VIP2 Course Development Manual

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Table of Contents 02…..Welcome Letter from the Provost

Course Development Manual

03…..Roles and Expectations 04…..Course Delivery/Course Rigor 09….. VIP2TM Course Design Checklist 12….. The Course Development Process

Progressive Excellence in Course Design

21…..About Grantham University 22…..University Learning Outcomes 23…..Our Students 24…..Our Stakeholders

[Updated March 24, 2017]

25…..References COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

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Welcome from the University Provost

VIP²™ Online Course Design Philosophy

First, a warm thank you! We appreciate your willingness to share your content matter expertise for the benefit of Grantham learners. Our goal is to support you through this endeavor, and so this Course Development Manual serves as the required “textbook” for GU975 – VIP2TM Online Course Design -- the Blackboard course in which you will be completing your work. In order to create a Grantham course, you will incorporate knowledge and theories that go beyond your subject expertise. Therefore, you will be partnered with an expert in learning theory – your instructional designer (I.D.) – who will be your point person throughout the contract period.

Our tagline “Online. But not alone.” summarizes the VIP2TM philosophy regarding our goal to provide a supportive community in which students actively participate with instructors and their peers. What is VIP2TM? It is our methodology to provide support that is: VISIBLE. IMMEDIATE. PROACTIVE. PERSONAL. By supplementing your content knowledge with the Grantham VIP2TM course design methodology, together we will create a rigorous, transformative learning experience for our students. Thank you for your work on behalf of our students,

Together with your I.D., you will develop a supportive, interactive online learning experience that challenges students to transform current mental schema as they gain new knowledge and skills. Our goal is to help students become self-directed students as they progress toward graduation and their career paths beyond. COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

Cheryl Hayek,

Ed.D.

Interim University President, Provost, and Chief Academic Officer Grantham University GRANTHAM UNIVERSITY

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Roles and Expectations Your role is to be our “Subject Matter Expert” (SME). You were selected for this role because of your credentials and expertise in the discipline (subject matter). We recognize your experience and knowledge within your professional field, and we trust that you will pass along that wisdom and insight to our students. We also recognize that you may not be an expert in curriculum development. That is where our instructional designers (IDs) come in.

With this new version of our Course Development Manual, we are changing many of our processes and expectations for course design. We will introduce best practices for e-learning through GU975, and expect to see many of those ideas implemented in your course.

Expectations:    

Our role is to assist you, the SME, in providing an updated, rigorous, transformative course that meets the VIP2TM standards. Our instructional designers bring expertise from a variety of areas: curriculum, instruction, library and information technology, educational technology, higher education administration, learning theory, and instructional design research.

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We will coach you through our design process during weekly meetings (by phone, Skype, Google Hangouts, or Blackboard Collaborate). This is our way of being Visible, Immediate, Personal and Proactive with you!

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COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

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Check in weekly with your ID Participate in GU975, completing weekly deliverables Submit weekly deliverables in a timely manner Consider the skill sets and knowledge base (learning objectives) that our students need to develop in order to be productive members of the workforce Determine how to appropriately measure and report student mastery of learning objectives Incorporate transitions between students’ prior learning (from previous courses) and future learning Select course content that aligns with learning objectives Create a variety of instructional vehicles that address different learning modalities (audio, video, kinesthetic, etc.) Devise opportunities for students to demonstrate mastery of learning objectives Create new material based on best practices

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Course Delivery

Course Rigor

At Grantham University, courses begin every Wednesday of the year; we do not observe the traditional semester structure. The duration of each course is eight weeks. Any given week of the year, there may be several active sections of your course, each at different points in the curriculum.

Even though our courses run only eight weeks, they must continue to meet the standards of rigor that define a unit of course credit in higher education.

Furthermore, your course will remain active for a maximum of three years before revision. For that reason, you will need to provide openended instructions regarding date-specific activities or current events.

Rigor is evaluated employing the most recent research available and is calculated using a Carnegie Unit calculator. The Carnegie Unit Model is accepted as the industry standard in measuring the average time a student will need to invest in order to successfully complete the course requirements. The Carnegie Unit Model suggests that, for every credit hour of a given course, students must spend a total of 45 hours to complete the course: 15 hours spent in direct engagement and 30 hours of preparatory work. Therefore, a 3-credit course should require students to complete a total of 90 hours of prep work, and 45 hours of direct engagement. In Grantham’s eight (8) week course model, for a three credit-hour course, students should be expected to spend an average of 5.625 hours in direct engagement and 11.25 hours in preparatory activities in each week of the course. While we may never know how much time each student will actually spend in preparation or engagement, the Carnegie Unit offers guidelines for designing our courses. We attempt to quantify rigor using the Carnegie calculator tool during course design.

