Instructors have left the sandbox.
During this session of the Course Design Practicum, 21 instructors completed the program.
While some will be taking the tools and methods they小蝌蚪APP檝e learned directly into 小蝌蚪APP online and hybrid courses this fall, many will be updating their face-to-face courses.
小蝌蚪APP淲hat we demonstrate in CDP is just good course design,小蝌蚪APP said Instructional Designer Angie Lee during the showcase. 小蝌蚪APP淚t小蝌蚪APP檚 not only for online and hybrid courses.小蝌蚪APP
Dr. Charles Duncan has been teaching in various capacities for 40 years but said he wants to build additional skills before teaching his own course online.
Enrolling in CDP, he said, offered a chance to explore new technology and how to bring additional courses online within the School of Kinesiology.
小蝌蚪APP淲hat I plan to do is implement some of the technology I'm learning in the CDP course into my in-person course. For example, Voicethread. When I have to be away from class, that offers a viable alternative to make sure students can continue and get the same information,小蝌蚪APP he said. 小蝌蚪APP淭hen we小蝌蚪APP檒l see from there.小蝌蚪APP
He said the course also gave him a new appreciation for the time investment to produce quality online courses as well as the availability of the Instructional Support Team.
Carla Vidrine, an instructor within the College of Nursing, has been teaching online as a clinical instructor, alongside professors, for three years. Although she isn小蝌蚪APP檛 yet teaching her own online course, she said she enrolled in CDP to gain a better understanding of the Learning Management System, Moodle, and the supported by the Office of Distance Learning.
小蝌蚪APP淚 hear from other faculty members and get emails from the Office of Distance Learning about new tools and different experiences, and I wanted to check those out so I can grow as an instructor,小蝌蚪APP she said.
小蝌蚪APP淚 particularly enjoyed how the CDP instructors taught us to interact with students and how to enhance student-to-student interaction. It小蝌蚪APP檚 difficult to make students feel like they小蝌蚪APP檙e in a real classroom, in real time, but there are tricks and tools to recreate that environment.小蝌蚪APP
While the Instructional Support Team offers professional development throughout the year on teaching with EduTools, CDP is the only course in which all of the tools are demonstrated in depth.
CDP participants build these elements into their own Moodle sandbox course designs with other participants serving as practice 小蝌蚪APP渟tudents.小蝌蚪APP
小蝌蚪APP淚 really appreciate that whenever a tool was introduced to us, it wasn小蝌蚪APP檛 presented as 小蝌蚪APP榬ead about it,小蝌蚪APP櫺◎蝌紸PP Vidrine said. 小蝌蚪APP淚f instructors wanted to show us what a Voicethread is, we read about it, watched a presentation, and then used the tool to leave a comment.
"It was very interactive, very hands on."
Jim Foret has been teaching at UL Lafayette since 2005 but has only recently been certified in order to teach his plant science class online beginning Spring 2020.
He said although he had concerns about engaging students online, he小蝌蚪APP檚 hopeful about the capabilities of tools like Moodle forums and Voicethread.
小蝌蚪APP淯sing Voicethread, I小蝌蚪APP檓 going to break information into different slides and then lecture on the small groups of slides, ask questions, and get them to respond. That小蝌蚪APP檚 going to be a cool thing for me,小蝌蚪APP he said.
小蝌蚪APP淚小蝌蚪APP檓 also thinking about using the forums. You can ask a question, have them respond and evaluate others小蝌蚪APP responses.小蝌蚪APP
Jumping into online learning, said Foret, has made every day a new mystery to solve.
小蝌蚪APP淚t小蝌蚪APP檚 stretching me; I feel like an elastic band,小蝌蚪APP he said. 小蝌蚪APP淚t小蝌蚪APP檚 not bad to be stretched. I feel alive when I小蝌蚪APP檓 challenged like that.小蝌蚪APP
For information about how to become a ULearn Certified Online Teach or Course Designer, visit our Faculty Certification page or email us at distancelearning@louisiana.edu.