Moodle in English: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Friday, July 10, 2009, 9:49 PM

In Moodle docs, Martin D. writes about the components of an exemplary Moodle course -- http://docs.moodle.org/en/Pedagogy#Progression

Moodle needs to be flexible to cater for a wide variety of needs while remaining simple enough for ordinary teachers to start making good use of the power of the internet for community building and collaborative learning. My hope is that Moodle can be seen as a toolbox where they can start simply and naturally, and then progress to more and more advanced community facilitation over time. Ultimately, we'd like to see teachers being involved with and supported by a community of their peers.

Let's look at a typical progression that a teacher might go through as they learn to use the Moodle tools:

1. Putting up the handouts (Resources, SCORM)
2. Having a passive forum
3. Using Quizzes and Assignments (less management)
4. Using the Wiki, Glossary and Database tools (interactive content)
5. Using the Forum seriously and actively
6. Combining activities into sequences, where results feed later activities
7. Think deeper about each activity, advanced features, unusual applications
8. Using the Survey module to study and reflect on course activity
9. Using peer-review modules like Workshop
10. Conducting active research on oneself, sharing ideas in a community of peers

I find this very useful and helpful. I am sure that most Moodlers do.

I do wonder, though, how you all actually apply this when you are creating your courses for high school students. I find, for example, that it is challenging, but worth the effort, to use the forum seriously and actively. I have also had good experiences using wikis in my courses. I have never, though, had any luck with the workshop module. (There are always a couple of kids who simply do not submit their work on time.) The upshot is that I always include forums and wikis in my courses and never include workshops in my courses.

What about you? What components do you consider essential in your courses? What do you tend to leave out?

Just wondering...

Thanks,
Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Tiffany Morgan - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 12:06 AM

We haven't been using Moodle for our HS students for very long, but here is where we are so far (mostly management stuff):

For a number of reasons (some pedagogy, some security) we have eliminated the chat tool. We found we couldn't monitor it the way we wanted, too many users had access to other other users, etc We do use other tools out side of moodle to facilitate the same type of communication though.

We added the eMail list module and have been really happy with this. It gives both teachers and students the ability to communicate without fear of emails being blocked by spam filters. Teachers feel more secure using this embedded tool rather than outside email for communication.

We added an Advanced uploading of files assignment with no points and not available for marking and called it File Storage. This allows students a place to store files temporarily while they are moving from school to home.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 12:52 AM

Thank you for responding, Tiffany.

What you posted is interesting. Do you use the forum module much? Do you anticipate using the database, survey, workshop, etc., modules at all?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Mary Cooch - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 1:03 AM

Just a quickie from me because (as usual) I am supposed to be doing something else but have been distracted by moodle.org

We use forums extensively. Not just for discussing things but also as a way of getting students to share files/post links to web 2.0 stuff that everyone in the class can see. Also choice is very popular. Assignments - all three types although I guess most teachers stick with the upload a single file type (because, sadly, many still think uploading a word doc or powerpoint is where it's at) Only a couple have used workshops because they are hard - I am one of them and love them. Survey. Now way! Nobody has a clue what they mean! But we have questionnaire which is very widely used in all areas of school. Wikis used a bit, particularly the individual student ones;database not very much. WE ALSO HAVE DISABLED CHAT!

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 2:32 AM

Thank you, Mary. I appreciate your response. It is really interesting to know what other teachers are doing.

You know, I have actually had limited luck with the chat module. What I had to do was to create maybe five chat rooms for a class of twenty-five and assign small groups to each room. And to give the students a rubric explaining how I would evaluate their chatting. That was years ago. Not sure why I have not done that in a while.

Thanks,
Art

P.S. Maybe if we get a good discussion going here, we can develop something useful for docs.moodle.org. That would be nice.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Bridget Robbins - Tuesday, July 21, 2009, 7:09 PM

As a high school foreign language teacher, I have actually had great successes using the chat function. Students may use it whenever they like, but must communicate in the target language only, NO ENGLISH. As well, on two separate occasions, I had to stay home sick with my son, and was able to teach my classes from home; using the chat function, I gave students directives, ex: what tasks to do in Moodle and they could chat back at me and ask questions! It was amazing.
The moodle docs & wiki functions have been useful tools for the translation project I do each year. Students in Spanish II are given a song to translate to English. Collaboratively, they work with other students who are not in the same class. Moodle is a fantastic vehicle for a foreign language classroom.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Tuesday, July 21, 2009, 9:47 PM

Thank you for your post, Bridget! It is helpful to know how useful the chat module has been in your classes.