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5 5. A case study or lab which allows the students to experience the course concepts in practical application Engagement Activities

The deliverable template for the Carnegie table is a spreadsheet that automatically calculates Carnegie units upon your data entry. “Inclass” (engagement) and “out-of-class” (preparation”) activities are listed independently, with guidelines for converting time on task to Carnegie hours. Be sure to view the module in GU975 that explains how to use this tool.

1. Audio lecture(s) offering your professional experience as talking points to motivate students to seek out additional information on their own 2. Video lecture(s) creating a bridge between course concepts and deliverables for the week (discussions, assignments, case studies, quizzes or exams, and so on) 3. A discussion forum which allows students to ask questions, try out ideas, synthesize learning, and connect and learn from their fellow students and through direct discussion with the course instructor 4. A self-assessment quiz 5. A midterm exam in week four (4) 6. A comprehensive final exam in week eight (8)

Here are some examples of activities that would be categorized as either preparatory or engagement. Preparatory Activities 1. Readings from the course textbook 2. Supplementary materials (published articles, videos, publisher ancillaries, etc.) that expand on the learning goals and objectives for the week 3. Assignments that encourage students to synthesize their ideas and express their learning through various modalities 4. Assignments that provide opportunities for students to practice new skills COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

Cognitive load theory (Sweller, 1994) proposes that there may be a limit to how much learners can “handle” based on how instruction is delivered. A rigorous class need not be overwhelming, if it is designed well.

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6 Carnegie units and time on task are not the only components of academic rigor. We must also consider the intellectual challenge of our courses.

reference by creating environments where students gain autonomy in thinking. This is accomplished when students learn from each other, and help each other in problem-solving groups. For this reason, we spend most of our time in the course development process focusing on how to create discussion prompts and assignments that address Mezirow’s four processes of transformative learning:    

Elaboration of an existing point of view Establish new points of view Transform our own point of view Become critically reflective of how our point of view differs from others

Rigor, Intellectual Challenge, and Transformative Learning Intellectual challenge arises when we intentionally use verbiage from the revised Bloom’s taxonomy (Krathwohl, 2002) in our course objectives and instructions for assignments. Higher order thinking skills require students to process new information, and either accommodate new schema or assimilate new information into existing schema. Additionally, we must address the dissonance that arises when students encounter new information that may conflict with their existing schema. The theory of transformative learning (Mezirow, 1997; 2004) suggests that we effect change in the learners’ frames of COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

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Other Considerations As a SME, we expect you to develop original lectures, discussions and assignments for the course. In addition, we expect you to incorporate academic textbooks and other high quality resources into the course as a means to support your original materials. In most cases, you are free to add supplemental resources (PowerPoints, test banks, study guides, etc.) from the publisher of the textbook that we will use in the course. Along with textbooks, we recognize that external resources— publications or videos you may find in library databases or on the Web—can directly inform or enhance the course curriculum and learning experience for students. In fact, we encourage you to explore the inclusion of such resources as you work with your ID. Note, however, that Grantham University is a for-profit institution. As such, the laws governing the manner and extent to which we use those external resources can differ from those governing nonprofit educational institutions. In order to stay within the parameters of fair use at Grantham University, we need to observe the following guidelines: 

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When including external content in your course, you must clearly identify the author and/or origin of the content when you share it with your ID. Proper attribution, particularly in the case of copyrighted content you have selected from the web, is crucial to ensuring that we adhere to fair use. Although materials in the public domain have no copyright restrictions, it is still best practice to disclose the origin of those materials. We can link to external content and, in many cases, embed it within the course. However, we cannot copy, store, distribute,

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

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or modify such content unless expressly granted those rights by the copyright holder. If you wish to excerpt a work or quote from it, you should plan to do so sparingly and under advisement from your ID. If you wish to use materials you have published outside of Grantham University or developed for another institution, you must ensure that you are free to reproduce your work (i.e., you own the necessary intellectual property rights).

Before We Begin: Big Questions To help you start thinking about course development, consider how the course design might vary depending on the following factors: (Bain, 2004) Where the Course Fits Into the Curriculum 

Does the course stand on its own, or does it support other courses?

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What skills, abilities, or qualities will it help students develop?

Nature of the Subject • Is this subject primarily theoretical, practical, or some combination? • Are there important changes or controversies occurring within this field of study? • How will you address these potential variances in your design? Characteristics of the Learners

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What prior knowledge, experiences, and initial feelings will incoming students have with this subject? What are their learning goals, expectations, and preferred learning styles?

