Principle of Representation - Guideline 3 - Criterion 2
When developing a course using the first principle of Universal Design for Learning, there are three specific guidelines to assist us. The third, Comprehension focuses on maintaining clarity about the content provided.
Criterion 2 of this guideline advocates that we highlight
patterns, critical features, big ideas, and relationships.
These distinguish what is vital information from noise or unimportant
information. This is one of the key skills that experts display over
laypeople. Highlighting key patterns allows the learner to efficiently
allocate their time and identify what is important. Thus the most
effective way to make information more accessible is to offer explicit cues to
identify what features of the information matter most. Try to:
§Highlight
or emphasize key elements in
text, graphics, diagrams, formulas
§Use outlines, graphic organizers, concept
organizer routines, and concept mastery routines to for focus on key
relationships
§Use
multiple examples to emphasize critical features and some non-examples to illustrate them
§Use
prompts to draw attention to critical features
§Highlight
previously learned skills and
how they can be used to solve unfamiliar problems
By following these suggestions, your course will assist students communicating and expressing their knowledge, as well as being in line with the Principle of Representation in the Theory of Universal Design for Learning.
Students have reported more dissatisfaction with synchronous
online delivery over face-to-face or asynchronous delivery. This can often be attributed to the content
expert not being aware of successful practices in presentations or the online
medium.
Often instructors are never taught vital presentation skills
that are key for capturing their classes attention.For example, within the first few minutes of a presentation the audience's attention can be commanded by:
Reflecting on a bold statement
Considering a story
Reviewing, and being primed for, the content they
will learn
Engaging in an interactive activity
When the presenter presents in a lively fashion, the movement
keeps the viewers' attention.Also, revealing
one’s own humor and why you are excited about the topic both makes the talk
personal to the audience. They then become more invested in the topic. These
presentation skills benefit both synchronous online presentations and
face-to-face presentations.
The issue with teaching online is that instructors both must wrestle with using technology effectively as well as employ instructional
strategies that best suit the medium they are using.This webinar will first address faux pas with
technology that diminishes the instructional effectiveness of the presentation.Then it continues to investigate effective
strategies for the medium.Specifically,
attention spans in this medium our short and instruction must be interactive to
be effective. By adopting a micro-lesson approach as well as a flipped
approach, instructors can maximize student engagement in their synchronous
sessions. The session concludes on some of the pitfalls experienced by faculty
using flipped classes online and how to overcome these issues.
Meyer, R (2001) Multimedia Learning. Cambridge Press, NY.
McGee, P. &. A. Reis (2012) “Blended Course Design: A
Synthesis of Best Practices.” Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 14(4).
Rhoads, D. (2020). Traditional, online or both? A comparative study of university student learning and satisfaction between traditional and Hyflex delivery modalities. ProQuest Dissertations Publishing.
Rose, D & A Meyer (2002) Teaching Every Student in the
Digital Age: Universal Design for Learning. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.
Vanderstoep, S. W., Pintrich, P. R., & Fagerlin, A. (1996). Disciplinary
differences in self-regulated learning in college students. Contemporary
Educational Psychology, 21(4), 345-362.
Whittaker S.& Hirschberg J (2003) Look or Listen:
Discovering Effective Techniques for Accessing Speech Data. In Proc. CHI98.
Springer-Verlag, 253-269
A ‘module’ is a functional unit that organizes content. It
is similar to a section in a textbook. Whether you are teaching geology,
mathematics, American short stories, epistemology, accounting or another other topic,
it is best to "chunk" the content into digestible pieces (or modules)
to give it:
Structure.
Consistency
Form.
This is particularly true for online delivery to
students. Often you can get inspiration from viewing a textbook or the
Course Description or Proposal for getting clues on how to best sequence the
course content. Ideally, a course should contain 4-7 modules to conform to
principles of cognitive load theory. Likewise, a module should cover more than
a week of material to ensure that discussion sections have plenty (ideally 2 or
more weeks) of time for students to develop a post and then foster meaningful
discussions.
Once you determine the 4-7 modules for your course, the
module will be most effective if it fits a uniform practice. Each module will
cover a particular topic or aspect of study within the overall scope of the
course and is titled accordingly. Ideally, threaded
activities tie the modules together and give cohesion to the course. In general,
the structure of a module contains:
An
overview or “At a Glance” section that offers insight to learning
objectives and offers a module roadmap for the student.
Content
Guides: offer a section where key content can be accessed.
It should do more than refer to textbook readings. Instead, think of
them as offering a space for:
Short
lectures on content necessary
for meeting the modules objectives written by the faculty developer or
instructor (around one page).
