Communicate 4.2.2 Digital Feedback Forum

Using the examples above as a point of reference, locate three digital resources that could be utilized when evaluating student work and discuss in your blog how these resources would enhance the level of specific feedback offered to students.

1. I find that screencasts are a simple and very effective tool for evaluation.  If I have a digital copy of a student paper, I can place comments upon it, while I also record my audio feedback.  In this way the student can see both the commentary, and hear my thought process as I include them.  screencast-o-matic.com
2. In addition to screencasts, I also enjoy using turnitin.com with my students.  Not only does the program check for plagiarism, but it also has options available for grammar instruction and gives suggested re-wordings of student work.  In fact, I think that one could do a screencast that initially focused upon the student's work, and then goes through the turnitin.com process. 
3. Links to the OWL at the Purdue library are also very helpful for student work.  The list of topics is well over 500 and contains a wide range of resources from higher order concerns such as how to start a paper, to lower order concerns such as how to use dashes correctly.  Like the above, it would be helpful for a student to give one or two links about aspects of their writing that might need some more direction.   

Communicate 4.2.1 Feedback Forum

Informational Text Analysis Assignment

For the next assignment you will analyze the following Informational passage, and create a written response.  Remember that each standard will need its own specific response in the form of a paragraph. 

First, read the following selection about whether or not students should be paid for their grades, then address the following three questions. 

The article may be accessed at http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/education/maybe-paying-for-good-grades-is-not-so-bad/2014/03/30/6867f4e8-b5e9-11e3-8cb6-284052554d74_story.html

Question 1: What is the author’s main idea about the paying student for their grades?  Be sure to show how the author develops this over the course of the ENTIRE text, and provide at least two examples of textual support.

ELACC9-10RI2: Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.
Proficient (100)	Meets (80)	Emerging (60)	Not Evident (40)	Not Attempted (0)
Concise, complex and accurate statement of the author’s purpose.	A correct statement of the author’s purpose.  The answer shows some awareness of complexity.	A partially developed statement of the author’s purpose, or an overly simplistic statement of the author’s purpose.	An inaccurate statement of the author’s purpose, or the answer only mirrors the prompt.	No statement of purpose provided.
Focused textual evidence from multiple parts of the article.  The textual support is integrated with the author’s own ideas.	Textual evidence from at least two parts of the article.  Some textual evidence is integrated with the author’s own ideas.	Minimal textual evidence or long blocks of textual evidence without integration to the author’s own ideas.	Textual evidence is copied without any connection to the author’s ideas.	No textual evidence provided.
Excellent attention to conventions, style, and punctuation.	Minimal errors in convention, style and punctuation.	Some errors in conventions, style and/ punctuation, but these errors do not obscure meaning.	Errors in conventions, style and/or punctuation obscure the meaning.	Unreadable due to errors.

Question 2: How does the author use effective vocabulary to convey his argument about whether or not students should be paid for grades?  Use at least TWO specific examples from the text.

ELACC9-10RI4: Determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, including figurative, connotative, and technical meanings; analyze the cumulative impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone.
Proficient (100)	Meets (80)	Emerging (60)	Not Evident (40)	Not Attempted (0)
Concise, complex and accurate statement of how specific word choices help to convey overall meaning.	A correct statement of how specific word choices help to convey overall meaning.  The answer shows some awareness of complexity.	A partially developed statement of how specific word choices help to convey overall meaning.	An inaccurate statement of how specific word choices help to convey meaning or the answer only mirrors the prompt.	No statement about word choice provided.
Focused textual evidence from multiple parts of the article.  The textual support is integrated with the author’s own ideas.	Textual evidence from at least two parts of the article.  Some textual evidence is integrated with the author’s own ideas.	Minimal textual evidence or long blocks of textual evidence without integration to the author’s own ideas.	Textual evidence is copied without any connection to the author’s ideas.	No textual evidence provided.
Excellent attention to conventions, style, and punctuation.	Minimal errors in convention, style and punctuation.	Some errors in conventions, style and/ punctuation, but these errors do not obscure meaning.	Errors in conventions, style and/or punctuation obscure the meaning.	Unreadable due to errors.

Question 3

What is the author’s point of view on the issue of whether or not students should be paid for their grades?  Be sure to cite at least TWO specific examples of textual evidence to support your response.

