Good Morning Developers,
I hope you had a nice, relaxing Memorial Weekend! We are now in the second week of development for Fall courses. If you are still in need of any course materials and we haven't ordered them for you yet, please let me know right away.
As you are working on your course development(s), please be thinking of ways to really engage and interact with students via technology. A great resource for this is http://ecorner.stanford.edu/, this is Stanford University's Entrepreneurship Corner. This site offers video broadcasts, podcasts, and various other interactive presentations on a variety of topics. Even if your development is not in the Business program directly, this is still an excellent resource I encourage you to check out as the topics range from healthcare to the music industry to technology, and it even includes a variety of videos on Work/Life balance. There truly are so many different topics covered that it is a great resource for any course development.
As you are working on your course(s), please let me know if you have any questions. I'm here to help in any way I can.
Have a great week!
Heather
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
May 18, 2009
Good Morning Developers,
Welcome to the start of the Fall Quarter Development cycle! I appreciate your assistance in working on course development and I look forward to working with each of you. I am currently filling in for Amy Ode, the Online Curriculum Manager, while she is on maternity leave. She will be returning the beginning of July, so during this development cycle you will be working with each of us at some point. Please don't hesitate to contact either of us with questions at any time.
Each week you will receive a link to this development blog that will share updates, reminders, and resources with you. This is designed for you, so if there is a resource you'd like to learn more about but it hasn't been covered in a blog, please let us know. You'll also notice that on the right side of the blog page there are links to various resource topics discussed in previous blog postings. Please check these great resources out an implement these various techniques in your course developments.
Once again the time line for this round of developments is as follows:
June 8 - 25% completion
June 29 - 50% completion
July 20 - 75% completion
August 10 - 100% completion
August 10-31 - Implement peer advising suggestions/changes
You should all have access to your course shells, if you do not, please let me know so that I can make sure everything is set for you to begin your development(s).
Have a great week and let me know if you have any questions.
Thanks,
Heather
Welcome to the start of the Fall Quarter Development cycle! I appreciate your assistance in working on course development and I look forward to working with each of you. I am currently filling in for Amy Ode, the Online Curriculum Manager, while she is on maternity leave. She will be returning the beginning of July, so during this development cycle you will be working with each of us at some point. Please don't hesitate to contact either of us with questions at any time.
Each week you will receive a link to this development blog that will share updates, reminders, and resources with you. This is designed for you, so if there is a resource you'd like to learn more about but it hasn't been covered in a blog, please let us know. You'll also notice that on the right side of the blog page there are links to various resource topics discussed in previous blog postings. Please check these great resources out an implement these various techniques in your course developments.
Once again the time line for this round of developments is as follows:
June 8 - 25% completion
June 29 - 50% completion
July 20 - 75% completion
August 10 - 100% completion
August 10-31 - Implement peer advising suggestions/changes
You should all have access to your course shells, if you do not, please let me know so that I can make sure everything is set for you to begin your development(s).
Have a great week and let me know if you have any questions.
Thanks,
Heather
Monday, May 4, 2009
May 4, 2009
Good Morning Developers!
This is the last weekly blog for this round of development. All developments must be 100% complete by Monday, May 11 as this is when the peer advisers go into the courses to provide feedback. Please send me an e-mail as soon as you are finished with your development so that I can go in and check it and then cross it off the list. Please remember that part of this development round is the conversion of your course(s) to the 10-week shell format also, so if you haven't had me copy over your course(s) to another shell to work on the conversion, please do so immediately so it can be finished this week also. If you finish both shells before May 11th that is great as it allows me to check it before the peer advisers do so that you can make any last minute changes that need to be made.
This is the last weekly blog for this round of development. All developments must be 100% complete by Monday, May 11 as this is when the peer advisers go into the courses to provide feedback. Please send me an e-mail as soon as you are finished with your development so that I can go in and check it and then cross it off the list. Please remember that part of this development round is the conversion of your course(s) to the 10-week shell format also, so if you haven't had me copy over your course(s) to another shell to work on the conversion, please do so immediately so it can be finished this week also. If you finish both shells before May 11th that is great as it allows me to check it before the peer advisers do so that you can make any last minute changes that need to be made.
Thank you for all of your hard work this quarter in your developments; your dedication to our students makes a huge difference!! I have enjoyed working with all of you this quarter and I know Amy Ode greatly appreciates your assistance in making the online curriculum the best it can be for our students.
Thanks again!
