Blackboard Development Checklist for Online Courses

Transcription

1 Blackboard Development Checklist for Online Courses Met Course Development Rubrics The following rubrics should be used as benchmarks to assist faculty with developing and maintaining their online courses. 1. Blackboard Exemplary Course Rubric 2. Chico Rubric for Online Instruction Course Development Resources 1. Blackboard Instructor Videos provides just in time learning on specific Blackboard features. This resource library contains video tutorials that show faculty and students how to teach and learn online with Blackboard Learn. 2. Blackboard Help for Instructors Announcements The first page displayed when any user enters a course site. Brief messages should be posted here, such as a message welcoming students to the class and messages conveying pertinent information about course assignments, updates, reminders, and exams. Identifying Information and Welcome Message Does the Announcements Page display the course title, course number, section numbers, start date, and a brief description of the course? Have you included a welcome message that greets students and invites them to explore the Student Blackboard Orientation? Have you made the announcement a permanent announcement, so it will be available throughout the semester? See Welcome Announcement and Online Orientation information below as provided in Course Template. Make necessary changes for items in red. Welcome to (insert course id, course number, section number and course name). This course is taught (insert web-enhanced or online) using the Blackboard course management system. My name is (insert instructor's name) and I will be your instructor for this course. Student Blackboard Orientation: If you are new to Blackboard or need information on how to use specific features, review the Blackboard Student Orientation Course. The orientation is located in Blackboard under My Courses where all your classes are listed. Updates Have you instructed students to check announcements regularly? Are you using announcements to keep students informed and updated on important developments as the course progresses? Create additional Announcements notifying students about their upcoming assignments, quizzes, tests, etc. I will use the Announcements area of the course weekly to post reminders and updates. I will also communicate with you through ECSU . It is recommended that you check your ECSU daily. Participation in this course is explained in detail in the Syllabus. 1

2 Navigation Cues Have you included navigational cues that direct students to specific information within the site? Tell the students the types of things you would tell them on the first day of class. Include directions where students should navigate to begin the course. Typically you would have them read the syllabus next then proceed to assignments or maybe an introduction discussion board. Have you provided an online Getting Started orientation for your course? Recommended topics to include in your orientation: 1. Direct students where they will find the syllabus for your course and thoroughly explain the information regarding the required text, topical outline and evaluation/grading procedure. 2. Direct students where they will find your faculty information with updated contact information concerning your available office hours and times, addresses, and telephone numbers. 3. Direct students where they would find a schedule of all assignments, due dates, and the format in which they should be submitted. 4. ify students which communication features that you will be using in your Blackboard course (discussion board, chat, group pages, ). 5. ify students which tools that you will be using in your Blackboard course (discussion boards, wikis, blogs, journals, my grades). 6. ify students if proctors will be required and direct them to your syllabus where proctor information will preside. Students the announcement to your students via the Announcement feature in Blackboard prior to the first day of the semester. Syllabus Used to display general information about the course. Typically, this area will include the syllabus, course schedule, and other prepopulated items from course template. 2

3 Review Status Upload your syllabus inside the Syllabus folder. Include a Review Status on your syllabus and explain to students that they are required to click the Mark Reviewed button after thoroughly reading the syllabus. See Adaptive Release Video Tutorial: able_review_status.htm Once you have read the syllabus click on the "Mark Reviewed" button below the Syllabus link. By marking this item reviewed you are confirming that you have read and understand the syllabus. Course Title Is the course title the same as the title listed in the Course Catalog? Course Number Is the course number and section number the same as the information listed in Banner? Credit Hours Are credit hours listed? Course Start and End Dates Are dates listed for the start and end of the course? Course Does the course description contain, at a minimum, the official course description found in the Course Catalog? Prerequisites Defined by Catalog Are all prerequisites listed as they appear in the Course Catalog, such as prerequisite courses? Prerequisites Defined by Instructor Are all instructor-defined prerequisites listed, such as level of computer experience or access to particular software? Textbook Information (Bibliographic and Purchasing) Does the syllabus list the title, author, publisher, date of publication, cost, and ISBN? Are links to electronic bookstores provided, along with instructions for purchasing the textbook? Have you included reading lists or other material related to literature used in the course? Have you included full bibliographic information and purchasing information as appropriate? Other Materials Information Does the syllabus list all other required or recommended materials? Are links to online stores provided, along with instructions for purchasing materials? 3

