Learning Design
DETT 607 - July 13, 2013
Author's note: The following write-up was a hypothetical solution to a hypothetical problem in higher education. After completing the various parts of the project I feel the learning design offers a workable, manageable and easily achieved solution. I am extremely interested in working on how to solve these types of problems via instructional design and delivery.
Researchers have discovered an increase in the attrition rates of online undergraduate students at Towson University. In order to combat the growing number of drop-outs, Towson University has decided to implement a required online orientation course entitled, “Distance Education 101 – Learning Online.” The following course design, in conjunction with the course context analysis, will be a platform for learning that can have positive effects on the incoming undergraduate students and create competent, knowledgeable distance education students.
Course overview
In order to showcase the course a sample syllabus is outlined below:
Description - “Distance Education 101 – Learning Online” is a four week orientation course required of all incoming undergraduate students at Towson University. The course will introduce students to an online learning environment. Specifically, the course will introduce students to technology and the Blackboard LMS, help students develop time management skills, and highlight the affordances and possibilities of online learning.
Purpose of Course - “Distance Education 101 – Learning Online” was developed to combat the growing number of undergraduate students dropping-out of online courses. The course should orient incoming students to the intricacies of online learning and better prepare them for their future, if they chose to enroll in online courses.
Objectives - A detailed explanation of the learning objectives is under the heading “Measurable Learning Objectives.”
Academic Calendar - A detailed explanation of the course modules is under the heading “Course Outline.”
Attendance - There are no attendance requirements for the course; however it is very important for students to log-in to the classroom as frequently as possible throughout the four week orientation. A recommended practice would be to log on every other day or three times a week.
Assignments - A detailed explanation of the course assignments is under the heading “Course Outline.”
Grading - The course will be graded on a pass/fail basis. Students must receive a 70% or better on their coursework in order to receive a passing grade.
Academic Honesty - Students are expected to submit their own work in accordance with the Student Academic Integrity Policy at Towson University (http://inside.towson.edu/generalcampus/tupolicies).
Texts - There is no required textbook for the course. All necessary information can be found in the course website in Blackboard.
Requirements - The course consists of a pre-course and post-course survey, two quizzes, a discussion board, an optional synchronous chat, a video tutorial, and one writing assignment.
Measurable learning objectives
The following learning objectives will be provided to the students in the syllabus and detail what the students will gain from taking this course. Upon successful completion of this course students will:
Theoretical background
In the community of inquiry model (CoI) Garrison, Anderson and Archer (2000) propose three components to successful online learning as social presence, teaching presence, and cognitive presence. The learning design presented is based off of the collaborative-constructivist ideology of the CoI model.
Garrison (2009) defines social presence as “the ability of participants to identify with the community (e.g., course of study), communicate purposefully in a trusting environment, and develop inter-personal relationships by way of projecting their individual personalities” (p. 352). The personal introductions, discussion board, and synchronous/asynchronous chat opportunities are embedded within the learning design to promote social presence.
According to Garrison (2009) teaching presence influences the sustainability of social and cognitive presence. Moreover Anderson, Rourke, Garrison and Archer (2001) propose teaching presence “is the design, facilitation, and direction of cognitive and social processes for the purpose of realizing personally meaningful and educationally worthwhile learning outcomes” (p. 5). Within this learning design the teacher is responsible for facilitating discussion, providing prompt feedback and support, and for grading the final writing assignment. Successful integration of these teaching techniques will ensure an adequate teaching presence, hence sustaining social and cognitive presences.
Garrison, Anderson, and Archer (2001) define cognitive presence as the extent to which learners are able to construct and confirm meaning through sustained reflection and discourse (Abstract). Embedded in the learning design are activities intended to fulfill cognitive presence. Students will be required to read a passage, watch a video, take quizzes and write a paper. The final writing assignment will force students to engage in sustained reflection and create a paper in the language/context of the course.
Interaction
There is a paradigm shift from teacher-centered to student-centered learning when transitioning from the traditional classroom to the online classroom (Rovai & Jordan, 2004). Learner control is the essence of this shift and is the basis for interaction within the learning design. Wang and Gearhart (2006) contend “A major advantage of increased learner control over learning paths is that the learner becomes more active” (p. 102).
