thinking beyond the bandwagon
DESCRIPTION
One instructor's perspective on managing innovation podcasting, blogs, webpage assignments, discussion forumsTRANSCRIPT
Thinking Outside the Bandwagon
One instructor’s perspective on
managing innovation
Robert RuntéUniversity of Lethbridge
outlinecautionary tale of my experiences with
four innovative technologies online discussion forums web page assignments blogs podcasting
audience members share their experiences (enthuse or commiserate)
life cycle of innovative teaching technologies
a cautionary tale….
to be educationally valid,
innovative instructional technology should fill previously identified need…
on-line discussion forums
to extend class discussion in large classes
gives “quiet” students opportunity to write thoughtful comments, demonstrate knowledge, sway classmates
At UofL, David Brown experiments with on-line forums
demos success for interested colleagues after several successful iterations
innovation is widely adopted
on-line discussion forums become complete disaster
very negative course evaluations
what went wrong?
when just Dr. Brown did it
students found reading peers comments, dialoging, and writing their own 10 line comments engaging
but when forums widely adopted
geometric increase in student numbers overwhelmed computer labs
students now had to line up for hours, just to make a 10 line comment
(and other users resented those taking lab spaces from computer course students)
forums abandoned
...just as IT brought in hundreds of email stations that made innovation possible again….
Web Page Assignments
public audience more authentic assessment students take public stand (ownership) increased public accountability (student
and instructor) discourages plagiarism
Web Page Assignments
group or individual projects easily accommodated
Web Page Assignments
collaborative, cumulative class projects more authentic assessment provides public service
Web Page Assignments
students acquire new and relevant skill sets increased marketability of graduates increased student motivation (novelty)
Web Page Assignments
BUTas early adopter,
had to spend class time teaching HTML, graphic design, etc
technology changed faster than instructors could keep up
Web Page Assignments
Web Page Assignments
BUTwhen more common place
great variation in computer literacy among students
issue of grading on HTML rather than course content
Web Page Assignments
But biggest problems started when
told colleagues about my successes….
knew I was in trouble when:
first heard student say, “Oh, no, not another web page assignment!”
Wikipedia made class collaborative project redundant
…crucial to attend to context outside of your own classroom -- life cycle of innovation
blogs in the classroom
on-line student journal
concern over decline in quality of class discussions:
larger class sizes made it impossible for every student to speak in class
students not doing readings prior to class
majority coasting on a few vocal students
inauthentic agreement with (assumed) instructor views
blog as…
a (public) reading log
Reading Logs
promotes class discussion ensures readings are read for class students take a stand before class going public increases authenticity of
responses comment function extends class
discussion beyond class time
Reading Logs
peer correction of misconceptionsauthentic feedback on assigned
readings for instructorgenerate quotes, discussion
questions for next yearasynchronous grading and feedback
blogs
first two iterations successful just minor revisions to scoring scheme to
encourage risk-taking and authentic expression
knew I was in trouble when…
students this past term said, “Oh no, not another blog assignment…!”
podcasting
felt need to do something…
…about 3 hour lectures course team kept adding objectives to
curriculum students now expect slides to be
available ahead of class reviewing slides in class increasingly
redundant
encountered podcasting…
July, 2005
Evo Terra, Michael Mennenga Tee Morris
getting on the bandwagon…
rebirth of radio
educators have the bandwidth
educators have the content
8 Advantages of Podcasting
audio better use of student time
easier for instructor (than video)
more individualized instruction
scheduling encourages more learning objects
8 Advantages of Podcasting
easily integratedoff load lectures
from class timereaches a broad
audienceencourages
innovative teaching
podcasting issues
“free up class time”, by making lectures available out of class but this effectively
doubles course hours, since now students “take home” lectures
solution: make lectures optional
student chooses between readings, listening to podcasts of lectures; or watching videos of Powerpoint shows student finds modality
that works best for that student
comes to class ready to workshop, ask questions
podcasting?
are we ahead of the curve yet?
barriers to adoption?
weekly encouragement?
“We’ve got to get on this! The VP wants us moving ahead on this.”
September-December, 2005
podcast team Acquire professional
recording hardware work bugs out of
Garageband records music intros inservices faculty on
the use of the equipment
September-December, 2005
Set up project management blog
September-December, 2005
IT support people sets up podcast web page
April 2008...still no podcasts
Barriers are social, not technological“Day job” has to come first
teaching, research and service -- podcasts projects not recognized as any of those
potential research output…but ‘low level’ journals, out of our direct field
evaluate each innovation
clear need?too early adoption
infrastructure available? disproportionate effort student panic / novelty
lifecycle expiration
administrative supports
innovation vs diffusionreward structures based on what has
beengolden age of the classroom
stories from you