Characteristics of the Instructors •

What beliefs and values might different teachers have about teaching and learning?

Stimulating True Learning •

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VIP2TM Exemplary Course Design Checklist What questions will I ask of them to focus their attention on significant issues, or to clarify concepts, or to highlight assumptions that they are likely to ignore? What big questions will my course help students answer (or what answers will it help them to question) What reasoning abilities must students have or develop to answer these questions? How will I help students who have difficulty understanding the questions and using evidence and reason to answer them? How will I communicate with students in a way that keeps them thinking?

Your ID will assist you with incorporating these elements in your course. Additionally, you should know that the VIP2TM checklist is the assessment piece for your work – at the end of the project period, your course will be evaluated using the full checklist. Your contract will be fulfilled when the checklist indicates an exemplary course has been built! Goals and Objectives    

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Goals and objectives are easily located within the course Goals and objectives are clearly written at the appropriate level, reflect desired outcomes Goals and objectives are written in measureable outcomes Goals and objectives are made available in a variety of areas in the course (within the syllabus and each individual learning unit) Goals and objectives are clearly and consistently aligned with course readings, assignments and activities

Content Presentation COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

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Content is made available or “chunked” in manageable segments throughout the 8 week course model Navigation is intuitive, content flows in a logical progression Content is presented using a variety of appropriate mechanisms or modalities Content is enhanced with visual and auditory elements; supplementary resources are available and well-integrated with other course materials (integrated publisher resources, etextbooks, course manuals, etc.) Scaffolding approach is apparent; weekly content taps into the rich, practical experience of adult leaners’ lives to bridge experience with new academic learning

Learner Engagement  

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It is clear how the instructional strategies will enable students to reach course goals and objectives Course design includes opportunities for learners to work with content in meaningful ways, supporting andragogy (i.e., realworld application, immediate relevance) Higher order thinking (e.g., analysis, problem solving, or critical reflection) is expected of learners and explained with examples or models Individualized instruction (differentiated/multiple learning styles), supplementary activities, or resources for advanced learning activities are provided Discussion forum assignments push students to think critically while also engaging with one another

Technology Use 

LMS tools are used to reduce the labor-intensity of learning (e.g., providing links to needed resources where they will be used in the course, integrating publisher resources that are

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tailored to the course materials, and providing streamlined access to supplementary materials) Technologies are used creatively in ways that transcend traditional, teacher-centered instruction A wide variety of delivery media are incorporated into the course An effort has been made to use low-cost or no-cost materials when available

Communication Strategies 

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There are plentiful opportunities for synchronous and/or asynchronous interaction, as appropriate (student to student, student to faculty) Asynchronous communication strategies promote critical reflection or other higher order thinking aligned with learning objectives Synchronous communication activities benefit from real-time interactions and facilitate “VIP2TM” communication

Development of Learning Communities    

Communication activities are designed to help build a sense of community among learners Student-to-student interactions are required as part of the course (peer review, discussion forums, etc.) Students are encouraged to initiate communication with the instructor Collaboration activities reinforce course content and learning outcomes, while building workplace-useful skills such as teamwork, cooperation, negotiation, and consensus-building

Interaction Logistics

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Guidelines explaining required levels of participation (i.e., quantity of interactions) are provided Expectations regarding the quality of communications (e.g., what constitutes a “good” answer) are clearly defined A rubric or equivalent grading document is included to explain how participation will be evaluated

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Assessment activities occur frequently throughout the duration of the course Multiple types of assessments (3+) are used to allow students to demonstrate proficiency through multiple means

Expectations: Objectives and Assessment      

Assessments match the goals and objectives Learners are directed to the appropriate objective(s) for each assessment Rubrics for desired outcomes are provided Instructions are written clearly and with sufficient detail to ensure understanding Acceptable methods for completing assignments (open book, etc.) are identified Quantity and scope of assessments are appropriate for the course level

Assessment Design 

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Composition/difficulty level of assessments is appropriate (i.e. activities are explained using appropriate reading level and vocabulary according to the cognitive domain level) Higher order thinking skills are required (i.e. analysis, problemsolving, synthesis, and evaluation) Assessments are designed to reflect authentic, real-world situations to facilitate transfer of learning, supporting the problem-oriented preference of adult learners

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Orientation to Course and LMS  

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Clearly labeled tutorial materials that explain how to navigate the LMS and the specific course are included Tutorials are found easily (few clicks) whether internal or external to the course, with easy return to other areas of the course, offering VIP2TM immediate support Tutorial materials support multiple learning modalities: audio, visual, and text based