The learning design will facilitate student interaction with course content, other students and the instructor and hopefully promote active learning. The learner will be able to exercise a degree of freedom in navigating the course content online (learner control) however, the hypermedia structure of the course will be rather basic to avoid negative effects and cognitive overload (Wang & Gearhart, 2006).
The discussion board, asynchronous and synchronous chat forums are ways in which students can interact with one another. The students will be required to post a personal passage as an introduction to the course; the passage may evoke conversation between students. In addition, students will be required to participate in a synchronous discussion in the third week. The discussion should present students with differing viewpoints, as Wang and Gearhart (2006) state “Confronting different views would encourage them to challenge their own existing knowledge, and resolving conflicts would foster reflection, metacognitive development, and cognitive restructuring” (p. 63).
In the beginning of the course the instructor should delineate the best ways of personal communication with the class. It is important for instructors to clearly define communication channels in order for students to feel in direct connection with the instructor. It is also important for the instructor to facilitate discussion, keep students on topic, and remain open-minded.
A brief synopsis of the ARCS model (Keller & Suzuki, 1988) as it relates to this learning design would be:
Feedback
Students will receive two types of feedback throughout the course, instructor feedback and programmed evaluative feedback. The instructor feedback will consist of the prompt returning of the written assignment and evaluating the participation level of students in the discussions. Wang and Gearhart (2006) affirm “Although instructors do not need to have their presence constantly felt by students in asynchronous communication, instructors may need to monitor student participation regularly and respond to students’ needs in a timely manner” (p. 86). Secondly, the course will employ the use of programmed evaluative feedback. At the end of the second and third weeks of the course students will complete an online quiz. The online quizzes will be graded instantaneously and will provide immediate feedback to the students.
Course outline, subject matter content and assessment
Module 1 – “Technology Overview” (Week 1)
Learning objectives:
After completing this module students will be able to:
Access course content via Blackboard LMS on day one
Upload and submit a pre-course survey into the Assignments folder by day two
Post an introductory passage on the discussion board by day three
Locate online support systems available in Blackboard by day seven
Course resources:
An instructional shell containing the basics of Blackboard, the shell will contain a PowerPoint presentation walking the students through the functionality and features of Blackboard.
Assessment:
The first week of the orientation course will acclimate students to Blackboard; specifically, the use of the discussion board and the assignment folder. The completion of these two activities will contribute to the students overall participation grade.
Module 2 – “Time Management” (Week 2)
Learning objectives:
After completing this module students will be able to:
Recognize the time demands of distance education by completing the reading
Engage in critical thinking by completing the reading by day three
Participate in classroom discourse on the discussion board by day five
Complete an online quiz pertaining to the assigned reading by day seven
Course resources:
An instructional shell containing an in-depth article about distance education, the shell will include a PowerPoint presentation of a definition of distance education terms and the article will highlight the added student responsibility in online learning. Lastly, the shell will discuss and define online learners and concepts of self-directed study.
Assessment:
The second week of the orientation course will introduce students to some basic concepts of online learning and what is entailed in becoming an online learner. The students will be assessed on the breadth and depth of their participation on the discussion board, and on the online quiz at the end of the week.
Module 3 – “Online Exploration” (Week 3)
Learning objectives:
After completing this module students will be able to:
Stimulate sensory perception from a distance by watching the assigned video
Communicate synchronously with the class and the instructor on day three
Identify differences in online versus face-to-face communication
Complete an online quiz pertaining to the assigned video on time by day seven
Course resources:
An instructional shell containing a video about the affordances of online education, the shell will also explain the advantages and disadvantages of online learning.
Assessment:
The students will be assessed on participation in the synchronous discussion and the completion of the online quiz.
Module 4 – “Personal Experience to Practice” (Week 4)
Learning objectives:
After completing this module students will be able to:
Access resources needed for the writing assignment by day one
Research topics for writing assignment by day three
Complete a writing assignment on chosen topic by day seven
Upload and submit a post-course survey into the Assignments folder by day seven
Course resources:
An instructional shell containing the resources necessary for the writing assignment, the shell will also contain the grading rubric and any pertinent details of the assignment.