4 Accommodation Statement Does the syllabus provide an Accommodation Statement? This statement is prepopulated from course template. Any student in this class who has a disability that may prevent full demonstration of ability should contact the instructor personally before the end of the first week of classes so that a discussion can be held regarding accommodations necessary to ensure full participation and facilitate individual educational opportunities. System Requirements Does the syllabus list the minimum system requirements for participation in the course, including all necessary hardware and software? Are links provided for any required helper applications or plug-ins, such as PowerPoint Viewer or Adobe Acrobat Reader? Have you noted any special hardware or software required for course work (for instance, modeling or graphing software)? System Requirements: d/techspec.cfm Software Resources: Attendance Policy for Online Courses Does your syllabus provide information about the attendance policy? This policy is prepopulated from the course template. Students are not required to attend class on-campus for online courses. The instructor may hold class sessions via other distance technologies such as interactive videoconferencing. Some online programs may have on-campus residency requirements. Please check with the program for details. 4

5 Statement on Academic Honesty As members of the academic community, students are expected to recognize and uphold standards of intellectual and academic integrity. The examples and definitions given below are intended to clarify the standards by which academic honesty and academically honorable conduct are to be judged. The following list is merely illustrative and is not intended to be exhaustive. This policy is prepopulated from the course template. PLAGIARISM is presenting another person s work as one s own. It includes paraphrasing or summarizing the works of another person without acknowledgement, including submitting another student s work as one s own. CHEATING involves giving or receiving unauthorized assistance before, during or after an examination. UNAUTHORIZED COLLABORATION is submission for academic credit for a work, product or a part thereof, represented as being one s own effort that has been developed in substantial collaboration with or without assistance from another person or source is a violation. FALSIFICATION is a violation to misrepresent material or fabricate information in an academic exercise or assignment. MULTIPLE SUBMISSIONS is a violation of academic honesty to submit substantial portions of the same work for credit more than once without the explicit consent of the instructor(s) to whom the material is submitted for additional credit. In cases where there is a natural development of research or knowledge in a sequence of courses, use of prior work may be desirable or even required. Incompletes (I) Does your syllabus provide information about Incompletes (I). This policy is prepopulated from the course template. A grade of I indicates that the student may have maintained a passing average, but for reasons beyond his or her control, some specific performance such as an examination, a report, a notebook, or experiments has not been completed. An instructor should give a student an I grade ONLY for justifiable reason. An I graded carries no quality points and is computed in the student s grade point average. Proctor Information for Online Course Exams Does your syllabus provide information about test proctoring? This statement is prepopulated from the course template. Grading Criteria Does the syllabus list grading criteria and point system, including any specific criteria for individual assignments? Do you weight your grades or use total points? Do you indicate how much each assignment, test or other graded activity is worth? Participation Criteria Does the syllabus define expectations about participation in the online class, including the frequency, timing, and quality of participation? If participation is graded, are grading criteria included? 5

6 Course Schedule Does the course schedule contain due dates of all assignments, activities, and tests? Does it list class meetings and topics of discussion, where appropriate? Does it list all on-campus activities, such as labs or proctored exams? Does it note that the instructor reserves the right to make changes to the schedule and that changes will be announced on the Announcements page? Distance Education Services Have you provided information about accessing other Distance Education Services? These links are prepopulated from the course template. Blackboard 24/7 Support Center ( 01) Blackboard Student Videos ( Blackboard Mobile Learn ( /index.cfm) Echo360 Lecture Capture ( cfm) Distance Education website ( m) NBC Learn Video Resources ( cfm) Other ECSU Resources Have you provided links to other online resources provided by ECSU? These links are prepopulated from the course template. ECSU Academic Calendar ( cademiccalendar.pdf) Student Rights, Responsibilities and Complaints ( Support Services ( cfm) Contacts Contact information and biographical information about faculty and staff involved with the course should be listed in the Contacts area of your course menu. Biographical Information Does Staff Information include the names and titles of faculty and staff (for instance, department/office assistants)? Does it contain brief biographies of faculty and staff? Does it include photos of faculty and staff (optional)? 6

7 Phone Number Are phone numbers listed for faculty and staff? Addresses Are addresses listed for faculty and staff? Is a policy on response time provided (for example, I try to respond to all within 24 hours.)? Office Location Is your office location listed? Office Hours Are virtual office hours listed, along with an explanation of how virtual office hours are conducted (through instant messaging, Voice-over-IP technology, etc.)? Are any on-campus office hours listed? Are both types of office hours convenient for students with varied schedules? 7

8 Assignments Chunking of Information Assignments include: blogs, wikis, journals, discussion board post, tests, quizzes, and surveys. Assignments must be created using the Assignments tool or Safe Assignment. Assignments should not be ed to faculty. It is recommended that all test and quizzes be developed using the Test tool in Blackboard. Have you placed assignments in individual folders within the Assignments Area? Does each folder have a unique, informative name? Have you organized the folders in a logical, intuitive structure? For example, you might create folders organized chronologically (Week 01, Week 02, etc.); by module (Module 01, Module 02, etc.), or by author (Updike, Bellow, Smiley, etc.). Do you have your items inside your assignment folder organized? Best Practices for Chunking? 1. Divide the course into units of study that are defined by clear and concise learning objectives. 2. Use the organizational tools in Blackboard, such as content folders or learning modules to encapsulate each unit. 3. Present content in a logical sequence that guides the student from the introduction to the conclusion of the unit. Use various types of content that will appeal to students of different learning styles. Activities should include individual and group activities that encourage interaction between the instructor and fellow students. 8

