provide flexibility for both the faculty member and the students. However, expect online courses to require multiple design iterations to become fully mature – especially for a first time teacher. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=490391 Dr. Davidson has her students do writing assignments in class using computers to access the chat, wiki, blog and discussion features of Blackboard. She feels the technology increases collaboration and feedback, and promotes synergy among student writers. The dynamic audience feedback enabled by these tools makes the students more adept at responding to audience needs. In addition, the informal and public nature of the writing forces them to examine assumptions about audience knowledge and to write more broadly. She believes that the technology has faded into the background and the focus is on the writing. Revisions and drafts are easier to submit, grade and provide feedback on in electronic as opposed to paper submissions and plagiarism detection software makes it more likely that the work is unique. Dr. Davidson discusses scoring of blogs, wikis and discussion groups. She is joined by Andrea Doherty who covers the technical details and the relative strengths of the tools used by the writing program. The use of Facebook and other externally hosted applications is also discussed. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=490387 Dr. Kaler discusses his vision for teaching and learning at Stony Brook. He covers the need for facilities to support flexible approaches to teaching and technology to encourage student interaction. Dr. Kaler discusses the;* Evolving role of faculty in the classroom and in distance education, and the relative workload for teaching online and in the classroom.* Need for, and mechanisms by which quality teaching can be maintained in high enrollment classes.* Evolution of the curriculum including shifting toward more master’s level programs and opportunities for creative teaching and program design grants in the redesign of the general education curriculum.* Balancing faculty responsibilities in research, teaching and service.* Role of teaching evaluations in rank and tenure process.* Chairs role in promoting and rewarding teaching. http://www.merlot.org/merlot/viewMaterial.htm?id=646615 This is a 15-Question SIMUATION designed for those who have familiarity with the APA 6 writing style but want to check their understanding. Feedback after each question helps the learner understand WHY.Cross-referenced with the APA 6 Manual. 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