Assessment:
The students will be assessed on the basis of the grading rubric for the assignment.
Conclusion
The following learning design is intended for the successful implementation of “Distance Education 101 – Learning Online” at Towson University. The learning design entails a detailed discussion of learning objectives and a sample course overview. The learning design in conjunction with the context analysis is supported with literature and is easily edited as instructional design requires.
References
Anderson, T., Rourke, L., Garrison, R., & Archer, W. (2001). Assessing teaching presence in a computer conferencing context. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 5(2), 1-17.
Garrison, D. R. (2009). Communities of inquiry in online learning. Encyclopedia of distance learning, 352-355.
Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2000). Critical inquiry in a text-base environment: Computer conferencing in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 2(2-3), 87-105.
Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2001). Critical thinking, cognitive presence and computer conferencing in distance education [Abstract]. American Journal of Distance Education, 15(1), 7-23.
Keller, J. M., & Suzuki, K. (1988) Use of the ARCS motivation model in courseware design. In D.H. Jonassen (Ed.), Instructional designs for microcomputer course ware (pp. 401-434). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum
Rovai, A. P., & Jordan, H. (2004). Blended learning and sense of community: A comparative analysis with traditional and fully online graduate courses. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 5(2).
Wang, H. & Gearhart, D. L. (2006). Designing and developing web-based instruction. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
Author's note: The following write-up was a hypothetical solution to a hypothetical problem in higher education. After completing the various parts of the project I feel the learning design offers a workable, manageable and easily achieved solution. I am extremely interested in working on how to solve these types of problems via instructional design and delivery.
Researchers have discovered an increase in the attrition rates of online undergraduate students at Towson University. In order to combat the growing number of drop-outs, Towson University has decided to implement a required online orientation course entitled, “Distance Education 101 – Learning Online.” The following course design, in conjunction with the course context analysis, will be a platform for learning that can have positive effects on the incoming undergraduate students and create competent, knowledgeable distance education students.
Course overview
In order to showcase the course a sample syllabus is outlined below:
Description - “Distance Education 101 – Learning Online” is a four week orientation course required of all incoming undergraduate students at Towson University. The course will introduce students to an online learning environment. Specifically, the course will introduce students to technology and the Blackboard LMS, help students develop time management skills, and highlight the affordances and possibilities of online learning.
Purpose of Course - “Distance Education 101 – Learning Online” was developed to combat the growing number of undergraduate students dropping-out of online courses. The course should orient incoming students to the intricacies of online learning and better prepare them for their future, if they chose to enroll in online courses.
Objectives - A detailed explanation of the learning objectives is under the heading “Measurable Learning Objectives.”
Academic Calendar - A detailed explanation of the course modules is under the heading “Course Outline.”
Attendance - There are no attendance requirements for the course; however it is very important for students to log-in to the classroom as frequently as possible throughout the four week orientation. A recommended practice would be to log on every other day or three times a week.
Assignments - A detailed explanation of the course assignments is under the heading “Course Outline.”
Grading - The course will be graded on a pass/fail basis. Students must receive a 70% or better on their coursework in order to receive a passing grade.
Academic Honesty - Students are expected to submit their own work in accordance with the Student Academic Integrity Policy at Towson University (http://inside.towson.edu/generalcampus/tupolicies).
Texts - There is no required textbook for the course. All necessary information can be found in the course website in Blackboard.
Requirements - The course consists of a pre-course and post-course survey, two quizzes, a discussion board, an optional synchronous chat, a video tutorial, and one writing assignment.
Measurable learning objectives
The following learning objectives will be provided to the students in the syllabus and detail what the students will gain from taking this course. Upon successful completion of this course students will:
- Become technologically proficient in the navigation of Blackboard (Module 1)
- Develop time management skills needed for online learning (Module 2)
- Learn the disadvantages and advantages of distance education (Module 3)
- Analyze an issue of personal significance relating to distance education (Module 4)
Theoretical background
In the community of inquiry model (CoI) Garrison, Anderson and Archer (2000) propose three components to successful online learning as social presence, teaching presence, and cognitive presence. The learning design presented is based off of the collaborative-constructivist ideology of the CoI model.