ELACC9-10RI6: Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how an author uses rhetoric to advance that point of view or purpose.
Proficient (100)	Meets (80)	Emerging (60)	Not Evident (40)	Not Attempted (0)
Concise, complex and accurate statement of how point of view helps to convey overall meaning.	A correct statement of how point of view helps to convey overall meaning.  The answer shows some awareness of complexity.	A partially developed statement of how point of view helps to convey overall meaning.	An inaccurate statement of how point of view helps to convey meaning or the answer only mirrors the prompt.	No statement about point of view provided.
Focused textual evidence from multiple parts of the article.  The textual support is integrated with the author’s own ideas.	Textual evidence from at least two parts of the article.  Some textual evidence is integrated with the author’s own ideas.	Minimal textual evidence or long blocks of textual evidence without integration to the author’s own ideas.	Textual evidence is copied without any connection to the author’s ideas.	No textual evidence provided.
Excellent attention to conventions, style, and punctuation.	Minimal errors in convention, style and punctuation.	Some errors in conventions, style and/ punctuation, but these errors do not obscure meaning.	Errors in conventions, style and/or punctuation obscure the meaning.	Unreadable due to errors.

Communicate 4.2.1 Rubrics Forum

The following is a rubric that I have used to assess ELA standard CCGPSW1, writing expository texts.

ELACC9-10W1: Write arguments to support claims in an analysis of substantive topics or texts, using valid reasoning and relevant and sufficient evidence
	Proficient (100)	Meets (80)	Emerging (60)	Not Evident (40)	Not Attempted (0)
a. Introduce precise claim(s), distinguish the claim(s) from alternate or opposing claims, and create an organization that establishes clear relationships among claim(s), counterclaims, reasons, and evidence.
b. Develop claim(s) and counterclaims fairly, supplying evidence for each while pointing out the strengths and limitations of both in a manner that anticipates the audience’s knowledge level and concerns.
c. Use words, phrases, and clauses to link the major sections of the text, create cohesion, and clarify the relationships between claim(s) and reasons, between reasons and evidence, and between claim(s) and counterclaims.
d. Establish and maintain a formal style and objective tone while attending to the norms and conventions of the discipline in which they are writing.
e. Provide a concluding statement or section that follows from and supports the argument presented.

Communicate 4.1.1 Evaluation Methods and Communication Practices Forum

• How do communication practices in the online environment correlate to effective feedback?

In order to be able to reach students, one must be able to give effective feedback because online often the written word is the only form of communication that the student will seek out.  There might be other avenues for reaching the student, but especially with the ELA curriculum, language is the means by which the feedback is conveyed.  

Without authentic feedback, online learners will have no sense of how to improve their work, and what they have done well.  Although this might also be true of the traditional classroom, it is even more pressing in an online environment because there is often no other interaction between the instructor and the student.  Also without the proximity of interaction with one's peers, it is difficult to learn in a collaborate environment.  The traditional classroom does this naturally; however, the online classroom requires the instructor to make this level of feedback happen. 

• In what ways might an instructor enrich a student’s online experience through feedback?

1. It should be focused upon the task that is to be learned.  With this focus, the instructor should consider one to three key objectives that the students should master.  
2. It should be concise.  Generally, one or two very specific comments will help convey feedback better than longer ones. 
3. Finally, it should focus upon specific aspects of the student work.  Actually highlighting the assignment or using the student's language will help to ensure that the feedback is directed towards their work. 

Communicate 3.2.2 Differentiation Forum

Create an example of differentiated communication practices to post for students or parents and share on your blog. Reflect thoughtfully on the concepts presented in the Differentiation section of the Communicate skill and utilize three resources.

In order to better differentiate content to students, it is useful to use multiple ways of learning such as the visual and auditory. By using video software to record one's voice and to present content knowledge, one can help students a) learn at their own pace, and b) become attuned to finer points of the teacher's commentary.  

Embedded in this blog is an overview of a sample research paper done through the medium of a Screencast. 

Research Paper Overview  

Communicate 3.2.1 The Newsletter Forum

Reflect, for a moment, upon the examples provided throughout this quest and the preceding sections in Communicate. Identify three highly effective methods of communicating with stakeholders and create an artifact for each utilizing the resources outlined throughout the module and discuss the topic in your blog.

