EDLD5364

NACOL states that “Online learning offers the advantage of personalization, allowing individualized attention and support when students need it most” (2007). Online learning allows more opportunities for students to explore subjects not offered at a local school. It gives students the opportunities to receive credit in failed subjects, and it provides a multiple learning and assessment environment that can be used along with a face-to-face environment. Attendance is a growing problem in many high schools. By teachers presenting their courses through online learning environments, students have more opportunities to learn the material. Students that are sent to alternative learning environments for discipline reasons could continue to receive instruction through an online environment. Online learning will only be beneficial to the students if the course is designed appropriately for the target audience. Content expertise is not sufficient. Teachers must know how to effectively design an online learning environment that is appropriate for the audience (Oliver, Kellogg, Townsend & Brady, 2010). If the online system is used as a supplement to a face-to-face class, the design is much different than a class that is completely online. There are several ways that I will use the class that I designed. Since my class was created to address a low TAKS objective, I would like to present it to the math dean at my local school. He will then make it available to his math teachers. I will use the concept learned while developing the class of backward design when presenting professional development for teachers in June (Wiggins & McTighe, 2000). I will be teaching a class on how to set up an online course using Moodle. When I designed my online course, it was easier to choose good learning activities because I knew exactly what outcome I was expecting. I have had a difficult time choosing what needed to be included in an online course because there are so many good activities now available online. This process is much easier if you have first “identified the desired results” and “determined acceptable evidence” (Wiggins & McTighe, 2000).

I will be creating and implementing a class through an online environment over digital citizenship. Hopefully, this class will be given to all high school students at my local school before they will be allowed to use a computer on campus. While working on the class for students, I realized that most teachers need the same training on digital citizenship. In a study conducted about North Carolina Virtual schools, teachers wanted assistance with creating online materials that did not violate copyright and they wanted training on how to keep kids safe online (Oliver, Kellogg, Townsend & Brady, 2010). I will be meeting with our AP over curriculum in the summer to suggest that all teachers go through a similar course in an online learning environment. Also, I am promoting and training teachers on how to set up classes in the online learning environment of Moodle. My first question to each teacher will assess how she plans to use the online class, and I will give direction on how to properly design the course according to the needs expressed by the teacher. I would still like to research more about the online standards adopted by the International Association for K-12 Online Learning as standards of quality for online courses (iNACOL, 2007). These standards address the content, instructional design, student assessment, technology, course evaluation and 21st century skills (iNACOL, 2007). These standards demonstrate that a lot of time and careful planning must take place to create an effective online course. The discussion board for this class raised a question that I would also like to research more. Student’s grades are recorded in an online learning system. How is this data protected to meet FERPA requirements? For a class that is completely online, how to you assess learning in subjects such as foreign language in which the spoken and written parts are equally important? I learned how to design a class using the backward design model. I know the importance of truly understanding what you want your students to understand before you decide on the activities. All staff development that I will be conducting will be designed from the template given by Wiggins and McTighe (2000). I usually train teachers on how to use new technology. I feel that the second step is missed many times in staff development. The trainer never thinks about how the concept will be assessed. That is why there is so much unused technology gathering dust in a classroom. The educator is never assessed over how she uses the technology. When you have to decide how the concept will be assessed, it really gives direction to the type of learning activities that will be used to teach the concept. References iNACOL. (2007). //iNACOL national standards of quality for online courses//. Retrieved from http://www.inacol.org/resources/nationalstandards/index.php. Oliver, K., Kellog, S., Townsend, L., & Brady, K., (2010). //Needs of elementary and middle school teachers developing online courses for a virtual school//. Distance Education, 31(1), 55-75. doi: 10.1080/01587911003725022.  Wiggins, G. & McTighe, J. (2000). //Understanding by Design.// Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.