I have had some success when scheduling a chat the night before a big test. In my case, chat works great as long as there are not too many in the chat room at one time.

Are there any other course components that seem especially useful or important to you? Not necessarily modules. Simply stuff you consider really important to include in the course.

Regards,
Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Alice Keeler - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 2:33 AM

I'm right with you Mary! I'm suppose to be working on my thesis (which is about using a Moodle

but am distracted also!

I love the workshop module, a little practice with it and it is an awesome tool.

I do my assignments as upload multiple files (who knows what cool things a student will come up with) and allow for them to just enter text. Choice is EXTREMELY important!!!!

Forums are the best, need to use that a lot, it is a great way for students to have ownership and feel they have a say in the class and their learning.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 2:36 AM

Thank you, Alice. It is good of you to take the time to respond!

Maybe I should rethink the workshop module. Do you not have the problem of students not getting their work in on time for peer review?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Alice Keeler - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 3:48 AM

I have played with it only a little bit.

You should for sure rethink the Moodle workshop though, it can be very powerful. Play around with it, make it not for much grade at first (or any grade) until you and the students get the hang of it.

A deadline is a deadline.

How about if they submit their peer reviews on time they don't have to do a different assignment (make up a fake assignment that you don't care that they don't do anyway! ha!)

Why wouldn't they respond on time? Think about what elements are keeping them from doing it. What buy in do they have to make the comments? Have you read Grown Up Digital by Don Tapscott, it is an amazing book. Maybe the assignment needs to be more interesting that addresses the types of interests of young students. Today's kids love feedback and sharing feedback so this should be right up their alley.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 4:11 AM

Alice,

Thank you for getting back to me on this.

You are right that there is always a reason when students do not do an assignment. Have to think about that a bit. And kids do love useful feedback... For the past few minutes, have been reading about the changes that are coming to the workshop module and it looks like the submission deadline problem will not be an issue in Moodle 2.0.

Thank you for the Grown Up Digital tip. Reading that has been on my to-do list. Maybe it's time I actually read it!

Regards,
Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Alice Keeler - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 5:19 AM

I can't recommend the Grown Up Digital book enough!

I'm excited for Moodle 2.0, I'll have to dig up what is coming down the pike

THANK YOU!

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by David Mudrák - Monday, July 13, 2009, 4:23 PM

Hi, and thanks a lot for this interesting thread.

> it looks like the submission deadline problem
> will not be an issue in Moodle 2.0

In Workshop 2.0, the submission phase and assessment phase can not overlap. Once the assessment starts, nothing can be submitted any more (this is a change from the current behaviour). Also, it will be possible to allow students who have not managed to submit their work to participate in peer-assessment.
Both these and other changes should help to solve a lot of problems with the current workshop module.

David

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Monday, July 13, 2009, 10:53 PM

Thank you, David. I appreciate your posting that information.

And I commend you for all the time and expertise you have been investing in on the new, improved Workshop module!

Regards,
Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Russ Ballard - Friday, August 7, 2009, 12:33 AM

Art,
I am a Chemistry/Physics teacher in Washington. I have found that a large number of my students are not as proficient at the technical writing as they should. I have a fairly structured writing process that I will not go into here, but my point is that I allow the students to rewrite their work. If they do not turn in the pre-write material that is be stamped as showing the portion of the pre-write to be on time, they do not get the rewrite option. I do not know your feelings or personal/school policy on rewriting, but I have found it to be very helpful in the future papers. By the way I assign 5-7 papers usually 2 pages per year. I use them as my primary assessment for the module.

Keep the Faith,
Russ

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Friday, August 7, 2009, 8:02 AM

Hi, Russ,

Thank you for posting.

I agree with you that revision is a crucial part of the writing process.

You are using the workshop module for this?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Russ Ballard - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 3:32 AM

Art,
Our district is in the initial stages of implementing the program into all of our schools. We are a 4 high school district and the initial teachers have been at the middle school due to technology issues within the district (we have a one-to-one technology bond levy that we are using).