Supportive Software   

Clear explanations of optional and/or required software (in addition to the LMS) are provided within the course Software required to use course materials is listed with links to where it can be captured and installed Links are located within the course where learners will use the software (i.e., near the materials requiring its use)

Course/Institutional Policies 

Links to institutional policies, materials, and forms relevant for learner success (for example, plagiarism policies) are clearly labeled and easy to find GRANTHAM UNIVERSITY

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Links allow easy navigation from the course to the information and back Links to institutional services such as the library, or writing center, are clearly labeled and easy to find

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Design factors such as color, text size manipulations, audio and video controls reflect universal accessibility considerations

Feedback (from students) 

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Learners have the opportunity to give feedback to the instructor regarding course design and course content both during course delivery and after course completion Feedback mechanisms allow students to participate anonymously in course evaluation

Technical Accessibility     

Course materials use standard formats to ensure accessibility If specific software is required to which some learners may not have access, alternative file types are provided Large files are identified to help learners consider download times Alternative (smaller) files are provided where appropriate Videos are streamed whenever possible; graphics are optimized for web delivery and display without needing extensive scrolling

Accommodation for Disabilities  

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Supportive mechanisms allow learners with disabilities to participate fully in the online community The design and delivery of content integrate alternative resources (transcripts, for example) or enable assistive processes (voice recognition, for example) for those needing accommodation Links to institutional policies, contacts, and procedures for supporting learners with disabilities are included and easy to find

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

The Course Development Process Initial project meeting Your ID will set up an initial project meeting to discuss the scope of the project, required deliverables, expectations and timelines. With every course re-design, the curriculum department gathers feedback from all teaching faculty. This feedback, along with additional necessary data, will be provided to you by your assigned ID. During your initial project meeting, your ID will discuss the data for consideration during the development process. During this meeting you will establish the days/times for your weekly meetings. Weekly meetings with ID

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12 Whether you prefer phone calls, Google Hangouts, Skype or web conferencing through Blackboard Collaborate, you and your ID will talk on a weekly basis. Be sure to log into Blackboard GU975 during these weekly meetings, so you can view and access the same materials that your ID is using.

deliverables as “assignments” on Blackboard, and your ID will be able to provide feedback as you work through the project period. Deadlines for Deliverables Please meet your weekly deadlines for deliverables. While you have eight weeks to complete the agreed-upon deliverables, your ID has additional deadlines after your project period. We appreciate your promptness!

Textbook selection With some course re-designs, a textbook will have been already selected for the course. In other cases, you will be asked to review textbooks and offer your recommendation. Attempt to find an electronic textbook (e-book) for your course. Be sure to look for textbooks that offer a wealth of instructor resources – videos, powerpoint slides, test banks, assignments, study guides, discussion forum questions. These will supplement, not take the place of, the course content you will develop. Templates for Deliverables (GU975 on Blackboard) The GU975 Blackboard site contains all the templates you need for deliverables. The GU 975 course is set up to provide information you need in a timely manner to complete your deliverables. You will submit your

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

WEEK ONE

Deliverables:  Syllabus information (including course description, course objectives, textbook citation, and course outline) Beginning with the end in mind, we are going to start by examining the course description and course objectives, then map our learning activities to these objectives. This may seem backward to some novice curriculum developers – and yes, the theory is called “backward design.”

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13 Backwards design (Wiggins & McTighe, 2001) is a fairly simple design model that begins with our course objectives as the starting point and scaffolding for all activities in the course. When you start with the objectives and assessments in mind, you can ensure there will be no ‘fluff’ in the course. Each task is designed with a specific purpose in mind that culminates in the student’s mastery of the course objectives. There should be approximately eight course objectives. This allows each course objective to be the main topic for one week during the course. Your ID will help you with revising course objectives, if necessary.

We will write objectives using verbiage from Bloom’s revised taxonomy (Krathwohl, 2002). Krathwohl describes four dimensions of knowledge that occur in most of our courses: factual, conceptual, procedural and metacognitive knowledge. He creates a matrix that intersects these four knowledge domains with six cognitive processes: remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating and creating. These are described in the table below.

This table also appears in GU975. Use the verbs in the right-hand column as you rephrase your course objectives.