Heather
Monday, April 27, 2009
April 27, 2009
Good morning developers,
I hope everyone had a very enjoyable weekend! As you are working toward 100% completion of your developments, please don't forget that part of this cycle's development process also includes converting your 12-unit course to a 10-unit course as the summer quarter this year will be 10-week's in length. Once you have your 12-unit course complete, please let me know and I will copy your completed course to a new master shell for you to work in for this conversion. Please remember both of these masters are due by Monday, May 11.
I also wanted to share with you the benefits of implementing a Wiki into your course development. Research consistently reports the benefits of group work in understanding course concepts as well as preparing students for work in their professions. However, in the online classroom, the logistical idea of a group project can be daunting at times, but it doesn't need to be. A Wiki is an excellent way to implement group work and have groups work with one another virtually. "Wikis drive engagement and collaboration" (PBWiki.com).
A Wiki I particularly like is PBWiki as it is very secure, it can embed videos and audio to embrace the technical side of students if they would like, it can create tags and RSS feeds, it offers access controls, and what I like most is it offers student accountability as it indicates who participated in the Wiki when, where, and how. Click on this link to check it out and see if it is something you could implement into your course: http://pbwiki.com/academic.wiki.
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns as you are working on your courses.
Thanks!
Heather
I hope everyone had a very enjoyable weekend! As you are working toward 100% completion of your developments, please don't forget that part of this cycle's development process also includes converting your 12-unit course to a 10-unit course as the summer quarter this year will be 10-week's in length. Once you have your 12-unit course complete, please let me know and I will copy your completed course to a new master shell for you to work in for this conversion. Please remember both of these masters are due by Monday, May 11.
I also wanted to share with you the benefits of implementing a Wiki into your course development. Research consistently reports the benefits of group work in understanding course concepts as well as preparing students for work in their professions. However, in the online classroom, the logistical idea of a group project can be daunting at times, but it doesn't need to be. A Wiki is an excellent way to implement group work and have groups work with one another virtually. "Wikis drive engagement and collaboration" (PBWiki.com).
A Wiki I particularly like is PBWiki as it is very secure, it can embed videos and audio to embrace the technical side of students if they would like, it can create tags and RSS feeds, it offers access controls, and what I like most is it offers student accountability as it indicates who participated in the Wiki when, where, and how. Click on this link to check it out and see if it is something you could implement into your course: http://pbwiki.com/academic.wiki.
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or concerns as you are working on your courses.
Thanks!
Heather
Monday, April 20, 2009
April 20, 2009
Good morning developers,
Today marks the 75% completion point for the summer development cycle. I will begin looking at your courses starting today and will be in contact with you individually, if I haven't been already, regarding your course(s) up to this point. If you have any questions on any feedback I send, please don't hesitate to contact me.
As you move to 100% completion, please keep a couple of administrative things in mind:
(1) Please verify that all of your discussion boards are linked within the units properly by clicking on the discussion board in each unit and confirming it brings students to the appropriate discussion board topic;
(2) Please verify that all discussion boards are then linked to the grade center properly by clicking on the Class Discussion link on the left side of the course and clicking each topic's modify button to confirm points are allocated to the discussion. If you receive an error message when clicking the modify button, that means the discussion board is not properly linked to the grade center and will need to be recreated.
(3) Please verify each unit has an interactive discussion board topic where students are required to both post and reply.
As you are working toward your 100% completion please also be thinking of ways to enhance the interactive component of your course(s). TeacherTube is yet another great resource for you to explore to possibly find some educational videos that could enhance your course(s). Click here to browse TeacherTube: http://www.teachertube.com/index.php
Once again, if you have any questions on anything, please let me know.
I look forward to reviewing your courses and will be in touch with you individually.
Have a great Earth Week!
Heather
Today marks the 75% completion point for the summer development cycle. I will begin looking at your courses starting today and will be in contact with you individually, if I haven't been already, regarding your course(s) up to this point. If you have any questions on any feedback I send, please don't hesitate to contact me.
As you move to 100% completion, please keep a couple of administrative things in mind:
(1) Please verify that all of your discussion boards are linked within the units properly by clicking on the discussion board in each unit and confirming it brings students to the appropriate discussion board topic;
(2) Please verify that all discussion boards are then linked to the grade center properly by clicking on the Class Discussion link on the left side of the course and clicking each topic's modify button to confirm points are allocated to the discussion. If you receive an error message when clicking the modify button, that means the discussion board is not properly linked to the grade center and will need to be recreated.
(3) Please verify each unit has an interactive discussion board topic where students are required to both post and reply.