I am a bit of techno geek in that I use technology as much as I can as a tool to involve the students in submission of their work. I read about the workshop module and I have asked the district to make it available to teachers, but as it is summer it will be September before I actually get an opportunity to play with it.

My writing component has a three part pre-write section that is submitted before the fianal draft. The workshop module looks to be an ideal method that would have the monitoring of assignments, allowance of teacher as well as student evaluation of the rough draft and then a final submission. As I give points and award the option of rewriting if the prewrite material is present this would give students and parents insight on how the child is progressing.

Any lesson learned on the workshop module that I could review before initial investigation would be greatly appreciated.

Keep the Faith,
Russ

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 3:26 PM

Hi, Russ,

It does, indeed, sound like the workshop module is going to be useful for you. Because I have not used the workshop module much, I have no lessons to share, unfortunately. (Based upon the information in this thread, I plan to use it this fall, though.)

My colleague at Moodlerooms, Lesli Smith, has used the workshop mod at the high school level. I will ask her to chime in here.

Here's where the workshop gurus hang out -- http://moodle.org/mod/forum/view.php?id=740 . I know they will be happy to share with you.

Hope that is useful. Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Lesli Smith - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 4:11 PM

Gosh, Art, thanks, but I have to admit that for me, using the Workshop module with my classes was one of the most frustrating experiences I have had using Moodle, so I abandoned it after my first try. I could see where it would be very useful for many situations, but for my particular subject and needs, it didn't work the way I needed it to work in terms of allowing simple pass back and forth between students during the initial drafting stages before I get overly involved in the assessment process. In other words, it wasn't very Nancie Atwellian in design, which is what I was trying to do with it for my writing workshops.

In any case, I dug up some of my notes from my last experience using it in February of 2008, and I am happy to provide my lessons learned here:

Workshop module notes:

**must assess stories before you assess critiques or will lose critique grades
**must have dates for your assessment set for after peer assessments close in order for grades to go out
**must have submission dates/times close before assessment dates/times can open or drafts will be unevenly distributed.
**must assess stories before students can resubmit or use that space again to store drafts.

**can’t edit an “assessment specimen” after you have begun it, even if the workshop hasn’t started yet—also, can’t change your mind on type of assessment since you can’t edit it. SOOO—must delete whole activity and start again if you make a mistake
**accumulative grading says it allows for point value criteria, which it does, but is limited to increments of 10, 20, and 100—no fives

Now again, this was back in the 2007-2008 school year, and I think I was still on 1.6.5 at that time, so much might have changed with this module since then. This is one instance where I admit to being like so many of our colleagues: burned once, never tried it again (when it could have been fantastic by 1.8, I just didn't know it).

I have kept an eye on proposed changes in the roadmap for it for 2.0 and was going to try it again then.

Sorry I can't give a more glowing report of my experiences. It struck me as I used it that it would be perfect for a controlled lab workshop experience; it just wasn't working for my messy writing workshop setup.

Best,
Lesli

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 4:23 PM

Hi, Lesli,

Thank you for posting.

I remembered that you had a less than wonderful experience with the workshop mod, but that is a useful thing for Russ and the rest of us to know, right? There is no substitute for experience "in the trenches," is there?

What I recall your telling me was that it was frustrating that some students did not submit their work for peer assessment by the deadline and that messed up the workflow for the assignment. Does that sound familiar?

A couple of participants in this thread have had good experiences with the workshop module, of course.

Anyway, it does, indeed, seem that the workshop module is going to be much-improved in Moodle 2.0. And it seems that it might be a good mod for Russ.

Lesli, while you are here, what do YOU think some essential components of a high school Moodle course are?

Thanks,
Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Lesli Smith - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 4:37 PM

Just a minor correction to my above post. I started remembering who was in my class when I did this experiment with the workshop, and I think they were the freshmen class I had who just recently graduated this year. This means it was a little further back than my file date on my computer indicates--probably more like 2005-2006, but I do think it was version 1.6 at that time. Not positive, though.

