Good Evening Developers,
As I mentioned in last week's development blog, a key initiative for this development cycle will be the implementation of audio lectures, with a goal of a minimum of 3 found within the course. There are a number of options available to you in implementing audio lectures and over the course of the next few weeks I will highlight some of these possibilities.
The first option I'd like to explore is the use of Adobe Presenter lectures. Adobe Presenter allows us to add audio to PowerPoint files and create flash type presentations to embed within Blackboard. 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 of these lectures; rather, you can provide me with a PowerPoint presentation and an accompanying script and I will take care of the rest for you! Ideally these lectures should be approximately 5-7 minutes in length and contain information relevant to a particular unit (or multiple units) but that is not text specific.
To learn more, 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/
If you have any questions on this resource, or questions on anything else as you are working on your development, please let me know. I hope you decide to take advantage of Adobe Presenter as one of your audio lecture modes. I look forward to receiving your presentations and scripts.
Have a great week!
Heather
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
February 17, 2010
Good Evening Developers,
Welcome to the newest round of developments! We are now working on course developments that we would like to have ready for Early Fall Quarter, 2010.
I would like to use this first blog post of this cycle to direct your attention to some of the key things to keep in mind during the development of an online course.
First, if you have done online development previously, you have probably become accustomed to receiving the Weekly Development Blog on Monday morning. I'm switching this to be sent out on Wednesdays rather than Mondays as I know how busy Mondays can be, and I'd like you to have the opportunity to really examine and consider the various resources discussed in the Weekly Development Blogs.
As you begin your development it is important to look at what the expectations are. It may be valuable to take a close look at the Online Course Development Checklist as well as the Peer Advising survey before you begin your development. These are the things we will be looking for from a completed course development.
Since this development cycle is specifically preparing for Early Fall Quarter, 2010, it is essential the 10-unit and 12-unit shells are completed by the May 10 deadline. Your 12-unit shells have been created for you, and it is best to complete the course in its entirety first. I will then copy your course for you to work on the 10-unit conversion when you are ready, keeping that May 10 deadline in mind. Later in the process I will be sending specific tutorials on how to complete the 10-unit conversion, but if you have any questions now, please let me know.
Welcome to the newest round of developments! We are now working on course developments that we would like to have ready for Early Fall Quarter, 2010.
I would like to use this first blog post of this cycle to direct your attention to some of the key things to keep in mind during the development of an online course.
First, if you have done online development previously, you have probably become accustomed to receiving the Weekly Development Blog on Monday morning. I'm switching this to be sent out on Wednesdays rather than Mondays as I know how busy Mondays can be, and I'd like you to have the opportunity to really examine and consider the various resources discussed in the Weekly Development Blogs.
As you begin your development it is important to look at what the expectations are. It may be valuable to take a close look at the Online Course Development Checklist as well as the Peer Advising survey before you begin your development. These are the things we will be looking for from a completed course development.
Since this development cycle is specifically preparing for Early Fall Quarter, 2010, it is essential the 10-unit and 12-unit shells are completed by the May 10 deadline. Your 12-unit shells have been created for you, and it is best to complete the course in its entirety first. I will then copy your course for you to work on the 10-unit conversion when you are ready, keeping that May 10 deadline in mind. Later in the process I will be sending specific tutorials on how to complete the 10-unit conversion, but if you have any questions now, please let me know.
A big focus of mine during this development cycle will be on developing solid lectures within the units. Each unit should have some lecture component and I'd like to see a minimum of 3 audio-based lectures throughout the course. I'll discuss various ideas throughout the development process, but there are a variety of ways these could be completed such as: Jing, Elluminate, the use of external expert lectures, Adobe Presenter, etc. As I mentioned, I will delve into these options in greater detail as the development cycle progresses but keep in mind the minimum of 3 audio lecture request when working on your courses. By incorporating more audio, we will be connecting more with our auditory learners and offering an even stronger course connection for students overall.