Grantham courses at the 100-200 level should incorporate verbiage from the lower three categories, referred to as LOTS (lower order thinking skills): remembering, understanding, and applying. Courses at the 300-400 level should incorporate HOTS (higher order thinking skills) which include analyzing, evaluating, and creating. Refer to Bloom’s verbiage when revising course objectives, writing exams, creating discussion prompts, and explaining assignments. COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

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WEEK TWO

If you are revising an upper level course, and choose to include a progressive project rather than an exam, you will need to think through the steps that students must take to complete the assignment. Think about what they should be accomplishing and submitting each week. Comprehensive projects are excellent vehicles for encouraging students to employ their new skills, and to create artifacts that could be used in a portfolio.

Deliverables:  Summative Assessments (exams or projects) Summative assessments (the midterm exam, final exam, and/or progressive project that requires the entire course to complete) are high-stakes exercises, because the student has only one chance to demonstrate mastery of the course objectives. We begin our course design by writing our summative assessments, because of the backward design principle described earlier. This is similar to Steven Covey’s (1989) habit #2, “begin with the end in mind.” Each of the exam questions should be aligned with a course objective. Further, you want to provide several types of exam questions to test student’s cognitive processes; this means you will have some multiple choice questions along with some fill in the blank, short answer and essay questions. Watch the videos in GU975 that explain why we design exams in this manner, and how to create a comprehensive exam that incorporates Bloom’s revised taxonomy. COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

WEEK THREE

Deliverables:  Assignments  Discussion Forum Prompts GRANTHAM UNIVERSITY

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 Audio-video practice runs Formative assessments (discussion forums and weekly assignments) are low-stakes exercises. The student may resubmit work, revising it each time based on instructor feedback. The key here is instructor feedback. If the student is misunderstanding a concept, this is the time for the instructor to provide corrective feedback so that the student has a solid foundation for future work. What is the Purpose of Assignments? Ideally, assignments will simulate real-world problems that students are likely to encounter on the job. Through weekly assignments, students have the opportunity to develop skills necessary for mastering course objectives. Skill development is different from demonstrating knowledge. Your task is quite difficult: to devise assignments that afford an opportunity to develop skills. You may not find these in the publisher’s resources; you have to use your own expertise and creativity to accomplish this mission. To create a transformative learning experience, we need to provide opportunities for learners to actively apply, analyze, and evaluate course concepts and requisite skills. Additionally, these activities should be low-stakes with immediate feedback from the instructor. Here are some ideas for you to consider for providing a variety of assignments throughout the course:

Annotated bibliography Audio recordings Book report COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

Case studies Debate Each One Teach One (peer “tutoring”) Interviews with professionals in the field Journals (metacognition: thinking about your thinking) Labs/clinicals Powerpoint presentations Reaction paper Reflection paper Research paper Simulated audit/debrief Simulated job interview Study guides Textbook reading Video recordings

When preparing assignments, follow these steps: 1. Map out your plan to use different types of assignments each week (see the deliverable template). 2. Think through the purpose of the assignment. What is the end game? 3. Think through the student viewpoint – how clear are the expectations? How easily can the assignment be “faked”? 4. Write clear instructions that delineate the entire assignment. GRANTHAM UNIVERSITY

16 5. Ask a third party (friend or family member) to read through the instructions and attempt to complete the assignment. 6. Revise your instructions based on feedback from your third party! 7. Provide an answer key for the other instructors of the course.

2. Expect – and encourage – a diversity of viewpoints. (i.e. do not ask a question that has one “correct” answer) 3. Provide instructions that model how to engage in critical thinking (i.e. presenting an informed argument, referring to logical fallacies, citing sources informally to back up arguments) 4. Teach students how to respond to other students initial posts Well-formed prompts facilitate healthy interaction; however, we want to encourage more than interaction. We want to build community (Siemens, 2002). Consider the process that occurs in an online class, as disparate individuals first communicate with each other, then build community through the processes of collaboration and cooperation (Siemens, 2002). That process does not just naturally occur – it requires a welldesigned group project (yes, you are the one who will design it!)

What is the Purpose of Discussions? Weekly discussions are the crux of any online course. In lieu of faceto-face interaction, the discussion forum is the “place” where students engage with each other, and also with the instructor. Thus, students are encouraged to think and to learn “out loud.”

This may be a shift in your thinking about discussion posts, as they have previously existed in Grantham courses. Imagine ill-structured problems that require group collaboration in order to arrive at solutions. Imagine broad, overarching questions that may require research before posting a comment. Imagine healthy debate that continues beyond the obligatory initial post and two responses.

Tips for Effective Discussion Prompts: 1.

