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Designing a Module in Google Classroom

When designing this module, I adhered to the vision outlined in my previous reflection. I focused on the characteristics of my audience to inform my design. Below are some of the design decisions from my previous reflection and how they are reflected in my design of Module 5.

Simple, clean, coherent design

  • The module was structured in the same way that the previous introduction module was. Posts were organized and numbered. All of the attachments were labelled to correspond with the naming and numbering conventions of the posts.

Limited external technology

  • A deliberate effort was made to use tools within the Google Suite of applications. The reason for this was to avoid busy learners from having to setup and register new accounts and learn unfamiliar technology. The one exception was an optional webinar recording in the module notes.
  • I explored the use of Pear Deck while developing the module notes. Pear Deck can be incorporated into Google Classroom through a plug-in for the Google Slides. The service seemed promising but ultimately, I had too many concerns about the level of permissions and access to my Google Account that the service wanted. I also was trying to be conscious of the urge to add additional flashy bells and whistles that I find interesting but might ultimately confuse my learners.
  • I considered using Padlet as a collaborative space to brainstorm and discuss ideas. I eventually opted to use the collaboration features within Google Docs to ensure limited unnecessary external technology.

Assigned deadlines

  • Deadlines were added to all of the activities.

Applied and authentic assessments

  • Learners are asked to work with materials from their own classrooms in the activities. For example in Activity 5.4 learners are asked to complete the exercise using a learning objective from their own course.
  • The final product of the group work activity will be used in the summative assignment in the next module. Importantly by the end of this activity learners will have a tool that they can immediately take and use in their own professional practice.

Group Discussion and Collaboration in Formative Activities

  • Opportunities for discussion and collaboration are found throughout the module.

Aysnchronous Learning

  • The activities can be completed at the learner’s own pace. There is built in flexibility, although students are still bound by the week deadline to complete the module.

Mobile Friendly

  • I tested out the Google Classroom page and the attachments from within a mobile browser. Everything worked as intended.

Iterative Design

  • While creating my project for this course I was given the opportunity at work to deliver a workshop and pilot the content in a face to face session streamed for off-campus learners. I included the recording of this session in the module notes. The session went well, and learners were engaged with the activities. The anonymous feedback on the session was overwhelmingly positive. One of the criticisms was that one of the activities was too complicated. I simplified activity 5.5 to be a more straight forward activity with detailed instructions.
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Designing a Rubric for Selecting an LMS

For this assignment my group was tasked with creating a rubric for selecting an learning management system (LMS) for professional development for nurses. We analysed the scenario and came up with a list of 11 criteria for our rubric.

  • flexible delivery for diverse learners
  • active and current content
  • community building
  • intuitive design
  • cost-effective and scalable
  • safe and secure
  • dynamic and iterative design and development
  • integrates multimedia
  • curriculum mapping
  • training, documentation, and support
  • learning analytics for assessment and evaluation

When brainstorming the criteria we referred to the SECTIONS framework. This framework was a good starting point for general decision making but it needed to be revised to highlight the unique requirements of this scenario.

I used my experience working in the Rady Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Manitoba which includes the College of Nursing to highlight important areas not apparent in the scenario description. One thing that was very important for me to emphasize was intuitive design. I know from experience that when introducing new technology that a difficult user interface can lead to resistance from busy learners and staff. Removing unnecessary steps, clicks, and external links that send learners outside of the LMS prevents frustrated learners from giving up (White, 2017). This means that when selecting an LMS it is important to look beyond flashy bells and whistles that can create unnecessary complexity for users. Another important aspect that was not obvious from the scenario description was the role of multimedia in health care education. For example it would be important that LMS could support incorporating video elements for standardized patient videos.

I’m pleased with the final result of the project but ultimately I think using rubrics for comparing and evaluating LMS is cumbersome. In the real world I would have tackled this project by creating a feature checklist. I would create an comprehensive list of desired features organized by categories. I think this would make it much more easier to identify exactly what is needed for a project and make better comparisons.

In a later revision of the assignment we included a recommendation for an LMS. We started by discussing what we were already familiar with professionally. We ultimately decided on recommending Elentra (also known as Entrada). Many LMS offer similar features and did well when assessed with our rubric. What really stood out to us about Elentra was the widespread adoptio of it in the health sciences field. To me this signalled opportunities for interprofessional collaboration and maybe joint funding opportunities with universities.

References
Bates, T. (2015). Teaching in a Digital Age. Chapter 8: Choosing and using media in education: the SECTIONS model. Retrieved from http://opentextbc.ca/teachinginadigitalage/part/9-pedagogical-differences-between-media/

White, M., & Shellenbarger, T. (2017). Harnessing the power of learning management systems: An E-learning approach for professional development. Journal for Nurses in Professional Development, 33(3), 138-141. Retrieved from https://oce-ovid-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/article/01709760-201705000-00007/HTML

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Flight Path ETEC 524

This post is an assignment for ETEC 524:

I started my career in education teaching overseas in Sweden. The experience had a major impact on me personally and professionally. I learned a lot about myself and made life-long friends. It also confirmed for me that I just don’t have the interest or passion to be a classroom teacher. I did well during my time there but I never really felt passionate about it in the same way I saw other teachers. When I came home I was ready for something different.

I started working in the non-profit sector when I returned to Canada. I worked in the field of Public Legal Education. This was when I discovered the aspects of education that I found rewarding: being creative, experimenting with technology and design, and making a difference. I was hired because of my willingness to try new things and experiment. A big first was creating the organization’s first mobile app. The app was a collection of FAQs for landlords and tenants regarding the Alberta Residential Tenancies Act. It was flashy and got a lot of attention from our funders but ultimately the investment of resources was not worth it. A mobile website was probably better suited for the project and would have been easier to maintain. A lot of my work during this time was trial and error. Unknowingly I was developing my own framework for
evaluating new technology intuitively, although probably not very efficiently. It was interesting because there are competing demands that have to factor into decisions about technology. First of all pedagogy but other contextual factors like what excites the funder, what can grab the attention of the end-user, and how scalable is the solution. During this time I attended a workshop on creating mobile content that gave the valuable advice if you are waiting to create a perfect video you will never publish a thing. Aim for high but not for perfection or you will never achieve anything. This has really stuck with me and has influenced my approach to incorporating technology into education.

When I had to move for my partner’s work I ended up working at the University of Manitoba. I started in instructional design but since then my work has shifted to program evaluation. During this time I also started my MET program. I started being quite optimistic about technology and now as I complete this final course in my MET program I find myself pretty skeptical about the role of technology in education. In particular I’ve been a bit disillusioned by witnessing a lot of technological flash without substance professionally. I have been frustrated as an online learner in the MET program that I feel like I didn’t get much out of. As I near completion of my masters I wonder if I would have had a more fulfilling experience in a F2F or blended environment. So my skepticism probably makes me well-suited for my career transition into evaluation. I hope to get more experience thinking critically about technology through this course. I think the group as a whole is going to be very eager and excited about introducing technology to different aspects of education. I hope though that we have discussions where we are critical about technology.