In order to create connections with stakeholders, the newsletter should conform to the following three methods: 
1.If possible it should be available in the existing platform from which the course is delivered.  Although outside sources might be interesting, they also have the potential to distract and confuse the user.  

For example, an artifact might be an announcement as simple as "Reminder that there is an Assessment due on Feb 28th." 

2. If the user desires to use an outside platform to convey news items, then it would make sense that the item would be in a medium that is a) frequently used by the student, and b) has a valid reason for going outside of the platform.  A simple and effective example of this type of newsletter might be using a phone technology such as Remind.com.  With this program, I simply type in the message and it is texted to at least two students.  Also the program obscures my phone number and the students' numbers so there is no violation of confidentiality. 

For example, an artifact might be a Reminder that "there is an Assessment due on Feb 28th." 

3.  Finally, probably the most simple and common method for ensuring that this type of communication occurs can be through the traditional use of email.  

For example an artifact might be a simple email to all in the course or specific individuals that "there is an Assessment due on Feb 28th."

Communicate 3.1.2 News Forum

As an online instructor, how do you plan to incorporate news items and announcements? What resources would you reference to format news items? Create an example of a News Item and share the example in your blog. If the News Item includes a video or interactive, please share the link or, better yet, use an embed code.

In order to include a news or announcement, I generally try to use features that are inherent with the program and easily visible.  For example, it makes more sense to include these items in the Announcement Section or the Homepage when the students open the page.  
For formatting, generally try to keep the information simple and in more of a Headline format.  As an example of a news item, here is a link to a 7 minute video that I used earlier this year to Introduce Unit 2 to 10 Grade Honors English Students. 


Honors English 10 Unit 2 Introduction

Communicate 3.1.1 Homepages Forum

Here is a sample that I have used in many of my online courses.

Communicate 2.1.3 – Ongoing Communication Quest

Integrating the ideas presented in Communicate: Stakeholders quests, create a blog post in which you discuss reasons why effective communication remains an essential part of online instruction. In the blog post, create an example of an ongoing communication that could be sent to all stakeholders.

Often times communication to the entire class can be an effective way to help foster the learning process.  For example, by using the Course Announcements, the instructor can make information available to the entire class and make it easy for students to stay focused.  

An example of an effective communication might be as simple as the following: 

• All work for Assignment 3 has been scored and returned.  If you don't understand you your score, or if you have not received your work back, then please contact me.  I want to make sure that I haven't missed the assignment. 
• This week you will be completing Steps 1 and 2 for the Research Paper.  Please make sure that your draft is submitted by Feb 28th at 11:59 pm. 
• Overall the quality of the work was excellent with the last assignment--please look at the following praises and suggestions: 

1. Praise: great topics, interesting use of textual evidence, as a whole the class understand Shakespeare
2. Suggestions: work to include more focused quotations (i.e. 3-10 words), and try to mention specific literary elements especially syntax. 

By using weekly announcements, the instructor can create a more obvious instructor presence in the course room and give the room more traditional touchstones that the students are used to. 

Communicate 2.1.2 – Communication Guidelines Quest

• Welcome email (generic for all courses)

Hello and welcome to _____________.  I am pleased to be your instructor and hope to transfer my 20 years of teaching ELA to you in _____________.   Please feel free to explore the course, and be sure to look at the syllabus and due dates, but at this point don't get overwhelmed.  I have found that with online education, if the student and instructor work together and one assignment at a time, both can have success.  

Sincerely,

{Insert name here} 

• Personal notes versus mass communication to stakeholders (appropriate times)

In order to ensure that all students receive a quality online education, sometimes the instructor will need to compose specific communications directed at specific individuals.  Although these might be viewed by a larger audience, it is the instructor's responsibility to ensure that these communications are directed at the individual.  

However, there are certain guidelines that should be followed with individual communication.  The following should be cautiously included, or left out unless permission is granted: 

1. Grades or other academic records
2. Negative language 
3. Personal Information
4. Irrelevant Information 
5. Anything else that seems to potentially violate the student's confidentiality. 

Remember if in doubt, leave the information out and request a phone call instead. 