Links
to key readings or source material
OER
content that will prepare students for the learning activities
Learning
activities that make the student meet the modules learning
objectives. These activities should be engaging and are not necessarily
graded. Some activities may include: virtual fieldtrips,
simulations, group learning activity or role-play exercises.
Assessments,
while not necessary for each module, should be constructed to demonstrate
that the student can complete the modules learning outcomes. These could
be non-graded, such as self-tests, or graded exercises that could
include: written assignments, case studies, pro/con debate, group
projects, discussion forum with an open-ended question or set of
questions.
Online
Resources that can be from the library, or elsewhere, that
augment the student learning. This section should not be
overwhelming, but designed to assist the student without distracting them.
This section may be optional, and can be deleted if there the resources do
not assist students.
If you follow these rules and break down the course into a
set of 4-7 functional units, i.e., modules, that have
informative titles, the course will be reinforcing an understanding of the
course content though the students’ passive perception and time spent in the
course. Further, by adopting a uniform and proven module format, the
students will spend less cognitive time on navigating the course and more time
on learning. This will contribute to their success.
College students face unprecedented challenges compared to
the past and in order to serve their needs, colleges need to adopt customizable
learning opportunities that are highly flexible. The success of online courses demonstrated
that students needn’t be constrained to a geographical location, but can
experience quality learning experiences at anytime, anywhere, and from a
variety of devices. HyFlex teaching is aligned with this mission of offering
more flexible learning environments. It aims to deliver students the maximal
amount of choices possible within a formal learning program. Students are provided a choice between a
variety of course delivery modes and can regularly change modes during the
semester. MgGee and Reis
(2012) define HyFlex where,
“course designs involve instructor and learners working
together in mixed delivery modes, typically face-to-face and technology
mediated, to accomplish learning outcomes that are pedagogically supported
through assignments, activities, and assessments as appropriate for a given
mode and which bridge course environments in a manner meaningful to the
learner.”
Essentially, a well-designed HyFlex course will provide
effective alternative participation modes that all meet the same learning
outcomes. This will provide meaningful learning opportunities for all students.
HyFlex instructors are not merely recording lectures for
students to asynchronously watch.
Instead, a full asynchronous version of the course offers an alternative
to the synchronous as well as face-to-face options (See Figure 1). It is
preferable to provide the content from the face-to-face delivery in an online
version as well. This will require little additional work if materials are
already available in digital format, however it is important that this format
is accessible (such as having closed captions).
Figure 1: The
various modes of instruction in HyFlex
Those interested should look to the four principles Brian
Beatty defined for HyFlex over ten years ago and that act as pillars for its
implementation. They are:
Principle
1 – Learner Choice: Provide meaningful alternative participation modes and
enable students to choose between participation modes. This may be weekly, by class, or topically.
Principle
2 – Equivalency: Provide
equivalent learning activities in all participation modes. This is also good
teaching practice in line with the theory of Universal Design for Learning.
Principle
3 – Reusability: Utilize
artifacts from learning activities in each participation mode as “learning
objects” or resources for all students. Make use of your labor efficiently –
this will make the process sustainable and affords students equitable access to
learning resources.
Principle
4 –Accessibility: Provide all
students with technology skills and enable full access to instructional
resources and activities in all participation modes. This may also require
equitable access to minimal technology.
A key aspect of accessibility is the need to make all course
materials and activities accessible for all students.
Naturally, HyFlex courses require more time and work in
their development and delivery. In most cases, it may take close to twice as
much time. Nevertheless, the time spent is well worth it. This model both benefits the college and
students.
Colleges benefit from:
oInsuring all courses are rigorously reviewed and
apply instructional design practices that are proven to increase student
success.
oCrisis protection, as courses can immediately
continue online in the event of emergencies that would close the campus. Courses
would continue uninterrupted as the deliver would pivot to be online.
Students benefit from:
oWell-designed courses that can accommodate
different learning styles.
oCourses that accommodate the student need for
flexibility.
Doing HyFlex correctly to ensure all modes are
equally provided for students is not a trivial task, but done correctly will
afford students much needed flexibility that many students require. Besides offering benefits that increase
student success, retention, and potentially enrollments, HyFlex can be a way of
promoting equity in education.
Principle of Representation - Guideline 3 - Criterion 1
When developing a course using the first principle of Universal Design for Learning, there are three specific guidelines to assist us. The third, Comprehension focuses on maintaining clarity about the content provided.
Criterion 1 of this guideline advocates that we activate
or supply background knowledge of the learners.