Write questions that require students to refer to assigned readings (either the textbook or online articles)

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17 Types of Discussion Prompts: 1. Reactions to assigned readings or current events 2. Group projects 3. WIKI-type “little help please” A-V Presentations Now that we have addressed course objectives, assessments, assignments, and discussion forums, we can turn our attention to delivery of content. But wait! Here’s another shift in expectations!

Think about these factors as you use your discussion forum to build an online community among your students (Brindley et al, 2009): 1. Provide clear instructions and transparent expectations. 2. Make sure the task is appropriate for group work 3. How can you lead students to create “meaning” from the course material while implementing concepts into the group task? 4. What motivates your students to collaborate with each other? 5. Consider how you will prepare the learners for their roles in the group task – it will not come naturally! 6. Think about the timing of tasks – When should you introduce the task? What is an appropriate length of time for the entire project? 7. How, when and why should instructors jump into the discussion?

(Q: What happened to written lectures? A: They are being replaced by audio/video presentations.)

Your ID will guide you through the process of recording audio and video lectures, and creating screencasts for tutorials.

It’s a good practice to offer more than one type of discussion prompt each week. This does not necessitate more work for the instructors – it necessitates more work (i.e. thinking) by the students. COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

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18 Voice-overs for Powerpoint presentations. If you have already planned to include the publisher’s Powerpoints, you may simply record a voice-over to enhance the material on the slides. By themselves, slides add no value to the course. If you were in a typical classroom, you would naturally supplement the slide show verbally with your lecture material. In an online environment, this is even more necessary!

Have you ever made a screencast or used your webcam to record yourself? If not, we’ll help you!

Please consider these alternative modalities for delivery of course material: Video lectures are similar in purpose to audio lectures – they provide a personal connection between you as a guest lecturer, the student, and the course content. In a video lecture, you may highlight important points from the text, but don’t summarize or read the text. Pose thought-provoking questions, share relevant professional experiences, and tap into students’ innate sense of curiosity! Video tutorials are used to walk students through specific procedures or processes. Using a tool such as Screencastomatic.com is one way you can prepare your own screen cast tutorials. Work with your assigned ID to discuss if this type of instructional strategy is appropriate for the course content.

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

Audio lectures provide a personal approach in which you can introduce yourself as a guest lecturer for the course. You can share personal and professional insights that will pique the students’ interest. Share “tales from the field” that serve as case studies. Ask questions that serve as “pop quizzes” or encourage higher level thinking by students. Some guidelines include:     

Prepare a script so you aren’t tempted to “wing it.” Practice enough times that your final take sounds extemporaneous, not “scripted” or stiff. Time of audio clip should be about 5 minutes or less You may include more than one audio clip per week Work to establish a personal connection – the students will want to know your credentials and background experiences.

Interactive lectures contain stopping points (“snap inspections”) where students can check their understanding of the material. There are several components of the interactive lectures: the storyboard, requested video(s) or image(s) to be embedded, audio file(s) and a written script for the audio. Your ID can help prepare these types of lectures using Captivate.

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WEEK FOUR

Then develop your “Getting Started’ narrative, which is a paragraph that briefly recaps last week’s topic and ties it together with this week’s topic. You should also pose a thought-provoking question that provide incentive for students to carefully read the textbook.

 Course Development Template (CDT) for weeks 1 and 2

This narrative now serves as a script for you to record your blog-type video clip. Be sure to introduce yourself as the guest lecturer, and as appropriate, provide some of your professional experiences that relate to the weekly topic. Ask students how they would solve the problem you encountered, using what they learn from this week’s content.

Deliverables:

Now that you have the course objectives solidly imprinted in your mind, and you have aligned both summative and formative assessment exercises with course objectives, we will examine best practices for delivering learning content in an engaging, efficient, and effective manner (Merrill, 2008). First, browse through theGU975 content related to Best Practices. We want to introduce you to the newest ideas, along with evidencebased practices, so that you are adequately prepared to create rigorous, transformative, engaging learning experiences. Some of the latest trends in e-learning include badges, gamification, universal design, and peer interaction. The modules in GU975 will provide more information about these topics, along with ideas for incorporating them into your classes.

You will complete a Read, Review, Complete to-do list for the week. You will provide all materials that you wish to include – for example, the URL for websites or videos that are online, powerpoint slides, and PDF articles. IMPORTANT NOTE: These content items in Blackboard cannot stand on their own. You need to provide some kind of “thread” or “glue” that holds the content together for the student. This means you will be writing transitional statements that would typically be made by instructors during class in “grounded” classrooms.

Specifically, the content you will provide in your CDT consists of what you see on Blackboard. You will need to create a “name” for the week – simply the topic for the week. This will appear on the left sidebar menu on Blackboard.

