Putting It All Together:An Instructor’s Perspective on Designing, Developing, Implementing, and Evaluating Instructional Technology

Connie K. Varnhagen

Department of Psychology

varn@ualberta.ca

                           

Enhancing Teaching and Learning?

Needs Assessment and Analysis

Finding and/or Developing Content

Implementation

EvaluationGuide to Distributed Learning

                           

Enhancing Teaching and Learningor An All Consuming Endeavor?

Guide to Distributed Learning

The Doomsday Machine

Needs Assessment and Analysis

Pressure to use new technologies• Administration• Students• Research results

“C’mon, c’mon -- it’s either one or the other.”

Pressure from Administration

By the Year 2005...

The university of Alberta will incorporate a learner-centred instructional model which integrates multi-media and technology-based delivery methods with traditional classroom instruction to serve students who are locally, regionally, nationally and globally based. This model will feature a variety of opportunities for lifelong learning.

Report of the senate task force on technology and learning, September, 1995 (http://www.ualberta.Ca/~senate/exec_summary.Html)

Pressure From Students

What do students want?• Lecture notes• Course schedule• Syllabus• Practice quizzes• Study guide• E-mail to instructor

Less important• Interactive modules, links, discussion, e-mail to

students

Research on Teaching and Learning

Well prepared lectures are associated with better lecture notes

Simulations and demonstration lead to better comprehension of the associated concepts than verbal and/or pictorial descriptions

Online course components don’t hurt and can help

Finding and/or Developing Content

MUST align pedagogical goals with functions of the technology• e.g., overheads are immediately updateable and

allow for spontaneity Search for content before developing content

• Repositories• Text book publishers• Teaching journals• Web• Colleagues

Developing Content

Get help• Pedagogical • Technological• Evaluation and Instructional Design

Grossly overestimate the time it will take to develop content

Develop a research component

Implementation

Be prepared for anything• Technology• Personal response

Be open with the class• Rationalize innovation• Request feedback• Humor helps

Be firm with implementation strategy

Evaluation

Need for formative as well as summative evaluation

Student course evaluations Faculty Evaluation Committee

Formative and Summative Evaluation

Consult with Evaluation Group Get ethics approval Mid-course evaluation(s) Focus group feedback Summative questions along with (or after)

course evaluation Consider peer consultation

Student Course Evaluations

Innovation associated with lower than normal course evaluations

Prepare students for the innovation• Rationale• Reinforcement• Be gracious under fire

Develop multifaceted course evaluation procedures with Chair

Faculty Evaluation Committee

Must have Chair support Good idea to have tenure as well Follow through on research component of

any development project Prepare a dossier with specific emphasis on

innovation Don’t overemphasize your innovation

Continued Innovation

Once an innovator, always an innovator Share your experiences

• With colleagues• At University presentations• At teaching conferences• Through publications

Great Resources

ATL Guide to Distributed Learning• http://www.atl.ualberta.ca/dleweb/

Web Guides and Tutorials• http://www.expressnews.ualberta.ca/ualberta/L2.c

fm?c=1&s=72 WebCT

• http://www.ualberta.ca/WEBCT/ University Teaching Services

• http://www.ualberta.ca/~uts/

Some Database Repositories

CAREO http://careo.ucalgary.ca

Merlot http://www.merlot.org/Home.po

LearnAlberta http://www.learnalberta.ca/

Departmental Resources• BioDITRL

http://database.sunsite.ualberta.ca/pls/biod1/ditrl.home

• ITRL http://www.psych.ualberta.ca/~ITL/