I confess I have been watching the posts from this thread pour through my inbox and have been wishing I had time to answer/post something--even read some of the thought-provoking responses, but I have been a little busy this week. Also, as I draw closer to my due date (early Oct), I'm finding I need to spend more time with my feet up and less time sitting at my computer, which has been hard considering that it is pretty much my lifeline to everyone in the Moodle world. I will make a point of posting some more soon. Best,

Lesli

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 4:45 PM

No problem, Lesli! Put your feet up, girl.

This thread will be here when you have something you want to add and the time to do it.

I look forward to that.

Thanks,
Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Tiffany Morgan - Monday, July 13, 2009, 9:46 PM

Hi Art
We have forums in each of our courses, and each instructor uses it to varying degrees based on their teaching style. We encourage quality use of the forum with our teachers through ongoing professional development and hope to see increased usage.

We will probably not use the survey module as it is, but will likely use a module or outside website that has similar functionality in the future. We currently do not use database or workshops, but it is something that I would like to look more into as we settle into our new Moodle world

Tiffany

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Monday, July 13, 2009, 10:54 PM

> We encourage quality use of the forum with our teachers
> through ongoing professional development and hope to see
> increased usage.

Amen!

And I think you will find the database mod very useful, Tiffany.

Thanks,
Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Richard Jones - Tuesday, July 14, 2009, 6:27 AM

I'm using the 3rd party Feedback module which is less rigid than survey and less cumbersome than Questionnaire.

In my current course (a PD workshop not a school course) there is a feedback of 4 simple questions (how are you doing/anything you need type) at the end of each week.

With students I used to find the results of feedback vary (they can get very personal!) but worth doing.

I also found a nifty use of Choice where students can view other answers and change theirs accordingly - I used it to reach a consensus on best online meeting times - this could have application in many other areas. It is not always easy, for example, to get a feeling for the majority view within a group. This applies equally to staff and student groups.

Richard

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Tuesday, July 14, 2009, 7:30 AM

> I also found a nifty use of Choice where
> students can view other answers and change
> theirs accordingly

Two summers ago, I was leading a workshop and the participants decided where to go to lunch this way. It was fun to see.

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Marcia Kalayjian - Thursday, August 6, 2009, 11:24 PM

Re Tiffany's use of advanced uploading of files, "file storage" ... this is brilliant! This is something I'd like to try here at our high school. We have a huge problem in that it is difficult to store work, thanks to the way our computers are configured. Anyway, thank you, Tiffany! Great idea.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Russ Ballard - Friday, August 7, 2009, 12:38 AM

Marcia,

I also have moved my "storage" to Moodle. I have an individual as well as a group storage option. The group one will allow only the study team members to see the work, Moodle will allow comments to be attached and the teacher can over see what is being stored. The individual one works well, but it does not have the benefit of multiple members of a study team being able to access it out of school or in preparation of a group turned in assignment. If you back the course up then even if the website goes down the work is saved.

Keep the Faith,
Russ

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Marcia Kalayjian - Friday, August 7, 2009, 3:23 AM

Hi Russ,
That is so interesting! I think we can really use this. How do you do the group storage exactly ?? We have many students who could benefit from this ... teachers assign these group projects and Lord knows how they complete it ... we have no student access to the servers (not yet, anyway).
thanks,
Marcia

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Friday, August 7, 2009, 8:07 AM

Hi, Marcia,

It's great that you have chimed in.

We use the assignment module to allow students to store files, too. We have a course just for this, in fact, and we simply enroll all of our students in the course.

It works pretty well for us.

Do you think you might do something similar at your school?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Marcia Kalayjian - Friday, August 7, 2009, 9:49 AM

Hi Art,

This is most helpful. Teachers have created individual assignments with the express idea that students can upload for that particular assignment, but we have never created a storage area. Your suggestion to create an area within the 'media center' course is something we can really use! I am embarrassed I had never thought of this before. Another example of two minds (or moodle.org) is better than one!

thanks,
Marcia

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 6:05 AM

> two minds (or moodle.org) is better than one

Absolutely!

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Russ Ballard - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 3:22 AM

Marcia,
I used the database feture. I have study teams already assigned, so I just made it available to the groups. I set a limit of 10 items as this feature is per module with no initial submission. I figure there are ten items per student per module (this lasts three weeks or so) so 40 documents seems reasonable. I enabled the comments option and I make it an uncategorized assignment. I am still able to see all the assignments, and the same time the students are able to see this if they do not have an internet connection.