9 Learning Objectives A Learning Objective is a clear, concise and complete statement of observable student behaviors that can be evaluated at the conclusion of the learning activities (assignment) and contributes to reaching the goal. By writing a learning objective for each assignment, you are: 1. Describing to the students what you value and expect them to be able do (selecting content) 2. Specifying the desired outcomes that can be tested (developing an instructional strategy) 3. Assessing the student s performance and if the course instruction is effective (linking to evaluation) Utilize the ABCD format to write objectives. The ABCD method of writing objectives is an excellent starting point for writing objectives. In this system, "A" is for audience "B" is for behavior, "C" for conditions and "D" for degree of mastery needed. 1. Audience Who? Who are your learners? 2. Behavior What? What do you expect them to be able to do? This should be an overt, observable behavior, even if the actual behavior is covert or mental in nature. If you can't see it, hear it, touch it, taste it, or smell it, you can't be sure your audience really learned it. 3. Condition How? Under what circumstances or context will the learning occur? What will the student be given or already be expected to know to accomplish the learning? 4. Degree How much? How much will be accomplished, how well will the behavior need to be performed, and to what level? Do you want total mastery (100%), do you want them to respond correctly 80% of the time, etc. A common (and totally non-scientific) setting is 80% of the time. Below is an example of an objective which includes Audience (A), Behavior (B), Condition (C), and Degree of Mastery (D). "Given examples and non-examples of constructivist activities in a college classroom, the student will be able to accurately identify the constructivist examples and explain why each example is or isn't a constructivist activity in 20 words or less with 80% accuracy." Textbook Readings or Other Web Resources The purpose is to select the most appropriate instructional methods, media, and materials to meet the learner analysis and objectives. 1. Include chapters and page numbers for textbook readings. 2. Create a list of Internet resources. 3. Supplemental resources may include PowerPoint presentations, computer simulations, podcast, textbook companion websites, etc. 4. Verify that all video clips, PowerPoints, PDF files and web links are working correctly. 5. Contact your publisher to see if they have any Blackboard resources for your textbook (PowerPoint presentations, Test Banks, etc.) 6. Add links to additional resources/websites: Audio, video (Youtube via the mashup feature), simulations, tutorials, NBC Learn videos, etc. 9

10 Assignment Requirements and Submission Instructions Formative Evaluation Survey 1. Be specific and provide detailed information. 2. Provide information for the file extensions that you will accept such as Word Document (.docx), Rich Text File (.rtf), PowerPoint (.pptx), Excel (.xlsx), etc. 3. Assignment submissions must be submitted through Blackboard Assignment tool or SafeAssignment. Provide detailed Requirements for the homework assignments you expect the student to complete and submit for a grade. This is typically created under Assessments>Assignment so that it will create the link for students to click on to attach their homework document. SafeAssignment should be used if you want to check for plagiarism. 4. See Blackboard Instructor Videos for Building Your Course Have you considered using a formative evaluation to survey you students for course activities and assignments? If you are using a survey, use the following instructions: Evaluation of this course is very important. Formative evaluations are an ongoing process that enables the instructor to improve the course, facilitate course and content adaptation, and identifies major gaps in the course's instructional plan. I am interested in how you are doing and how I can improve the course. This survey will give the students the opportunity to express concerns in an anonymous setting. I will have access to all feedback, however I will not know who it is from. My goal is to be completely effective to maximize your learning. To take the survey, click the link above titled "Name of Survey". Thank you for your feedback! Additional Assessments Chapter quizzes, midterm and final exams should be built under Course Tools>Tests, Surveys, and Pools. Quizzes and tests should be made available within the assignment folder so students can easily navigate to them. Update points possible and due dates in the assessment area. Update test questions/add new questions as needed. 1. See Blackboard Instructor Videos for Assessing Learners Interactive Tools Other items to include inside your Assignment folders are Discussion Boards, Blogs, Journals and or Wikis. Include a minimum of one Blog (public) or Journal (private), one Wiki, and one Discussion Board with rubric explaining how participation is evaluated. Interactive tools should be made available within the assignment folder so students can easily navigate to them. 1. See Blackboard Instructor Videos for Communication & Collaboration Lecture Capture Tools Include Echo360 lecture captures and create Video Everywhere videos. 1. Echo360: 2. Video Everywhere: Everywhere 10