GCTLT :Constructing courses to enhance learning. Assessment Activity Three: Development ideas

I am now immersed in my last paper towards successful completion of the GCTLT at Otago Polytechnic (OP). This current GCTLT paper is titled ‘Constructing courses to enhance learning’. For this paper I am designing a module to sit within another Year one paper contributing to part of one course in the BM degree programme. The module I am developing is about the provision of midwifery care to women living in areas of high deprivation. This blog posting is written for Assessment Activity Three of the paper –Developmental ideas. Here I will record my developing ideas about the practicalities of the proposed design of the module, addressing how I am going to provide an appropriate balance of face to face and flexible learning materials and assessment methods. As this degree programme is a blended delivery programme jointly owned and delivered by both OP and CPIT I would need to present my ideas for the development of this new module at one of our joint OP/CPIT planning meetings to assess if both polytechnics were in agreement of this component being developed to add to the paper it would sit most comfortably with. The OP/CPIT meetings are held twice a year with the next one being in October 2012. While I have had to develop learning outcomes and an assessment for this particular module for the purpose of the assessment of this GCTLT paper, as this module is potentially one part of a bigger paper, to add to or change the Learning outcomes for this paper and the Assessments within it would require a wider OP/CPIT discussion with agreed changes to the Course Descriptor and the Programme Document being a requirement if agreement is reached. The components of a blended delivery programme need to be kept in mind when constructing the module components. Having a discussion forum, hosting an online Adobe connect session and asking the students to provide a 500 word written reflection for assessment will form part of the flexible delivery of this module. Other things to consider are the online resources to form part of the module. These will include short explanations of relevant points, links to other relevant websites and journal articles, use of an imbedded short video clip if possible, reference to appropriate texts, a recommended reading list, a reference list, how to access the Distance Library online, and instructions on how to download a PDF of the module, date and time assessment is due. IT instructions required; (ensuring the students’ computers have the appropriate software to access Adobe –will have been sorted when they are in Dunedin at the beginning of the year), ensuring students’ are aware of how to contact IT if they have any computer glitches, how to submit reflection to Turnitin, a link with explanation on how to add to the discussion forum, link to the Adobe session with time and dates and instructions on how to set up their computers for this session –eg need to use USB headset and microphone, recording the session and how students will know to access the recording link. Those are my thoughts so far…