I am moving all of my material onto the web and encouraging the use of web based tools to process the assignments. I had a student last year whose Word program went crazy and she used Google's documents and spreadsheets for the rest of her assignments.

Let me know if this works or does not work.

Keep the Faith,
Russ

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 6:27 AM

That sounds like a good way to go, Russ.

I guess that several of us feel that student storage is an important component of a good Moodle course.

Or am I wrong about that?

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Saturday, July 11, 2009, 3:09 AM

If you were going to develop a blended course around this little story, what elements would you include? Assume that you have 14-15 year old students and that you are a pretty big believer in Bloom's Taxonomy. (And that you just looooove Moodle, of course.)

A merchant in Baghdad sends his servant to the marketplace for provisions. Shortly, the servant comes home white and trembling and tells him that in the marketplace he was jostled by a woman, whom he recognized as Death, and she made a threatening gesture. Borrowing the merchant's horse, he flees at top speed to Samarra, a distance of about 75 miles (125 km), where he believes Death will not find him. The merchant then goes to the marketplace and finds Death, and asks why she made the threatening gesture. She replies, "That was not a threatening gesture, it was only a start of surprise. I was astonished to see him in Baghdad, for I had an appointment with him tonight in Samarra." -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Appointment_in_Samarra#Explanation_of_the_novel.27s_title)

I think that I might start by asking students to read this information about the meaning of the word fate and then follow with a choice about whether or not fate really exists. I might ask the to read the Jack London story To Build a Fire and compare the importance of fate - or lack thereof - in both stories. (Maybe I would start with the Jack London story, actually.) And I might... Well, what would you do with this topic?

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Sunday, July 12, 2009, 11:28 PM

No takers, huh?

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Alice Keeler - Monday, July 13, 2009, 4:39 AM

I don't understand what you are posing...

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Monday, July 13, 2009, 11:41 PM

Sorry, Alice. I did not really explain. My fault entirely. blush

Thank you for your candor.

I was wondering how the members of this community would approach creating a mini-course out of this little story - keeping in mind Martin D.'s typical progression (http://docs.moodle.org/en/Pedagogy#Progression).

I thought that having concrete examples in front of us might be a little helpful.

If I approach this as a story of fate vs. free will, maybe I come up with something like this:

1. Putting up the handouts (Resources, SCORM): The teacher posts the text using the web page resource. (I'll bet you guys can come up with a better example than this.)

2. Having a passive forum: The teacher posts a forum in which each student replies once to the question, Was it the servant's fate to die or could the servant have escaped death by simply staying home? (I'll bet you guys can come up with a better example than this.)

3. Using Quizzes and Assignments (less management): The teacher posts an online writing assignment in which the student writes the servant's horoscope for the day. (I'll bet you guys can come up with a better example than this.)

4. Using the Wiki, Glossary and Database tools (interactive content): The teacher posts a database activity in which the students upload images of Death they have drwan and scanned. Students may comment on the images. (I'll bet you guys can come up with a better example than this.)

5. Using the Forum seriously and actively: In a forum, the students discuss how Barack Obama's life might have turned out differently, had he made different decisions. Or Michael Jackson, maybe. (I'll bet you guys can come up with a better example than this.)

6. Combining activities into sequences, where results feed later activities: I wonder what examples we can come up with for this one.

7. Think deeper about each activity, advanced features, unusual applications: I wonder what examples we can come up with for this one.

8. Using the Survey module to study and reflect on course activity: I wonder what examples we can come up with for this one.

9. Using peer-review modules like Workshop: I wonder what examples we can come up with for this one.

10. Conducting active research on oneself, sharing ideas in a community of peers: I wonder what examples we can come up with for this one.

-- Art

Re: exemplary high school Moodle course? -- Combining activities into sequences

by Art Lader - Tuesday, July 14, 2009, 9:22 PM

Thank you for all the great posts so far!

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions for this. -- #6: Combining activities into sequences, where results feed later activities

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paul Webster - Monday, July 13, 2009, 9:55 PM

Art-
This is a great example of using moodle to push for higher levels of thought, as opposed to just getting things done.

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Monday, July 13, 2009, 11:29 PM

Thanks, Paul!