Garrison (2009) defines social presence as “the ability of participants to identify with the community (e.g., course of study), communicate purposefully in a trusting environment, and develop inter-personal relationships by way of projecting their individual personalities” (p. 352). The personal introductions, discussion board, and synchronous/asynchronous chat opportunities are embedded within the learning design to promote social presence.
According to Garrison (2009) teaching presence influences the sustainability of social and cognitive presence. Moreover Anderson, Rourke, Garrison and Archer (2001) propose teaching presence “is the design, facilitation, and direction of cognitive and social processes for the purpose of realizing personally meaningful and educationally worthwhile learning outcomes” (p. 5). Within this learning design the teacher is responsible for facilitating discussion, providing prompt feedback and support, and for grading the final writing assignment. Successful integration of these teaching techniques will ensure an adequate teaching presence, hence sustaining social and cognitive presences.
Garrison, Anderson, and Archer (2001) define cognitive presence as the extent to which learners are able to construct and confirm meaning through sustained reflection and discourse (Abstract). Embedded in the learning design are activities intended to fulfill cognitive presence. Students will be required to read a passage, watch a video, take quizzes and write a paper. The final writing assignment will force students to engage in sustained reflection and create a paper in the language/context of the course.
Interaction
There is a paradigm shift from teacher-centered to student-centered learning when transitioning from the traditional classroom to the online classroom (Rovai & Jordan, 2004). Learner control is the essence of this shift and is the basis for interaction within the learning design. Wang and Gearhart (2006) contend “A major advantage of increased learner control over learning paths is that the learner becomes more active” (p. 102).
The learning design will facilitate student interaction with course content, other students and the instructor and hopefully promote active learning. The learner will be able to exercise a degree of freedom in navigating the course content online (learner control) however, the hypermedia structure of the course will be rather basic to avoid negative effects and cognitive overload (Wang & Gearhart, 2006).
The discussion board, asynchronous and synchronous chat forums are ways in which students can interact with one another. The students will be required to post a personal passage as an introduction to the course; the passage may evoke conversation between students. In addition, students will be required to participate in a synchronous discussion in the third week. The discussion should present students with differing viewpoints, as Wang and Gearhart (2006) state “Confronting different views would encourage them to challenge their own existing knowledge, and resolving conflicts would foster reflection, metacognitive development, and cognitive restructuring” (p. 63).
In the beginning of the course the instructor should delineate the best ways of personal communication with the class. It is important for instructors to clearly define communication channels in order for students to feel in direct connection with the instructor. It is also important for the instructor to facilitate discussion, keep students on topic, and remain open-minded.
A brief synopsis of the ARCS model (Keller & Suzuki, 1988) as it relates to this learning design would be:
- Attention – Introduce the benefits of online learning and explain the different delivery methods. In addition, introducing students to their learning style (self-directedness) may capture their attention for the entirety of the course.
- Relevance – Provide similarities and differences in online learning and face-to-face learning. By putting the traditional classroom in context with the online classroom, students may feel more abreast to their learning journey.
- Confidence – Introduce the learner centered approach, responsibility and self-directed study. By shifting from the teacher-centered to the learner-centered approach, students should gain confidence as they feel more in control of their learning.
- Satisfaction – Explain the advantages and disadvantages of online learning, and through the completion of the course modules let the student find their intrinsic motivation. The course is ideally a self-discovery where students learn about themselves, how they learn, and if online learning is worth pursuing. The extrinsic motivation is passing the required course for admission into an undergraduate program at Towson University.