As you are working toward your 100% completion please also be thinking of ways to enhance the interactive component of your course(s). TeacherTube is yet another great resource for you to explore to possibly find some educational videos that could enhance your course(s). Click here to browse TeacherTube: http://www.teachertube.com/index.php
Once again, if you have any questions on anything, please let me know.
I look forward to reviewing your courses and will be in touch with you individually.
Have a great Earth Week!
Heather
Monday, April 13, 2009
April 13, 2009
Good morning developers,
I hope everyone had a nice, relaxing weekend! As you continue working on your development projects, please be thinking about various enhancements you could add to your course(s) to really engage the online learner. On the right side of this blog board you'll see links to various enhancement pieces Amy has discussed in the past.
Another great enhancement opportunity for you is the use of audio presentations. If you are a faculty member at Globe Education Network, you have probably heard about and maybe even have participated in the Max Knowledge online coursework as part of your professional development. As a developer, you can implement learning modules similar to what these courses look like by creating a PowerPoint presentation with a script and interactive instructions and sending them to me to create an interactive audio lecture for you using Adobe Presenter. Please click here to watch a short demonstration on what Adobe Presenter is and how it can serve as an excellent enhancement in your courses: http://www.adobe.com/products/presenter/
A few of GEN's online courses currently have Adobe Presenter presentations and students have responded really positively to them. You do not need to do the recording; rather, you can provide me with a PowerPoint presentation and an accompanying script and I will take care of the rest for you!
If you have any questions on this resource, or questions on anything else as you are working on your development, please let me know.
Have a great week!
Heather
I hope everyone had a nice, relaxing weekend! As you continue working on your development projects, please be thinking about various enhancements you could add to your course(s) to really engage the online learner. On the right side of this blog board you'll see links to various enhancement pieces Amy has discussed in the past.
Another great enhancement opportunity for you is the use of audio presentations. If you are a faculty member at Globe Education Network, you have probably heard about and maybe even have participated in the Max Knowledge online coursework as part of your professional development. As a developer, you can implement learning modules similar to what these courses look like by creating a PowerPoint presentation with a script and interactive instructions and sending them to me to create an interactive audio lecture for you using Adobe Presenter. Please click here to watch a short demonstration on what Adobe Presenter is and how it can serve as an excellent enhancement in your courses: http://www.adobe.com/products/presenter/
A few of GEN's online courses currently have Adobe Presenter presentations and students have responded really positively to them. You do not need to do the recording; rather, you can provide me with a PowerPoint presentation and an accompanying script and I will take care of the rest for you!
If you have any questions on this resource, or questions on anything else as you are working on your development, please let me know.
Have a great week!
Heather
Monday, April 6, 2009
April 6, 2009
Good Morning Developers,
With this being my first blog post as I cover Amy's responsibilities while she is on maternity leave, I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. I am a full-time online Communications/Business instructor for GEN and have worked on course development since I started teaching online. I really enjoy exploring and implementing new strategies to really engage our students in the online classroom. If you ever have any questions while you are working on your developments, please don't hesitate to let me know. And I also look forward to learning from each of you as I explore your development courses.
As you are working on your development, I encourage you to create grading rubrics for assignments and essay exams. Grade Inflation has been a hot topic in recent years and here is a great article discussing various perspectives and research on the issue. http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/03/12/grades
An excellent way to curb grade inflation is by putting into place grading standards and expectations. They not only guide students as they are completing their work, they also help guide instructors during the evaluation stage. An excellent resource to assist in creating grading rubrics is at: http://rubistar.com/
I look forward to working with each of you, and once again, please let me know if you have any questions.
Have a great first week of the quarter!
Heather
With this being my first blog post as I cover Amy's responsibilities while she is on maternity leave, I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. I am a full-time online Communications/Business instructor for GEN and have worked on course development since I started teaching online. I really enjoy exploring and implementing new strategies to really engage our students in the online classroom. If you ever have any questions while you are working on your developments, please don't hesitate to let me know. And I also look forward to learning from each of you as I explore your development courses.
As you are working on your development, I encourage you to create grading rubrics for assignments and essay exams. Grade Inflation has been a hot topic in recent years and here is a great article discussing various perspectives and research on the issue. http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/03/12/grades
An excellent way to curb grade inflation is by putting into place grading standards and expectations. They not only guide students as they are completing their work, they also help guide instructors during the evaluation stage. An excellent resource to assist in creating grading rubrics is at: http://rubistar.com/
I look forward to working with each of you, and once again, please let me know if you have any questions.
Have a great first week of the quarter!
Heather
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