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paula Clough - Friday, July 24, 2009, 8:43 AM

This has been a very interesting discussion. I have been following it closely and have really enjoyed it though I haven't had time to get involved as I have been working on a project. Even though I'm not finished, I wanted to add my 2 cents to how I might organize the unit Art was talking about.

On your "fate" unit.... hummmm--- It is a lot like your ideas but some things added.

I would begin with a forum asking the essential questions... What is fate? What do you think about it? I would use a forum instead of a chat because I would want the students to get their thoughts down before they begin replying to each other. As part of the assignment, I would give them a minimum number of other posts they need to reply to. This would provide an anticipatory set... and also give me some information about the depth of understanding/reflective thinking already exhibitted. Summarize some of the ideas presented.

Then I would have them read the Appointment in Samarra story. (This might also be a good place to talk about irony.) This is a nice story to start with because it is really short and to the point.

Use a choice activity for students to chose groups to work in. Students discuss the story in the groups and then use wiki activity to present their ideas about fate in the story... separate page for each group. This same Wiki will be used with another assignment.

Homework assignment: Students will look for television shows, movies or stories that appear to have the theme of fate in some way. They will post to a database in the course. They will summarize the story and tell what they think the conclusion of the story is... EX: We make our own fate. Fate controls our lives, etc. They will also read and comment on a minimum number of other posts.

Next they read the Jack London story and identify the "fate" part of the story and add to their Wiki page. On their Wiki page they will detail the representation of fate in this story and bring in some of the examples they read about in the database.

Choice activity: do you believe in ..... give them choices of the different perspectives they have discussed/learned about.

Final Assessment: an online assignment where they will deliniate the different prespectives on fate they have discussed or read/seen and what their opinion is now.

Paula Clough

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Friday, July 24, 2009, 11:08 AM

Wow, Paula, so many ideas here. And I like them all.

You know what, Paula? Your use of the phrase "anticipatory set" got me thinking about Madeline Hunter's "Program for Effective Teaching (PET)" lesson plan model:

1) Objectives
2) Anticipatory Set [hook]
3) Standards/expectations
4) Teaching

• Input

• Modeling/demo

• Checking for understanding

5) Guided Practice
6) Closure
7) Independent Practice

PET was very popular in South Carolina fifteen or twenty years ago. I don't here much about it any more. Not sure why.

Do you think the PET model could be useful in designing a course in Moodle?

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paula Clough - Saturday, July 25, 2009, 11:37 AM

Art,

Thanks, I love brainstorming!!! Such fun!

Madeline Hunter did her research observing what good teachers do and formed her PET on that... Good teaching is good teaching. In Arizona, we keep getting that lesson structure back but different names and some interesting additions. I just sat a few days in a really good workshop on face to face lesson planning that included these components. I believe those same parts are essential to a good lesson whether they are face to face or online or hybrid. Sometimes we add those components on a conscious level and sometimes on an unconscious level.

I'm lucky this year, I get to spend much of my time trying to get teachers to see that they can do that in Moodle (and with other techno tools). I'm really looking forward to it. It's going to be a great year.

Paula Clough

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by John Andrewartha - Saturday, July 25, 2009, 1:16 PM

Within this Brainstorming which I add is illuminating what, aspects of delivery are being discussed?

a) Face to face
b) Openlearning
c) A blend

If we consider (b) then using the PET model how do we address the "guided practice" for best outcomes? I am using for my definition of guided practice
http://www.ncrel.org/sdrs/areas/issues/students/learning/lr1guid.htm
John

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paula Clough - Sunday, July 26, 2009, 8:02 AM

John,

My senario was a blended class, just because that is what we do the most where I am...

Openlearning can be either synchronous or asynchronous. Synchronous may be easier to do the guiding in. Here are some Brainstorming ideas for Openlearning:

Chat--- students and teacher online at the same time. Students read through information or websites ahead of time, then in Chat, teacher asks question and students respond. Teacher gives feedback to make sure students are on track.
Lesson format... because students can get immedate feedback after they read the information in the lesson. Pages can be set up and then questions asked to see if they are getting the info. This may take some careful set up.
Facilitator or teacher has to do a lot of quick evaluation for this one: Use the Online assignment... students are asked to reflect on their learning and as quickly as the teacher can, feedback is given so that students can check for understanding... if they don't understand, they can type more and resubmit.
SCORM activity could also be set up to give support when students answer questions.
Quiz format could also be used in a similar way to the Lesson as a follow up after the learning. Feedback can be set up to show right after they answer. Some questions will let you add feedback according to which answer was chosen. This could be used to give immediate feedback to students.

