Design It Right! Modifying Your Assignments for Online Instruction

Laura Lohman, PhD, SHRM-SCP, PMPDirector, Center for the Advancement of Faculty Excellence

Contextual Points from the Kick-Off Session

• Online learning experiences supplemented by in-person instruction

• Flexibility

What normally goes into a final grade in your course?

Align Assessments of Learning with Learning Outcomes

Learning objectives for this session

• Identify which common assessments of learning in face-to-face instruction should be modified for online instruction

• Appropriate modifications• Suitable technologies• Syllabus language changes

Final Grade Components in Face-to-Face Classes That Are Likely to Need Modification

Attendance and Participation

What do you want students to do? Face-to-face environment Online environmentBe present • Attendance • Last log in to course in the LMS

• Joining a synchronous session in real time or viewing a recording later

Demonstrate their current understanding (graded on completion rather than accuracy)

• Polling apps, clickers• Minute paper• Other Classroom Assessment Techniques

• Questions in videos (e.g., EdPuzzle, Stream)

• Low-stakes quizzes graded only on completion and offered for practice

• Journal tool in the LMS or similar

Explain course concepts • Whole class discussion• Written small-group activities

• Discussion boards, Flipgrid, VoiceThread

• Synchronous sessions

Share new examples of course concepts

• Whole class discussion• Digital collaboration in small-group activities

• Discussion boards, Flipgrid, VoiceThread

• Wakelet online curation tool• Collaborative cloud-based files (OneDrive, G suite)• Synchronous sessions

Pose questions to deepen shared understanding of course concepts

• Whole class discussion • Discussion boards, Flipgrid, VoiceThread

• Wiki tool in the LMS or similar

Connect ideas (between readings, experiences, perspectives, examples) to deepen shared understanding of concepts

• Whole class discussion• Written small-group activities

• Discussion boards, Flipgrid, VoiceThread

• Collaborative cloud-based files (OneDrive, G suite)• Synchronous sessions

Apply course concepts to new situations or problems

• Written small-group activities• Digital collaboration in small-group activities

• Collaborative cloud-based files (OneDrive, G suite)• Wiki tool in the LMS or similar• VoiceThread• Break-out rooms in synchronous sessions

Conceptualizing Participation across Instructional Environments

Flipgrid

• Asynchronous video-based discussion board

• Free

• Autogenerated captions available

• Complements the Discussion tool in the LMS

• Example of Flipgrid where you can post a video or a video reply to see how it works

• Click the red Microsoft button and use Queens credentials

• See more details and tips in Quick Guide to Flipgrid

LEAPS Framework for Technology Selection

Accessible version of the detailed LEAPS framework

What do you want students to do? Face-to-face environment Online environmentBe present • Attendance • Last log in to course in the LMS

• Joining a synchronous session in real time or viewing a recording later

Demonstrate their current understanding (graded on completion rather than accuracy)

• Polling apps, clickers• Minute paper• Other Classroom Assessment Techniques

• Questions in videos (e.g., EdPuzzle, Stream)

• Low-stakes quizzes graded only on completion and offered for practice

• Journal tool in the LMS or similar

Explain course concepts • Whole class discussion• Written small-group activities

• Discussion boards, Flipgrid, VoiceThread

• Synchronous sessions

Share new examples of course concepts

• Whole class discussion• Digital collaboration in small-group activities

• Discussion boards, Flipgrid, VoiceThread

• Wakelet online curation tool• Collaborative cloud-based files (OneDrive, G suite)• Synchronous sessions

Pose questions to deepen shared understanding of course concepts

• Whole class discussion • Discussion boards, Flipgrid, VoiceThread

• Wiki tool in the LMS or similar

Connect ideas (between readings, experiences, perspectives, examples) to deepen shared understanding of concepts

• Whole class discussion• Written small-group activities

• Discussion boards, Flipgrid, VoiceThread

• Collaborative cloud-based files (OneDrive, G suite)• Synchronous sessions

Apply course concepts to new situations or problems

• Written small-group activities• Digital collaboration in small-group activities

• Collaborative cloud-based files (OneDrive, G suite)• Wiki tool in the LMS or similar• VoiceThread• Break-out rooms in synchronous sessions

Conceptualizing Participation across Instructional Environments

OneDrive Files

• These are Microsoft files located in the cloud• Go to onedrive.queens.edu

• Others’ access to view and edit files is controlled through sharing links

• Great for individual work • Journals – 1 file with a stable URL can contain a

student’s ongoing entries throughout the semester

• Great for collaborative work• Glossary created by groups of students or entire class • Other collaboratively resourced content. For

example, go to the journal file and add an idea for an additional question under Week 2 – feel free to include your name

Tools Spanning High-Low Bandwidth and Immediacy

Syllabus language

Add an Instructional Continuity Section

List examples of other online activities and/or technologies that you will be prepared to use for Participation if on-

campus instruction is further disrupted.

Example: “In the event that circumstances beyond the instructor’s control disrupt our ability to continue instruction

as planned, our class will continue learning through. . .”

Participation section or similar sections: Details covering planned instruction for your instructional

environment(s)