The 25% completion date is March 8, 2010. I look forward to hearing your ideas and seeing the start of your developments at that time!
Have a great week and if you have any questions at any time, please don't hesitate to let me know. I'm here to support and assist your developments in any way I can.
Heather
Monday, February 8, 2010
February 8, 2010
Good Morning Developers!
This is the last weekly blog for this round of development. All developments must be 100% complete today as this is when the peer advisers will begin to go into the courses to provide feedback. If your course isn't yet 100% complete, I have already sent you a note about this. If you haven't heard from me individually, then great job...your course is set to go! As I receive feedback from the peer reviewers, I will forward them on to you for consideration and implementation. If for some reason you believe a suggestion isn't warranted for your course development, please articulate that to me and we will work together on an appropriate solution.
This week I will also be copying your master shells into a 10-week master shell for you to begin working on the conversion from the 12-unit format to a 10-unit format in preparation for our shortened 10-week Early Fall quarter offering.
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 and hope to work with you in more developments in the future.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to let me know.
Thank you,
Heather
This is the last weekly blog for this round of development. All developments must be 100% complete today as this is when the peer advisers will begin to go into the courses to provide feedback. If your course isn't yet 100% complete, I have already sent you a note about this. If you haven't heard from me individually, then great job...your course is set to go! As I receive feedback from the peer reviewers, I will forward them on to you for consideration and implementation. If for some reason you believe a suggestion isn't warranted for your course development, please articulate that to me and we will work together on an appropriate solution.
This week I will also be copying your master shells into a 10-week master shell for you to begin working on the conversion from the 12-unit format to a 10-unit format in preparation for our shortened 10-week Early Fall quarter offering.
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 and hope to work with you in more developments in the future.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to let me know.
Thank you,
Heather
Monday, January 25, 2010
Monday, January 18, 2010
January 18, 2010
Good Evening Developers!
Today is the 75% check point for most of the brand new developments. I will be going into your courses this week and will e-mail you with feedback. If you have any questions on my feedback, please let me know. Please remember you will need to have your 10-week shell conversions completed before the 100% deadline too, so as soon as you feel you are at the 100% point please let me know and I will make a copy of your course so that you can convert it to a 10-week version.
This week I'd like to introduce you to an excellent study technique for your students: Online Flashcards. Online flashcards allow students to interact with the course material in various ways that are most beneficial to them personally. Students can print the cards out for a physical study tool, students can download them to their PDA or MP3 player to study on the go, and students can rely on the technical tools to keep track of their progress.
You could incorporate the use of flashcards into your course developments a few different ways:
Cramberry.net
Study Stack
Quizlet
Knowtes
As always, please let me know if you have any questions on any of your developments. I'm here to help in any way I can. And I'm anxious to take a peek at your courses to see how they are coming along. I'll be in touch individually on your progress.
Have a great week!
Heather
Today is the 75% check point for most of the brand new developments. I will be going into your courses this week and will e-mail you with feedback. If you have any questions on my feedback, please let me know. Please remember you will need to have your 10-week shell conversions completed before the 100% deadline too, so as soon as you feel you are at the 100% point please let me know and I will make a copy of your course so that you can convert it to a 10-week version.
This week I'd like to introduce you to an excellent study technique for your students: Online Flashcards. Online flashcards allow students to interact with the course material in various ways that are most beneficial to them personally. Students can print the cards out for a physical study tool, students can download them to their PDA or MP3 player to study on the go, and students can rely on the technical tools to keep track of their progress.
You could incorporate the use of flashcards into your course developments a few different ways:
- Are you looking for a great way for your students to collaborate and learn from one another? Have your students make a set of online flashcards and then share their flashcards with other students in the course! Each student can take a chapter or concept and make a set of 15 – 20 flashcards. They can then share their flashcards with other students in the course and they suddenly have great studying resources that they can all use!
