A case study of Large Scale Faculty and Course Development

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A case study of Large Scale Faculty and Course
Development
Collaborative Courseware Development and the
Lone Ranger Tradition

• Ben Hambelton
• Boise State University

Northwest MET Annual Conference April 25-27, 2002
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Presentation Agenda

• Part 1 Project description, goals, strategies,
  and progress
• Part 2 Implementation Issues
• Part 3 Infrastructure Issues
• Part 4 Institutional Readiness
• Part 5 Lessons

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CoreOnline_at_BoiseState

• A Professional
• Course Development Project

Technology Incentive Grant Idaho State Board of
Education
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Need for the Project

• Need for a flexible online alternative for
  students
• Need to increase the number of faculty with skill
  and experience in integrating online tools into
  teaching

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Need Continued

• Need to be able to sustain online courses beyond
  the interest and involvement of a single faculty
  member

• Need to provide adequate support for development
  of online courses

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Need Continued

• Need for adequate and effective training
• Need for adequate support resources and
  compensation to develop a new delivery approach

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Objectives of the Project

• Develop 30 online versions of core or
  introductory courses
• Provide a professional development experience in
  online education for up to 90 faculty

• Develop student training package

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Features of CoreOnline

• Graduated Development Model
• Department buy-in
• Team development in cohorts
• Collaboration
• Team development
• Faculty mentors
• Student technology assistants
• Professional staff
• Comprehensive support resources
• Stipends
• Funded replacement sections
• Student support

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Graduated Development Model

• 3- to 5-semester process to move from
  face-to-face instruction to online courses by
  adding online tools and processes to regular
  classes
• Learn, apply, reflect, refine
• Deliverables and responsibilities
• Memorandum of understanding

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Graduated Development Model Continued

• 1st semester training
• 2nd semester web presence
• 3rd semester interactive web
• 4th semesterpilot online course
• 5th semesterrefine and integrate

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CoreOnline Graduated Development Model
4th Semester
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Teach a Pilot ONLINE Section of the Core
Course
2nd Semester
1st Semester
10
4

• Reflect, Refine, Revise
• What worked and what
• did not?
• How can I refine extend
• my use of web tools?
• What new skills do I need
• to extend my use of
• web tools?

• Teach Web-Enhanced Course
• Integrate web presence
• Communicate with students via Internet
• Assemble additional web resources contacts

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3rd Semester

• Teach Web-Enhanced Course
• Extensive interaction and use of web
• Deliver content
• Provide assessment
• Facilitate active-learning strategies

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• Conceptualize Your Course
• Plan how to adapt online tools
• to achieve your course goals
• Collaborate on core course
• design

5th Semester
11

• Teach Follow-Up Online
• Section of the Core Course
• Refine online teaching
• Integrate online course
• into a regular schedule

3

• Create Web Presence
• for a Class You Teach
• Online syllabus
• Staff contact information
• Calendar or schedule
• Assignments
• Digital drop box

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Collaboration

• Faculty Teams (three faculty)
• Work together to design a CoreOnline section of a
  selected core course
• Work independently and collaboratively to add
  online tools and processes to an existing
  teaching assignment

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Support Resources

• Laptop computer with appropriate software
• Extensive training and consultation
• Faculty mentors
• Student technology assistants

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Stipends

• Stipends for the extra work and training
• 500 to attend training
• 1500 to apply training in two development
  semesters
• 1500 for one member of the team to teach the
  online core class
• 1000 final stipend for a second semester spent
  refining and improving the course

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Faculty Mentors

• Experienced online instructors and technology
  users
• Consultants for teaching ideas
• Avoid alienation of early adopters

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Student Technology Assistants

• Trained in digital media and online software
• Assist with materials preparation
• Help with online teaching tasks

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Progress to Date

• 78 faculty trained
• 28 teams developing courses in 3 cohorts
• Infrastructure improvement
• Institutional readiness

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Progress Continued

• 1st cohort 11 online courses spring 02
• 2nd Cohort interactive web semester
• 3rd Cohortweb presence semester

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Part 2 Implementation Issues

• Management
• Training
• Collaboration
• Instructional Development

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Management

• Tracking and record keeping
• MOU
• Replacement sections
• Accountability
• Motivation

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Accountability

• MOU powerful instrument
• Department ownership
• Blackboard inventory
• Expectation summaries
• Liason meetings
• Once a semester
• Ask with inventory
• Feedback
• Promote planning
• Clarify expectations

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Motivation

• Cohort meetings
• Reports feedback
• Instructions expectations
• Reinforcement recognition
• Visibility
• Department ownership
• Teams
• Obligation to colleagues
• Competition
• Rewards

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Training

• Separate technical pedagogy focus
• Software training
• 5 part workshop
• Pedagogy Seminars
• Co-sponsored by TLTR
• Feature faculty presentors
• Guides and resources
• Staff consultation

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Best Practice Training Techniques

• Convenient registration, time, and place
• Progressive growth in skills
• Immersive training learn apply
• Sufficient individual help
• Opportunity for reflection
• Respect adult development and faculty experience
• Provide feedback and reinforcement
• Embed pedagogy in training

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Collaboration

• Course Planning tool
• Effective Practice document
• Liason meetings
• Mentor program evolution
• STA program evolution

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Instructional Development

• Training and seminars
• Course planning tool
• Effective Practice document
• Standards of Best Practice

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Part 3 Infrastructure Issues

• Server upgrades license
• Administrative procedures
• Technical Support
• Classroom network connections
• Classroom data projection
• Classroom technology plan
• Network upgrade to support streaming media

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Part 4 Institutional Readiness

• Registration administration improvement
• Intellectual property rights statement
• Student privacy statement
• Enterprise issues (exp. Student email, portal,
  dial-up access)
• Student Services Taskforce

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Part 5 Lessons Learned

• Faculty development
• Course development
• Institutional readiness
• Culture change
• Conclusion

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Lessons Continued

• Faculty Development
• Gradual, incremental application
• Training integrated with practice
• Removal of perceived barriers
• Value in fostering teamwork
• Flexibility in application
• Pedagogy follows technical competence

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Lessons Continued

• Course Development
• Combined with faculty development (less efficient
  but worth it)
• Foster greater collaboration with staff
  professionals
• Retain graduated development model
• Flexibility of course design
• Utilize benchmarks check points
• Increase accountability
• Consider peer-review process

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Lessons Continued

• Institutional Readiness
• Institutionally sponsored projects require
  institutional changes
• Institutional projects set climate for
  participation
• Readiness goes beyond infrastructure
• Be prepared for new owners of online learning

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Lessons Continued

• Culture Change
• Most difficult element
• Faculty value diversity and independence
• Faculty lack collaboration skills experience
• Structural resistance
• Need structure for collaboration
• Allow flexibility in collaborative effort

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Conclusion

• Institutional projects are powerfull
• Large-scale development has large-scale impact
• Institutional ownership is essential

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A case study of Large Scale Faculty and Course
Development
Collaborative Courseware Development and the
Lone Ranger Tradition

• Ben Hambelton
• Boise State University