Paula Clough

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by John Andrewartha - Sunday, July 26, 2009, 9:49 AM

Paula,
You are indeed a brilliant young lady. Thank you.
We appear to be on the correct road.
Thank you Paula
John

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paula Clough - Sunday, July 26, 2009, 11:58 AM

Why thank you, John!

You are very welcome. Part of the fun of working with Moodle is doing what we are doing here... brainstorming, expanding our horizons and helping each other.

Glad you have joined our community.

Paula

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Friday, July 31, 2009, 9:57 PM

Dear Paula,

Thank you for posting. Please forgive my taking so long to respond. My wife was in the hospital. (She is okay, now.)

Well, I think that your scenario is wonderful. I really like this: "students are asked to reflect on their learning ..." I am so bad about that! I always mean to include a component for reflection, but sometimes concentrate so much on knowledge and skills that I neglect this.

It is so important that students learn how they learn, isn't it?

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paula Clough - Saturday, August 1, 2009, 12:21 PM

Agreed. This is one of the strengths of using Moodle in a hybrid situation. Sometimes I plan on doing the reflection, but I get short on time. With the Moodle, students can always do the reflecting as part of their homework. Also iwth it sitting there...it reminds me of my good intentions. It begs to be completed.

Paula

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Monday, August 3, 2009, 8:26 PM

Thank you, Paula.

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Marcia Kalayjian - Friday, August 7, 2009, 3:19 AM

I like Paula's ideas for this assignment. And kudos to you, Art, for such a thought-provoking subject! I think I would add some readings on predestination ... after thinking about it for awhile, I couldn't help but want to bring in something about religion here.

How interesting would it be to add some research questions about what the major religions say about fate ... which could turn this into an assignment for a world history class. And using other literary examples of fate ... it becomes an English assignment.

The glossary module could work well here ... have students work in groups, choose a religion and post that religion's take on fate/predestination.

Also, I think the journal module could work well here for a final reflection on fate ... how did the assignment change your thinking about this topic? (Our English department LOVES the journal module...)

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Friday, August 7, 2009, 8:20 AM

Thank you, Marcia.

I like your ideas!

In our neck of the woods (Marcia and I live in South Carolina), there is always someone ready to pounce on any discussion of religion, but I do not see how to keep it out of a discussion of this little story.

It's hard to neat the simplicity of the journal module, isn't it? I prefer the assignment module for this, but I think the journal module will never die.

In my German classes, my students would probably perform a role-play based upon some aspect of the story. I think they would probably collaborate in a forum on writing the role-plays (in separate groups). Do you think your teachers might go for that?

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Marcia Kalayjian - Friday, August 7, 2009, 10:00 AM

Hi Art,

Re: always someone ready to pounce on any discussion of religion, what we really need to do is somehow tie evolution into the discussion of fate. wink

(sarcastic chuckle)

One thing I like better about the journal module is that you are not limited to whatever word processing software a kid may or may not have access to. I am assuming that you are talking with the assignment module in terms of students uploading a word or other text file. Also the journal module, you can see all the journal entries together and at one time ... I had a case this summer where the teacher wanted to see all the journal entries for a homebound student ... I could view all in one window & then download as a php file, viewable in a browser. (I hope this is making sense ... sometimes I feel I am speaking Greek! Maybe it is just the late hour, though.)

I love the role play idea. I am thinking about one of our English teachers who had talked to me last year about doing dramatic readings. I think the kids having to re-interpret the story into a play is a great way to really inhabit the story. I do find our teachers (here at MVHS) are so overwhelmed that it is hard to find time & energy to try new things. I am hoping this year it will be different.

Marcia

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Friday, August 7, 2009, 7:45 PM

You are making perfect sense, Marcia.

I like using the online-text assignment module, but several of our teachers at Aiken HS swear by the journal mod.