Feedback
Students will receive two types of feedback throughout the course, instructor feedback and programmed evaluative feedback. The instructor feedback will consist of the prompt returning of the written assignment and evaluating the participation level of students in the discussions. Wang and Gearhart (2006) affirm “Although instructors do not need to have their presence constantly felt by students in asynchronous communication, instructors may need to monitor student participation regularly and respond to students’ needs in a timely manner” (p. 86). Secondly, the course will employ the use of programmed evaluative feedback. At the end of the second and third weeks of the course students will complete an online quiz. The online quizzes will be graded instantaneously and will provide immediate feedback to the students.
Course outline, subject matter content and assessment
Module 1 – “Technology Overview” (Week 1)
Learning objectives:
After completing this module students will be able to:
Access course content via Blackboard LMS on day one
Upload and submit a pre-course survey into the Assignments folder by day two
Post an introductory passage on the discussion board by day three
Locate online support systems available in Blackboard by day seven
Course resources:
An instructional shell containing the basics of Blackboard, the shell will contain a PowerPoint presentation walking the students through the functionality and features of Blackboard.
Assessment:
The first week of the orientation course will acclimate students to Blackboard; specifically, the use of the discussion board and the assignment folder. The completion of these two activities will contribute to the students overall participation grade.
Module 2 – “Time Management” (Week 2)
Learning objectives:
After completing this module students will be able to:
Recognize the time demands of distance education by completing the reading
Engage in critical thinking by completing the reading by day three
Participate in classroom discourse on the discussion board by day five
Complete an online quiz pertaining to the assigned reading by day seven
Course resources:
An instructional shell containing an in-depth article about distance education, the shell will include a PowerPoint presentation of a definition of distance education terms and the article will highlight the added student responsibility in online learning. Lastly, the shell will discuss and define online learners and concepts of self-directed study.
Assessment:
The second week of the orientation course will introduce students to some basic concepts of online learning and what is entailed in becoming an online learner. The students will be assessed on the breadth and depth of their participation on the discussion board, and on the online quiz at the end of the week.
Module 3 – “Online Exploration” (Week 3)
Learning objectives:
After completing this module students will be able to:
Stimulate sensory perception from a distance by watching the assigned video
Communicate synchronously with the class and the instructor on day three
Identify differences in online versus face-to-face communication
Complete an online quiz pertaining to the assigned video on time by day seven
Course resources:
An instructional shell containing a video about the affordances of online education, the shell will also explain the advantages and disadvantages of online learning.
Assessment:
The students will be assessed on participation in the synchronous discussion and the completion of the online quiz.
Module 4 – “Personal Experience to Practice” (Week 4)
Learning objectives:
After completing this module students will be able to:
Access resources needed for the writing assignment by day one
Research topics for writing assignment by day three
Complete a writing assignment on chosen topic by day seven
Upload and submit a post-course survey into the Assignments folder by day seven
Course resources:
An instructional shell containing the resources necessary for the writing assignment, the shell will also contain the grading rubric and any pertinent details of the assignment.
Assessment:
The students will be assessed on the basis of the grading rubric for the assignment.
Conclusion
The following learning design is intended for the successful implementation of “Distance Education 101 – Learning Online” at Towson University. The learning design entails a detailed discussion of learning objectives and a sample course overview. The learning design in conjunction with the context analysis is supported with literature and is easily edited as instructional design requires.
References
Anderson, T., Rourke, L., Garrison, R., & Archer, W. (2001). Assessing teaching presence in a computer conferencing context. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 5(2), 1-17.
Garrison, D. R. (2009). Communities of inquiry in online learning. Encyclopedia of distance learning, 352-355.
Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2000). Critical inquiry in a text-base environment: Computer conferencing in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 2(2-3), 87-105.
Garrison, D. R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2001). Critical thinking, cognitive presence and computer conferencing in distance education [Abstract]. American Journal of Distance Education, 15(1), 7-23.
Keller, J. M., & Suzuki, K. (1988) Use of the ARCS motivation model in courseware design. In D.H. Jonassen (Ed.), Instructional designs for microcomputer course ware (pp. 401-434). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum
Rovai, A. P., & Jordan, H. (2004). Blended learning and sense of community: A comparative analysis with traditional and fully online graduate courses. The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 5(2).
Wang, H. & Gearhart, D. L. (2006). Designing and developing web-based instruction. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.