• Stakeholders

Stakeholders that are included with this course include, but are not limited to, students, parents, evaluators, administrators, and anyone else seeking permission to view the course. 

 

• School Policies regarding Communication

All communication in this course is considered permanent, and will become part of the course with this in mind, please adhere to the following _____________________ district rules for communication. 

1. All communication should be professional.
2. All communication should be inclusive.  
3. All communication should be constructive or positive; even criticism can be constructive. 
4. All communication should avoid derogatory language of any kind, including but not limited to language that can be considered rude, vulgar, racist, sexist, or discriminatory in any fashion. 
5. All communication might be seen by anyone; always think before you post. 

• Tools available for effective Communication

With the online course room, the most effective tools for communication are the ones that are built into the system.  Often the ones with more pubic access are also preferred.  For example, discussion threads can be a valuable way to communicate and are open to review.  Or consider that dropboxes can be another valuable way to convey feedback.  Finally, use only professional access points, rather than personal ones.  For example, the course email is always preferred to personal ones.  As for social media, perhaps just forget it. 

 

Communicate 2.1.1 – Identify Stakeholders Quest

• Do the descriptions correlate to your perception?  Yes, they do meet my perception of who might be involved with online education.  Generally, the difference between the traditional classroom, and the online classroom has to do with the permanence of written record that automatically gets created.  The ambiguity gets created because although feedback might be directed at students, it can be accessed anytime by parents, administrators, and beyond.  
• How can they be expanded upon or described further? Aside from the tradition student, with an online forum there is a permanent record of the interaction, and all interaction should be written as such.  Because of this the audience goes beyond the student, and can become anyone to whom the student shows the information (i.e. friends, parents, other students), as well as individuals who might be monitoring the classroom for other purposes.  For example, administrators might monitor the teacher's performance, other teachers might monitor the course as an example, and parents might check-in because they are concerned about the child.  Essentially, anyone who gains access can be aware of the teacher's interaction.  
• Are there other stakeholders within an online environment not considered above?  I think that the permanent record that automatically gets created through the written word, can include just about anyone with access to the course.  This access might be limited to parents, administrators, program developers, etc. or if the class somehow goes more public it can be open to just about anyone--for example, I think of the Yale Open Courses and how those are seen by millions each month.  The most important take-away from this blog is that online communication is more permanent than we sometimes feel, and that all interactions have the potential to be seen by an almost infinite number of viewers outside of the target audience. 

Communicate 1.1.2 – Laws of Communication Quest

• How can one refrain from violating FERPA guidelines in online communication? Wow, what a list.  I have always felt comfortable sharing grades with parents, and in fact I have found that this is an easy way to answer questions and convey information.  however, after reviewing the video, resources, and the list itself, I am questioning the practice.  The most essential way to prevent these violations might be to have the list on hand at all times, and accept 3-5 steadfast rules and then don't violate them.  These rules should be no exceptions, and maintained always.  In this way consistency will be achieved.  
• What methods could be employed to verify that copyright is not being violated?  Once again, there should be steadfast rules, and with online education the more consistent one is, the better.  For example, by having 3-5 specific rules about what can get posted, then adhering to it, the instructor can avoid copyright violations.  
• Does copyright require that all work, images, words, and graphics must be original?  Not necessarily.  Some works are in the public domain can be used with an online classroom.  As an ELA teacher I do find a lot of the classic texts have entered into the public domain, so it is easier to have direct access to resources.  However, with images, graphics, etc . . that are more recent, one must be careful about copyright infringement.  Generally, try to avoid use of modern resources, unless they have clearly fallen into the public domain.  The caution that one must exercise online is the difference between what is considered fair classroom use, and the danger to violation that can manifest itself by posting these same images online.   

