Hi Tony, Ephraim,Jerome and Alice
Many thanks for getting us all started and for raising many critical issues on e-learning. Thanks too for sharing the guide as well as links to OER and an example of a collaborative OER project. I fully agree with the submission that the underlying challenge to e-learning and OER initiatives is lack of collaboration which results in weaknesses in the way we design for effective learning. Also that unless students are motivated and actively engaged during course delivery, they are not likely to be retained. Thanks Tony, we have also benefited from your guide/course on Facilitating online. Such a course guide helps us address many weaknesses inherent in our e-learning courses, some of which are: mismatch between teaching styles or strategies and student learning styles; espoused teaching and learning theory may not be reflected in the preferred pedagogic practices; learning outcomes may not be aligned to appropriate teaching and assessment strategies etc.

Hi Jolanda, G, Sipho and others
Thanks for the reflection questions that you ask.
Response to Q.1: At IDE- we have also found working from a blueprint to be of great help- to provide a facilitative degree of structure, while it allows for course design team creativity.
Response to Q.2: Regarding the questions to ask: we then provide a learning design template in which we specify the following:
-target student profile learning characteristics that will impact on course design;
-terminal outcomes mapped according to Biggs’ SOLO taxonomy
-preferred pedagogical approach table, divided according to learning stages (conceptualisation, construction and dialogue)
As Gilly advises we also design major assessment tasks, e.g. a project, that are constructively aligned to the outcomes. For each assessment task, we also design an assessment rubric for the assessments such as an assignment. We look forward to more opportunity to approach our design for this workshop in agile, collaborative manner
Response to Q.3: The next stage: Actual storyboarding process

[Thula]

Hi Nicola, Jolanda, Sipho, G, Jerome, Rita and all
Thanks Nicola for the video link and for sharing your insights on reflective practice through e-Portfolios. I have personally created an e-Portfolio for my professional development activities.
We hope to incorporate e-portfolios into our course design during this workshop.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 5 months ago by Thula.

Hi Gilly, G & Jolanda,
Happy to meet all of you. I’m Thula (Nokuthula Vilakati), a trainee in Instructional design and development with the Institute for Distance Education in the University of Swaziland (dual mode). We hope to benefit from ‘Carpe Diem’ as we re-design a course for blended learning delivery on Elements of Teacher Education-PED321. We hope to be able to use from ‘Carpe Diem’ the e-tivity design examples e.g. on reflective practice e-tivities. Our pedagogical challenge that informs our course re-design is how to support teacher-learners (students) to link theory with their practice of teaching (towards a more activity-based and problem-based learning approach).

[Thula]

Hi Wanjira, Nompilo & Tony
Thanks Nompilo for opening this discussion space on OER. I agree with Tutaleni regarding the unresolved debate on what we mean by ‘open’ as well as lack of shared understanding of OER. The underlying issues raised by Wanjira are also relevant to our African context. I have also found book chapter by Wanjira quite engaging: Open resources for open learning in developing countries: deciphering trends for policies, quality and standards considerations. Perhaps we now need to look beyond the challenges and craft African context responsive OER adoption strategies.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 5 months ago by Thula.

Hi Tony and Wanjira
What constitutes good learning design and considerations for using ICTs to sustain academic rigor?
I agree with Wanjira (PPT slides 13 & 14) about the importance of learner centred pedagogy: to specify underpinning pedagogy that can show us how we can use the most suitable resources (including OER) for our targeted students to derive a motivating and coherent learning/educational experience. To sustain academic riogor- the Community of Inquiry framework helps to guide best our educational technology practice.
A follow up question to Tony’s: How far can we tap onto our indigenous knowledge systems as we design for effective learning?

Hi to Kinuthia, Jakob and Wondwossen
Am happy to meet you all. I’m Thula Vilakati based at the University of Swaziland, Institute for Distance Education. We have been involved in co-facilitating a few blended learning design workshops. We are also involved with the VUSSC OER community activities. We are keen to learn more about how to encourage more use of OER and to engage in collaborative research.

Hi Batseba, Tony, Jolanda and Jakob
Thanks for alerting us to the possibility of t-learning which may be well-suited to our adult learners. I’m now curious about the implications of designing for learning through a blending of various learning platforms (desktops/laptops-mobile/smart phones-tablets). Perhaps for learner-content interaction, a desktop/laptop or tablet would be better suited. Yet for learner-learner and learner-tutor interactions, the smart phone is better. What technical requirements and features do we need to consider in course design and development?

Hi Jolanda, thanks for good question.
Our first task was to develop a storyboard in which the learning outcomes are aligned with the assessment events, topics (contents) and e-tivities. We referred to Biggs’ (1999) argument that there is need for constructive alignment in the choice of learning outcomes, the teaching method and assessment task. To come up with our assessment rubric, we are guided by the level of understanding required as stated in our learning outcome. As a result, our assessment task will test whether the students have acquired the outcome. For example- The outcome for Assessment Event 1: Expose to new concepts, change theories towards a socio-ecological model and facts. We also made use of Conole et al’s (2004) mini learning activities to come up with the e-tivities. Team: How helpful is a generic discussion rubric like the one attached to this post?

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[Thula]

Team, see a sample rubric that we may consider after Week 1. Do we as a Team prefer a weekly evaluation or end of course evaluation?

• This reply was modified 8 years, 10 months ago by Thula.

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Thanks Jolanda for this detailed feedback. Perhaps our team may explore the use of a Reflection-Journal-Rubric to assess the blogs (see attached). May the Team indicate if such is feasible. The Team welcomes the idea of weekly activities: since the course design will be follow a [Learning Activity Design] rather than a topical one. On the assessment of practical application of skills developed- we have planned that each student develops a communication strategy (Project), which will be assessed. Am not sure though if this is adequate.

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Sincere apologies. Please find Storyboard example attached as a JPEG.

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[Thula]

Dear Team
Try this other link: http://linoit.com/groups/BCC%20Storyboard/canvases/BCC%20Storyboard.

• This reply was modified 8 years, 10 months ago by Thula.
• This reply was modified 8 years, 10 months ago by Thula.

[Thula]

Hi SS, you are the expert at making a distinction between assessment tasks and activities. Team, please see link to our work in progress Storyboard (not sure if it is accessible): http://linoit.com/users/Thula/canvases/inbox

• This reply was modified 8 years, 10 months ago by Thula.

Thanks PB for your feedback- in which you rightly indicate that we now need to begin to combine the outputs of all the completed activities. The picture is now becoming clearer. See the attached collated document of our Course-at-a-Glance. SS has given us the go-ahead to proceed to our Storyboard

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