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This cohort is working to meet the challenge that many instructors face when they attempt to convert or create materials for online course supports. The results will include tutorials and examples that you can use to learn how to create and organize online course supports yourself.
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Each school year, more and more University of Kansas instructors are supplementing their classroom instruction with some type of technology. Everything from threaded discussions to PowerPoint presentations are the norm across campus. In particular, instructors are utilizing online course supports more than ever before. These electronic supplements make staying connected to classes easy for students…syllabi, grades, assignments, readings, and study aides can be accessed with the click of a mouse.
Nona Tollefson, professor in the School of Education and faculty advisor for the Creating Online Course Supports cohort, is contributing to the spread of online supplements in School of Education classrooms. Nona said that using online course supports is already familiar for many of her students. "I've always been interested in online course supports," she said. "All the students use it. Some people may use it to a greater degree than other people but it's a part of the course in the same way that coming to class and assignments and being a part of class [are a part of the course]…It's integral to the subject."
The Online Course Supports cohort has been working to develop a tutorial to help instructors translate instructional materials into online materials and facilitate document sharing since fall 2002. "We just want to improve online course supports and make it easier for instructors to use online course supports," Nona said. "We create the materials and then discuss how you get them to become web-based easily." Nona said that incorporating course supports into classes provides a deeper understanding of course material for students. She said using online course supports "facilitates student learning."
Nona first became interested in online course supports when a student requested that she put her overhead notes online. She fulfilled his request, and has used online supports ever since. Nona has used Blackboard, a common online course support at KU, since its earliest availability on campus. She teaches applied statistics and measurement, and therefore said that the one of the biggest advantages of using course supports in her classes is the availability of extra practice for students. Additionally, online supports offer her the ability to correct mistakes or misunderstandings in assignments. Rather than waiting until the next class period to help her students learn a difficult concept, course supports enable her to help them learn between classes. She said, "It provides a vehicle for more immediate feedback."
The Creating Online Course Supports cohort will remain active through the spring semester. Eventually, the cohort will share what it has learned with other instructors in the School of Education. The cohort will give presentations and share its accomplishments with other instructors. Nona said the advantage of knowing how to use online course supports is being able to share expertise with other instructors.
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