- Implement flashcards into an actual assignment where students create the cards and submit them to you for review. This promotes studying while studying!
- Or you could create flashcards of the key terms from the unit lecture that are then shared with the students.
Cramberry.net
Study Stack
Quizlet
Knowtes
As always, please let me know if you have any questions on any of your developments. I'm here to help in any way I can. And I'm anxious to take a peek at your courses to see how they are coming along. I'll be in touch individually on your progress.
Have a great week!
Heather
Monday, January 11, 2010
January 11, 2010
Hello Developers!
Next Monday marks the 75% completion date for this development round and I look forward to going into your courses to check the progress. It is also time to begin thinking about the 10-week master shells.
As you all know, you first develop your courses in a 12 unit format and then I will copy the course into a 10 unit shell and you will need to convert the content to be delivered in 10 weeks instead of 12 weeks. Amy Ode put together several trainings that go over how to combine this information. Please view each of the Jing presentations below to learn more about how to convert your course to a 10 unit layout. I hope you find these trainings useful and helpful! And if you have any questions on any of this, please let me know.
You will not need to do this until after your 12 week course is developed, but there are quite a few videos so I wanted to give you some time to look through them.
How to combine the introductions for the Unit Folders in a course conversion
How to combine reading assignments in a 10 week conversion
How to combine discussion boards in a 10 week conversion
How to combine assignments in a 10 week conversion
How to combine external web links in a 10 week conversion
How to change a quiz/test name in a 10 week conversion Part A
How to change a quiz/test name in a 10 week conversion Part B
How to rename items in unit folders during a 10 week conversion Part A
How to rename items in unit folders during a 10 week conversion Part B
Remember you will need to change your course calendar to a 10 unit layout as well – here is a training on how to make sure the total in your course calendar matches the total in the grade center
Have a great week and please let me know if you have any questions!
Heather
Next Monday marks the 75% completion date for this development round and I look forward to going into your courses to check the progress. It is also time to begin thinking about the 10-week master shells.
As you all know, you first develop your courses in a 12 unit format and then I will copy the course into a 10 unit shell and you will need to convert the content to be delivered in 10 weeks instead of 12 weeks. Amy Ode put together several trainings that go over how to combine this information. Please view each of the Jing presentations below to learn more about how to convert your course to a 10 unit layout. I hope you find these trainings useful and helpful! And if you have any questions on any of this, please let me know.
You will not need to do this until after your 12 week course is developed, but there are quite a few videos so I wanted to give you some time to look through them.
How to combine the introductions for the Unit Folders in a course conversion
How to combine reading assignments in a 10 week conversion
How to combine discussion boards in a 10 week conversion
How to combine assignments in a 10 week conversion
How to combine external web links in a 10 week conversion
How to change a quiz/test name in a 10 week conversion Part A
How to change a quiz/test name in a 10 week conversion Part B
How to rename items in unit folders during a 10 week conversion Part A
How to rename items in unit folders during a 10 week conversion Part B
Remember you will need to change your course calendar to a 10 unit layout as well – here is a training on how to make sure the total in your course calendar matches the total in the grade center
Have a great week and please let me know if you have any questions!
Heather
Monday, December 14, 2009
December 14, 2009
Good Morning,
I ran across a great website that I think would be a great tool to use in online courses. It is called Google Living Stories. This website provides users with an easy way to track the developments of a news topic. It is an experiment for now, but it tracks the top news stories and presents the news in one easy to find location. Click Here for a 2 minute video on how this tool works.
I hope you are able to work this into your developments, I think your students will enjoy the tool.
Have a great week!
Amy
I ran across a great website that I think would be a great tool to use in online courses. It is called Google Living Stories. This website provides users with an easy way to track the developments of a news topic. It is an experiment for now, but it tracks the top news stories and presents the news in one easy to find location. Click Here for a 2 minute video on how this tool works.
I hope you are able to work this into your developments, I think your students will enjoy the tool.
Have a great week!
Amy
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