When you present information such that it primes or activates former knowledge, learners are more likely to assimilate the information. Those lacking critical background knowledge for assimilating the information face barriers that others do not. Likewise there may be some students with the appropriate background knowledge, but are unaware that it is relevant. To make a more equitable learning environment, these barriers need to be reduced. You can do this by:
Activate
prior knowledge by using visual images and process charts
Use
advanced organizers such as concept maps or information
diagrams
Review
critical prerequisite concepts through demonstration or models
Connect
concepts with relevant analogies and metaphors
Make
explicit cross-curricular connections to demonstrate relationships
By following these suggestions, your course will assist students communicating and expressing their knowledge, as well as being in line the Principle of Representation in the Theory of Universal Design for Learning.
With the necessary move to remote learning during the
pandemic, face-to-face classes were rapidly converted to a synchronous version
with little time to consider accessibility or issues of equity. Now it is time to
examine our practices to ensure that we are accommodating students who need
help the most. While there are several technological options for synchronous
online courses, some or more accessible than others.
This session discusses key issues in producing accessible synchronous online courses. It will also
explore what you can do to promote a more equitable environment in your online
course. Specifically, it will discuss:
Issues of equity
The Monsters: bandwidth and technological inequities
Principle of Representation - Guideline 3 - Comprehension
The first principle of Universal Design for Learning, 'provide multiple means of representation', help promote an inclusive learning environments on many levels. When developing a course and focusing on this principle, there are three guidelines to follow. They are:
Perception
Language and Symbols
Comprehension.
We are now
going to take a deeper the third guideline.
Education is about teaching learners to transform information into usable knowledge.Making the
information accessible is just the first step for learners to process the
information. We also need to promote active processing of the information to
construct knowledge that can be accessed in the future.This rests not only on perceiving, but by
employing active learning that includes information processing skills like:
selective attending,
integrating new information with prior knowledge,
strategic categorization, and
active memorization.
Learners vary greatly with these skills and their ability to access their prior
knowledge that will assist them in assimilating new information as
knowledge.Good design presents the
information such that it scaffolds so all learners have can access to construct
knowledge. When doing this, you should:
Activate or supply background knowledge
Highlight patterns, critical features, big ideas, and relationships
Guide information processing and visualization by encouraging the application of meta-strategies.
Maximize transfer and generalization so students can apply learning to new contexts.
By adopting this instructional strategy, more learners benefit. The design and presentation will provide the scaffolds necessary for all learners to access the information and construct usable knowledge.
When moving content to an online format, it is important to consider
what delivery and learning activities will be most effective. This is the time
to rethink the traditional written assignment.Term papers are a staple of college.Students dread the same stale form of expression. Faculty dread reading
them even more.Offering alternatives is
always preferable for adult learners. Why not examine if your term paper is the best
way to meet your learning objectives?
What is key to student learning is meeting the learning outcomes.Provided that the assignment does so, there
is no reason to assume that this process is not multiply realizable.Offering options to accomplish these outcomes
is good pedagogical practice.It also
conforms with the Theory of Universal Design for Learning.
This is great in theory, but does it really work? Yes – it really
works.Assignments where students create
materials that demonstrate they can meet the learning outcomes is a proven Constructivist
strategy.
So - you want to give it a try?Remember part of the assignment is for the
students to demonstrate how their assignment better demonstrates their
knowledge than the way a paper would.While
projects are open to interpretation, expectations should be rigorously laid out
for students.Nader suggestions that
when creating the assignment be sure to:
Come to a
consensus on grading.Let students
know your expectations.
Write an
open-ended assignment.You may offer
an example, but emphasize that that it is open for students.
One should note that these are solid principles in
instructional design with years of research confirming their success. They
apply to all assignments, non-traditional or not. In fact, the single thing holding back
increased student engagement is the general acceptance and implementation of this strategy.However, now you know and can
start re-thinking assignments, for both online and in the classroom.
Teaching online poses several challenges for instructors,
such as managing to keep or increase student engagement in a traditionally sterile
environment. It has always been a challenge to leveraging instructional
technology to motivate and inspire student interest. The rapid pivot to virtual instruction due to
the pandemic has exacerbated this issue, as now many instructors are still
learning a new medium of instruction while working at engaging students.
The following guide is a collection resources that can both
help online instruction as well as enhance traditional or hybrid instruction.Included is a collection of standards, such
as our guides to maximizing instructional technology and design to make teaching
more accessible and effective. The guide
also includes collections of tips for using PowerPoint, YouTube, and Podcasts that
can be harnessed to enhance instruction.
The guide is designed for your convenience.Selecting the number on the tab on the home
screen will take you directly to the category. Each tip is hyperlinked to a webpage
or video to assist you quickly. You can select the arrowhead on the bottom
right to return to the home screen.
You might want to download the guide for whenever you want to
explore new options on a raining day.Alternatively, it may give have answers for you when you need for assistance. An interactive tabbed Powerpoint like this can also easily be build and use to present your own lessons as well.