Communicate 1.1.1 – Definitions of Communication Quest

• How have your individual communication skills changed as with the innovations in technology?  Before I used email frequently, I tended to be longer with my verbal communication.  In fact, a lot of times I was attracted to my writing style, and frequently used literary language to communicate.  With email I have learned to be more concise and focused.  Instead of paragraphs, I tend to communicate in sentences.  Whereas I would previously offer explanations with my emails, now I give a one sentence context if necessary, and then one direct question.  Or if I am the one answering the question a one to two sentence answer.  I generally find that people don't want to read long explanations with the new technology. 
• How have advancements in technology altered classroom communication? Will these change further? As we get more used to technology and the limits/benefits (still haven't decided yet) of the technology still dictate what gets written and how it is written, I expect that effective communication will get shorter and more direct.  Whereas long-winded communication will continue to go out of style even more.  I am amazed when I read a 19th century text with my students (i.e. just finished Dickens with 10th graders) at what people would read only 100 to 200 years ago.  Now this type of literature has less of a real market, and I suspect that the same will happen with other forms of communication.  With the competing mediums for our attention.  Essentially, people have the easy option to just log off, delete, or click on something else, so we need to learn to get the point out there as soon as possible. 

Navigate 4.1.1 – Trend Impact Quest

Over the next five years, one of the more useful and important trends in online education might be the creation of web-based platforms that can be used easily on multiple devices.  As students gain more access to a larger variety of electronics, creating platforms that can be used on both large (i.e. traditional desk-tops and lap-tops) to the very small (i.e. smart phones, etc) and even in-between (i.e. video gaming systems, cable television, etc) seems to be one of the more essential components of reaching a larger audience of students.  I think that it is safe to say that more students will gain some type of technology connection, so creating versatile platforms that can be used on almost any device should be the goals of any online educator.

I have had students tell me that some of my past web pages didn't really work well on their smart-phones and that such and such type of platform works better.  Also cumbersome platforms that require a lot of memory and data usage to load are also going to be abandoned in favor of more concise and streamlined, easy to use platforms.

Essentially, the learning platforms of the next five years should be designed to be user friendly in as many technology platforms as possible.  

Navigate 3.2.1 Tools for Deciding on an LMS

For the last 10 years, I have worked with the following LMS systems.  All were fairly intuitive, and once I got used to working within one platform, I found that it met my needs as an educator.  I have ranked them in the order of my preference, and some of the advantages and disadvantages of each system.

1.  ecollege: I really liked the simple interface of this, and the fact that student submissions were automatically archived along with my comments.  Every time I would submit feedback to a student, there would be a record that I submitted the feedback--I find that with other platforms the record is not so clear and direct.  I miss using this streamlined and easy to use platform.   http://www.ecollege.com/index.php

2. Angel: although this is now acquired by Blackboard, I still prefer the ease of the interface over Blackboard, which I have a difficult time getting used to.  I find that for course construction Angel is difficult to transcend, especially if all of the content has been established before-hand.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANGEL_Learning

3.  Blackboard: ironically both the intuitions that I taught for abandoned ecollege and Angel for Blackboard, so I have gotten used to it, even though I don't prefer it.  I am guessing that this is sort of how Mac users feel about the Windows and how it still dominates the world computing.  Blackboard will do anything that you want it to do, but sometimes the interface can be a little confusing, and a bit cluttered.  http://www.blackboard.com/

4.  Desire2learn: the courses that I have used with this system have required physical uploading of documents in word rather than cut/pasting them.  Also the grade book is a bit cumbersome.

  

Navigate 3.1.4 – LMS Reporting Quest

What are the options for grade reporting? Are there various levels? Which levels remain most valuable for the online instructor in regard to student performance?

Because students and parents are often embedded in the traditional form of grade reporting, I tend to keep my ,online grading consistent with the traditional classroom.  Essentially, I like to map out a list of assignments, and their point values.  From there I craft rubrics/scoring guides and then set up the student dropboxes.  Students then complete the work in a manner similar to an independent study with a tradition class.  I do allow for revision, and if students are willing and able to revise their work, I will modify their grade.  As for as grade reporting goes, I tend to keep the grades in real time and present the grade as soon as the work has been assessed.  The more immediate the feedback to the student, often the better their chances for success and their willingness to revise the assignment if necessary.  
Based upon the distinctions listed in this lesson, I have commented upon the usefulness of each level and its practice applications. 

