The Power of eLearning

1
The Power of eLearning

• Chapter 3
• The Elearning Planning Process
• Presented by Dr. Joyce Harvey
• March 31, 2006

2
The Format1200 100

• 1200 1230
• Lunch and Presentation of Chapter 3
• 1230 1255
• Break into teams of 4-5 people and discuss the
  material being studied

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Overview of Chapter 3

• The Importance of Elearning Planning
• The VPODDDA (Vision, Profile, Objectives, Design,
  Development, Delivery, Assessment) Course
  Instruction Cycle
• The VPODD (Vision, Profile, Objectives, Design,
  Development) ELearning Planning Model
• Iterative Refinement
• Reusable Elearning Resources

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The Importance of Elearning Planning

• Provides a frame of reference for considering all
  the important elements needed in an effective
  elearning course
• Helps you focus on elearning pedagogy as well as
  on technology
• Helps you set realistic goals

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The VPODDDA Instruction Cycle

• The Vision Phase develop overview of the course
• Course content
• Organization of topics
• Goals of the course

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The VPODDDA Instruction Cycle (Cont.)

• The Profile Phase - Collect and assimilate
  information about the course
• Prerequisite knowledge (students)
• Hours of instruction
• Class enrollment
• Required expertise (instructor)
• Location of class

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The VPODDDA Instruction Cycle (Cont.)

• The Objectives Phase - Formulate course
  objectives (statements of measurable
  behaviors---student outcomes)
• The Design Phase
• Identify learning activities
• Design the resources to be used in the activities
• Organize activities into coherent whole

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The VPODDDA Instruction Cycle (Cont.)

• The Development Phase prepares lectures,
  assignments, tests and other resources conceived
  during the design phase
• The Delivery Phase
• Students are attending class
• Instructor is facilitating learning
• Instructor is processing student feedback

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The VPODDDA Instruction Cycle (Cont.)

• The Assessment Phase obtaining formal feedback
• Student performance
• Instructor performance

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The VPODD Elearning Planning Model

• Based on the first
• five phases of the
• VPODDDA course
• instruction cycle

Vision Profile Objectives Design Development Deliv
ery Assessment
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The VPODD Elearning Planning Model

• Assumptions about the instructor
• Is subject matter expert
• Has access to a LMS
• Possesses the requisite computer skills for
  creating an elearning course
• Will actually plan and develop his/her own
  instructional environment

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Vision Planning Phase

• Create a vision for how you want to use elearning
  in your course
• Why do you want to use elearning?
• What do you want to accomplish?
• Can elearning enhance your current teaching
  practices?
• What are your teaching strengths and weaknesses?

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Profile Planning Phase

• Collect and process information about yourself as
  the instructor, the students and the environment
  in which you will deliver the course.

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Profile Planning Phase

• Instructor Profiling
• Is your knowledge of elearning adequate to plan
  and develop an elearning course?
• Are you willing to commit to obtaining knowledge
  about elearning ( time-consuming and ongoing)?

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Profile Planning Phase

• Student Profiling
• What are the demographics of your class?
• Will any of your students have disabilities?
• What instruments and procedures will you use to
  determine whether your students have the required
  prerequisite knowledge and technical skills to
  undertake your class?
• What are your students learning styles?

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Profile Planning Phase

• Environmental Profiling
• What is the anticipated size of your class?
• What computer technology is available to support
  the development and delivery of your course?
• Will your course be offered totally online or in
  a hybrid delivery mode?

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Objectives Planning Phase

• Two categories
• Course content objectives, which are specific and
  stated in measurable terms
• General knowledge objectives address knowledge
  derived from any course, i.e.
• Critical thinking skills
• Verbal and written communication skills
• Lifelong learning skills

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Design and Development Planning Phases

• Design Phase conceive and design the individual
  resources of your course
• Development Phase create and implement these
  resources and organize them on your coursesite

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Design and Development Planning Phases (Cont.)

• Four categories of resources
• Getting-started resources
• Course content resources
• Policy and procedures resources
• Course and coursesite assessment resources

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Design and Development Planning Phases (Cont.)

• Getting-started resources
• Course syllabus
• Welcome message posted as an announcement
• Staff information
• An introductory electronic discussion to get
  students comfortable with the elearning
  environment
• How-to tutorials on coursesite orientation

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Design and Development Planning Phases (Cont.)

• Course Content Resources
• Content delivery resources, i.e., lecture notes,
  slide shows, multimedia presentations
• Assignment resources, i.e., reading assignments,
  group projects and or discussions
• Student assessment resources, i.e., tests,
  self-evaluations, peer evaluations, grading
  student participation in online discussions

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Design and Development Planning Phases (Cont.)

• Policy and Procedure Resources
• Policies must be posted regarding
• How to submit assignments electronically
• What to expect when a technology failure occurs
  and an assignment is due
• What kind of student email you will answer and
  how promptly
• What you will and wont do for students who need
  help

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Design and Development Planning Phases (Cont.)

• Policy and Procedures Resources
• Procedures are plans for dealing with foreseeable
  events that will affect your students use of
  course resources
• What you will do if you are teaching a class and
  the technology you need to conduct it fails
• How to deal with students who have very weak
  communication skills
• How to deal with students who are incompetent in
  using the computer

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Design and Development Planning Phases (Cont.)

• Course and Coursesite Assessment Resources
• Instruments to assess the success and usability
  of your coursesite
• How easy it is to use your coursesite and related
  resouces
• Whether the leaning activities led to obtaining
  related course objectives
• How good a job did you do as an instructor

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Iterative Refinement

• In any phase of the VPODDDA instruction cycle,
  you can return to one of the VPODD planning
  phases to change your elearning course.
• Formative evaluation (conducted during the
  course)
• Summative evaluation (conducted after course
  delivery)

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Reusable Elearning Resources

• A learning object is a specific learning activity
  or chunk of instruction, (i.e., discussion
  questions, lectures, slide shows).
• Objects can be reused and repurposedshared by
  other instructors who teach the same course or
  different courses.
• Standards are critical.