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WEEK FIVE

Deliverables:

WEEK EIGHT

Deliverables:

 CDTs for weeks 3 and 4

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Carnegie Table IRA map VIP2 rubric Any necessary revisions

WEEK SIX The deliverable template for the Carnegie table is a spreadsheet that automatically calculates Carnegie units upon your data entry. Be sure to view the module in GU975 that explains how to use this tool.

Deliverables:  CDTs for weeks 5 and 6

During this week, we will also run final checks for any revisions made to the IRA map and the VIP2TM checklist.

WEEK SEVEN

Deliverables:  CDTs for weeks 7 and 8

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

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About Grantham University

Our Vision

We are proud of our Grantham University history, which spans more than six decades and exemplifies continuous commitment of service to those who serve (i.e. veterans, active duty military members, guard members, and military families), as well as public agency staff and students from around the world.

Grantham University is committed to being a globally recognized innovator in higher education, serving those who serve and serving those who strive to make a difference in their professional lives and community.

The University offers more than 40 associate, bachelor’s and master’s programs and certificates that position our graduates for success in their chosen career paths. While Grantham University courses are 100% online, our administrative offices are located in Lenexa, Kansas. This is where your instructional designer is based.

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

Our Mission To provide quality, accessible, affordable, professionally relevant programs in a continuously changing global society.

Our Core Values 

Accessibility and Affordability. We demonstrate our commitment to accessibility and affordability of higher education by facilitating learning that fits into students’ schedules and seeking efficiencies that keep programs affordable.

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Diversity. We affirm our commitment to an inclusive community by making academic programs, educational services, and employment opportunities available to all qualified individuals. We encourage tolerance, mutual respect, and acceptance of differences throughout the institution. We believe diversity enhances our institutional culture, improves productivity, and prepares our graduates to participate effectively in the global community.

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Education and Service to Those Who Serve. We honor those who serve our country and our communities. We are dedicated to the provision of affordable and uniquely accessible programs and support to these deserving students. Excellence and Innovation. We maintain a strong commitment to high standards in all aspects of academic programs, learning outcomes, and student support services. Additionally, we seek to continuously strengthen and improve the effectiveness of our academic programs and operations by incorporating creative and effective ways to meet the diverse needs of our student population. Student-Centric Success. We place the academic and personal success of our students at the center of all University functions, services, activities, and academic programs. We are committed to implementing best practices to facilitate students’ development and success from the point of entry to degree completion. Institutional Integrity. We hold all students, faculty, staff, and administrators to the highest standards of integrity, honesty, and personal responsibility. To provide quality academic experiences, we are committed to continually assessing and re-evaluating every aspect of our academic model. We endeavor to build an institutional culture grounded in candor, transparency, and best professional practices.

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

Grantham University Learning Outcomes (ULOs) While each course contains learning objectives, and each academic program of study consists of programmatic outcomes, the institution as a whole embraces five University Learning Outcomes. The Grantham University Learning Outcomes include:    

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Communication – competence in effective written and oral communication Critical Thinking – ability to analyze problems, reflectively process information, and formulate solutions Respect for Diversity – awareness of and appreciation for varieties of human experiences and social structures Professional, Ethical, and Social Responsibility – responsibility to the greater societal good and an applied ethical framework in decision making Lifelong Learning – definition for and acquisition of a continuing pursuit of educational needs throughout their professional lives

By incorporating these university learning outcomes into each program of study, Grantham ensures that graduates are prepared to succeed in their professional and civic pursuits.

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Our Students Grantham University students are, more often than not, adult learners, and bring with them a wealth of real-life experiences and knowledge to the online learning environment. While this knowledge and experience can be an advantage because it naturally provides a diverse set of ideas and understanding, it also poses unique challenges to you and the course instructor in that it can be more difficult to move students beyond their preconceptions and perceptions about a given topic. Here is a quick highlight of the four assumptions about adult learners (Knowles, 1973): Change in self-concept: Adult learners view themselves as self-directing, and may perform best in an environment in which they are allowed to direct their own learning. Role of experience: Through their life experiences, adults have a rich array of mental schema, thus value action-learning techniques rather than transmittal teaching techniques. Readiness to learn: Adults are ready to learn when they perceive a deficit in their skills or abilities to solve a problem. Therefore, problem-based learning techniques are the best way to activate the sense of readiness. Orientation to learning: Adults prefer to start with a problem and then work towards finding a solution to it, rather than receiving knowledge without context.