• Student Level – Student data can result in a report view that indicates the number of times a student accesses a course, attempts a quiz, visited content, or used a particular tool. The reports can aggregate across students in a course, and this data can be informative about the effectiveness of the online course.  Generally important when students are struggling with the course; often this type of data can inform the instructor on whether or not the student is attempting to engage in the course, or if the student is failing because of neglect. 
• Teacher Level – A report may look at course grades per course offering or across semesters/sessions to indicate positive or negative results per teacher, as well as overall material within the course’s effectiveness. A teacher may look at their own data or their students’ data for differentiation or evaluation of their teaching methods.  For the online instructor, the most essential document because this is the record of student achievement. 
• Course Level – Course level analytics are helpful to evaluate and re-design course materials and assessments.  Less useful for the online instructor, but more important for the course designers.  Can be useful when trying new assignments out or if there is a tendency for students to either score too high (i.e. all 100s) or too low on a particular assignment.  The online instructor should be aware of these, but the teacher level ones will probably be more useful for day-to-day student engagement. 
• Program Level – Program level data is used to evaluate the effectiveness in aggregate of the successes and failures of programs to inform administrators of areas for improvement.  Less important for the individual online instructor during the course of teaching a particular course; more important when reviewing overall performance or the connections to the course. 

Navigate 3.1.3 Tools within the LMS Forum

Reflect for a moment on the LMS used for the quests in this skill. Then, list each tool available within the LMS in your blog. Which tools would be most valuable in the online classroom? Which would be of least value?

Of the most value are the individual lessons, the assessment descriptors, the rubrics, and the dropboxes.  Also of importance are the individualized email options that can provide direct contact with students. 

Of the least value are the features that tend to repeat options that can be found on the internet, or that suggest redundancy, or that serve little purpose with the overall scoring and grades of the course.  For example, often a lot of times general resources (i.e. the wikipedia, search tool bars, etc) tend to only provide services that the internet already provides, so they tend to clutter up the course room.  Likewise, a lot of the forms of social expression that are included in an LMS mirror other forms of social media, and unless there is a direct connection with an assessment, there is no immediate or tangible reason to use the platform. 

Navigate 3.1.2 Creation and Investigation into Courses

For the last 7 years I have used Angel and created course shells for English 1101 and English 1102 through the Georgia Technical College System.

• What were those steps to selecting, uploading, fulling loading content into the course shell and making that content viewable?
• I have always started with focusing upon the lessons and assessments and making them the backbone of the course.  Generally I start with a simple skeleton/outline (i.e. 4-6 assignments) and then design the details and lessons around these.  First, to select the information I focus upon the ultimate goals of the course.  If it is English 1101, I think in terms of the 3-5 papers that the students will write, and if it is English 1102, I think in terms of the 3-5 major literary works that the students will read.  Second, to upload content, I build and include supplemental resources that will help students achieve the larger goals of the assessments.  Finally, I load content in the order of its importance, and based on whether or not it will directly help students. 
• Is it important to follow these steps? If so, why?  Yes, because with an online course room, there is a temptation to include links and more links and then more links.  Eventually, the course room shell can become overwhelmed with links that don't directly correspond with the overall goals of the course.  More importantly sometimes having too much can confuse students and obscure the essential. So, by creating a systematic approach to posting content and resources that are all directly related to the overall assignments, the instructor can better guide students through the course.  When in doubt, I suggest simple without simplistic.  

Navigate 3.1.1 LMS Tool Categories Forum

• In your blog, discuss the most relevant features offered in an LMS, which relate directly to effective online instruction. How might these be used in the online environment?

After using various LMS for the last 8 years, I have found that the most relevant aspects are the specific lessons, documents related to these lessons and then the assessments of these lessons.  Generally, I try to simply the platform and have only essential documents that will directly help with a specific assignment.  Although blogs and journals might be useful for the reflective process, I tend to prefer to use direct assessments.  Based upon the descriptions included with this training, I would suggest that "Course Assessment" is ultimately what most students would use the most, and if they are to successfully complete the course, this is what they will focus upon.  The contents include the items that students will be judged upon.  Although there is debate about whether or not too much emphasis is placed upon grades, as long as student growth needs to be measured, grades will probably always have some role in education.  More on the motivation factor with grades in another blog.  For ease of reference, here are the items that are probably most essential for simply earning the credit in an online course:  

• Tests and Quizzes – View Georgia State University Information Systems and Technology’sUsing Quizzes in an LMS
• Rubrics – Read Wikipedia’s entry for Rubric
• Dropbox – View Georgia State University Information Systems and Technology’s Using Dropbox in an LMS
•