Planning for Distance Education

Jim LehmanEducational Technology

Purdue University

Planning

Planning

• PLANNING is the key to success in a distributed learning environment.

• Determine what you want to teach, to whom, how you will do it, and how you will assess outcomes.

What is Planned?• Philosophy• Instructional

model• Content selection• Course rationale• Goals and

objectives• Prerequisite skills• Syllabus

• Textbook• Media• Instructional

strategies• Presentation

elements• Readings and

activities• Assessments • Grading system

Planning Topics

• Systems approach • Preliminary planning• Basic components• Developing

objectives• Methods/activities• Evaluation

Systems Approach

Systematic Approach

R eviseas N eed ed

A n a lyzeIn s tru c tion a l Task

A n a lyzeL earn ers

S u m m ative E va lu a tion

Im p lem en t C ou rse

F orm ative E va lu a tion

S e lec t an d C rea teIn s tru c tion a l an dC ou rse M ate ria ls

D eve lop M an ag em en tan d C om m u n ica tion

P roced u res

D eve lopIn s tru c tion a l S tra teg ies

Id en tify an d S e lec tD e live ry A lte rn a tives

D eve lopA ssessm en t P roced u res

W riteP erfo rm an ce O b jec tives

G ath er R esou rces

A ssess N eed s an dId en tify

In s tru c tion a l G oa ls

Initial Steps

A n a lyzeIn s tru c tion a l Task

A n a lyzeL earn ers

A ssess N eed s an dId en tify

In s tru c tion a l G oa ls

Preliminary Planning

Preliminary Planning

• First, you need to determine your overall course goal.– What do you propose to offer?– To whom?– What instructional need are you

fulfilling?

• How can you assess the need for a distance education course or module?

Preliminary Planning, cont’d.

• Audience analysis– Who do you expect your students to

be?– Where are they located?– What are their characteristics?

• How can you analyze your audience for a distance education course?

Preliminary Planning, cont’d.

• Content analysis– Does the content for your course

already exist or must it be created?– Will modification for distance delivery

be necessary?– Can distance technologies be used to

your advantage?

Preliminary Planning, cont’d.• Delivery System Selection

– What delivery system (e.g., videotape, live video, Internet) is available?

– Which delivery system offers the best fit with your content and your audience?

– How easy or difficult will it be to prepare your course for this delivery system?

• How will communication and course management be handled?

Basic Componentsof Effective Instruction

A Simplified View

• Objectives• Activities• Evaluation

Objectives

Activities Evaluation

Developing Goals and Objectives

Strategies for IdentifyingStudent Outcomes

Goals

• Educational goals are broad, overall purposes or plans for a course.

• Start by thinking about goals for a course that you teach or plan to teach. State one goal for your course.

Objectives

• Educational objectives are more specific statements of what students will be able to do upon completion of the instruction.

• An example might be: “The student will be able to name four stages of mitosis and describe the processes that occur at each stage.”

Developing Objectives

• When designing instruction, it is common to specify objectives first, but it is also possible to define objectives based upon content/activities or evaluation.

Objectives

Activities Evaluation

Objectives First

• Examine the discipline standards for your field. Basic competencies are often identified. Use those to write objectives.

• Check textbooks and teacher’s guides in the field.

• Assess the needs of courses that follow yours in the curriculum.

Content First

• Examine reference material (e.g., textbooks) and try to glean objectives from them.

• Make an outline of the course content you wish to cover. What are the most important points? What will you expect students to learn or be able to do?

Content First

• Identify how concepts relate to one another in your content. Concept mapping is a good technique.

Mitosis

CopiesCell

Stages

Importantfor Growth

Prophase Metaphase Anaphase Telophase

Evaluation First

• Examine your test and quiz questions. What do students need to know to answer them? Turn these into objectives.

• Review problem areas in previous students’ performance.

Writing Objectives

• Well-written objectives specify three component parts, although some parts are often assumed:

– Performance

– Conditions

– Criteria

Example

• Given a diagram of a plant or animal cell, the student will be able to correctly label at least seven major cell organelles or structures.

• Write an objective for your own content area that includes performance, conditions, and criteria.

Developing Activities

Strategies for Teaching at a Distance

The audiois not

working.

Instructional Methods

• Brainstorming activity:– What are instructional methods

that can be used in on-campus courses?

Instructional Methods

• Lecture/presentation

• Discussion• Interview• Demonstration• Role play• Case study• Brainstorming• Writing

• Labs• Reading• Group project• Discovery learning• Drill / problems• Tutorial• Simulation• Test / quiz

Instructional Methods

• Which instructional methods/strategies could not be utilized in a distributed learning setting? Why?

Distributed Learning Strategies

• Brainstorming activity:– How might traditional

instructional activities be adapted for video delivery?

Distributed Learning Strategies

Brainstorming activity:

– How might traditional instructional activities be adapted for web-based delivery?

Developing Evaluations

Strategies for AssessingStudent Learning at a Distance

Evaluation Methods

Brainstorming activity:

– What are evaluation methods that can be used in on-campus courses?

Evaluation Methods

• Tests• Quizzes• Student projects

or products• Homework

problems• Questionnaires or

surveys

• Lab reports• Papers or other

written work• Performance or

demonstration by students

• Simulation

Evaluation Methods

Which evaluation methods can be utilized in a distributed learning setting? How would they have to be modified, if at all?

Remember:Keep Components Parallel

• Objectives

• Activities

• Evaluation

• Activities should teach to the objectives, and evaluation should assess them.

The End