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

Building Self-efficacy and Community Keep in mind that adult learners often feel that they cannot succeed in college. Thus, your goal is to create metacognitive activities and collaborative assignments as significant strategies in teaching students how to “think about their thinking” and how to work interdependently as well as independently. Through these critical reflection activities (Mezirow, 19990), and through well-designed collaborations (Brindley et al, 2009), students are better able to synthesize course concepts and analyze underlying principles within the discipline and subject area more completely – a transformative learning experience (Mezirow, 1997).

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24 The key to productive collaboration begins with clear instructions, prompts and expectations. Additionally, instructors must know how to mold and model the desired behavior, develop an appropriate task for group learning, nurture small group interactions, provide feedback, and expedite meaning-making among learners (Brindley et al, 2009; Stacey, 1998). Through your design of the discussion forums and other communitybuilding activities, our Grantham courses will address the four assumptions of adult learners, with the anticipated result of enhancing our students’ abilities to communicate effectively, think critically, function in a diverse environment, and enjoy lifelong learning.

Our Stakeholders

Employer Demands: Employer demands for a highly-skilled, knowledgeable, and innovative workforce, include:  The ability to work well in teams—especially with people different from yourself  An understanding of science and technology and how these subjects are used in real-world settings  The ability to write and speak well  The ability to think clearly about complex problems  The ability to analyze a problem to develop workable solutions  An understanding of the global context in which work is now done  The ability to be creative and innovative in solving problems  The ability to apply knowledge and skills in new settings  The ability to understand numbers and statistics  A strong sense of ethics and integrity (Peter D. Hart Research Associates. (2007). Retrieved from http://www.aacu.org/leap/students/employers-top-ten)

Countless organizations, individuals, and agencies hold a stake in our educational outcomes. Thus, our obligation to provide a rigorous, transformative curriculum drives our design process. Consider these stakeholder expectations: Political Pressures: State and federal agencies demand greater accountability for measuring and reporting student mastery of stated learning outcomes. Public outcries regarding the increased cost and decreased accessibility of higher education mean we must demonstrate clearly what we expect students to gain from a Grantham education, and how our learning experience will help graduates become beneficial participants in society.

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

Student Expectations: Students expect an affordable, relevant, personal, and transformative learning experience that will prepare them to compete in a global economy. Faculty Needs: Faculty needs include opportunities for a viable work/life balance, professional development, academic freedom, and administrative support. College and University Concerns: The senior administrative team at Grantham is concerned with attracting and retaining students, achieving and maintaining accreditation, keeping costs manageable, and maintaining the academic rigor and integrity of our courses.

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References

Bain, K. (2004). What the best college teachers do. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Peter D. Hart Research Associates. (2007). "How Should Colleges Prepare Students to Succeed in Today's Global Economy?" Retrieved from http://www.aacu.org/leap/students/employerstop-ten

Brindley, J., Blaschke, L. M., & Walti, C. (2009). Creating effective collaborative learning groups in an online environment. The International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 10(3).

Siemens. G. (2002). Interaction. E-learning Noncourse. October 8, 2002. Retrieved from http://www.elearnspace.org/Articles/Interaction.htm

Knowles, M. (1973). The Adult Learner: A Neglected Species. American Society for Training and Development. Houston, TX: Gulf Publishing Company. Retrieved from the ERIC database: ED 084 368 Krathwohl, D. R. (2002) A revision of Bloom’s taxonomy: An overview. Theory into Practice, 41(4). Retrieved from: http://www.unco.edu/cetl/sir/stating_outcome/documents /Krathwohl.pdf

Stacey, E. (2009). Collaborative Learning in an online environment. International Journal of EDE, 14(2), 14-33. Retrieved from: http://www.ijede.ca/index.php/jde/article/viewArticle/154/379 Sweller, J. (1994). Cognitive load theory, learning difficulty, and instructional design. Learning and Instruction, 4, 295-312. Wiggins, G., & McTighe, J. (2001). "What is Backward Design?" in Understanding by Design, 1st edition, pp. 7-19. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall.

Merrill, M. D., (2008). Converting e3-learning to e3-learning: An alternative instructional design method. In S. Carliner & P. Shank (Eds.) The E-Learning Handbook: Past Promises, Present Challenges (pp. 359-400). San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer. Mezirow, J. (1997). Transformative learning: theory to practice. In New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 74, 5-12. San Francisco, CA: Jossey Bass. Mezirow, J. (1990). How critical reflection triggers transformative learning. Fostering critical reflection in adulthood, 1, 20.

COURSE DEVELOPMENT MANUAL (REVISED 2016)

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