As far as being overwhelmed goes, well, yeah, I completely understand that. But as long as one is aware of and is working toward the progression cited at the beginning of this discussion, it's okay to take a two or three or even four years to really "Moodlize" a school, isn't it? Or am I wrong about that?

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paula Clough - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 11:25 AM

Art,

I have to agree with the idea that you stated above that to "Moodlize" a school will take several years.... I would think it might even happen in departments. Several departments may begin with Moodle the first year. As they progress other teachers and perhaps departments will climb on board when they see what can be done. As more experience is obtained, some of those teachers may become more sophisticated in their uses, which will bring on more meat for other groups of users.

Paula Clough

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by John Andrewartha - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 12:31 PM

Hi Paula, Art,
I don't think you are alone in the resistance issues. I am developing online Tut's as a introduction to VLE. I target the 14+ group who will be already using the social network.
I have as a introduction used english tut's.
The layout is very simple and has a social look and feel A general discussion forum, tutors forum (hidden) ask a tutor forum and chat. I simply put few words of wisdom in a label with some useful links.
To support this I include a Introduction to online learning. I use a localised course from LabSpace. This gives helpful hints and tips. It also should serve to sign post.
The url http://baa.dorset.org.au:8080/moodle will give you a look. Guests allowed.
John
PS It is in beta at the moment brutal criticism accepted.

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 4:32 PM

John,

I like that your course helps students reflect on how they learn. For example, I think that it is great that you introduce them to learning styles. I think that it is great that you help the students understand that it may take time to become accustomed to online learning. This sort of thing can be a comfort to younger students who do not immediately "get it," right? I really like that.

There is a lot of text in the course. Have you considered making a few brief talking head videos to include in the course? Might be nice. Might make the course feel a little more personal. Just a thought.

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by John Andrewartha - Monday, August 10, 2009, 10:09 AM

Thank you for your gentle comments Art,
I agree the Introduction to Online Learning need some work. Asking some one to allow 4 hours to do a intro course is asking too much.
My main area of concern is the tutorial. I need to make it easy to use, friendly to student and parent. Most Internet users are after instant information and gratification.
In meeting this ambition I need to prioritize the key labels.
Grammar, punctuation, spelling... The label launches you to the key area.
I would appreciate yours and anyone else ideas that may like to comment.
John

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Monday, August 10, 2009, 8:50 PM

> Most Internet users are after instant information and gratification.

You are so right about that, John.

Anyway, I think that the intro course is a great idea. Well worth developing, in my opinion. Just have to keep pecking away at it, right?

I think that maybe one of the components of a really good course might be some sort of introduction or guide to reduce user frustration help users succeed in the course.

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paul Ganderton - Tuesday, August 11, 2009, 7:29 AM

Hi Art and others,

A gap in workload (read student teacher taking my class!) gives me some time to respond. I didn't want to add a 'me too' to the above because this is a great thread but, having re-read it all I feel I can make some further observations:

a) one element missing in the discussion is the need to make each course congruent with the cognitive development of the students. It's implicit but I think it needs to be explicit. I have 6 Moodle courses for 4 senior years. Although the look-and-feel is identical (I keep common logos /layout etc.) the actual demands change. Junior groups have a simpler structure with fewer tasks and information whilst senior groups have very complex arrangements involving the Moodle book (a definite favourite of my people). I have had this system running for about 18 months now and keep checking through surveys and useability studies so its not an artifact of my thinking;

b) time is a key factor. As posted here and elsewhere, Moodle isn't instant: it takes time to get people around to using it. I've argued for a 5-year plan which seems to be right. This also feeds into the issues of;

c) resistance. As one with some history in ICT I resent being told students are digital natives and I (by definition) am not. I can usually out-geek my guys and certainly am more inclined to try something new. If we keep the digital native idea then I would be a car native as that was the dominant improvement when I was school age. We are told all digital natives "get" the technology but by extension then I should have been able to "get" cars at age 6. I'm not too sure I could have made a decent go of the Indy 2000 at that age!. Seriously though, students do offer resistance to new ideas. They like borders and boundaries and in my experience (international) this is common. They "get" Moodle but it will take me two/three years to get real acceptance and proper usage of it (I'm just seeing this with my trial group now). Teachers are also hesitant to change. Add this up and an exemplary course has one which takes things gradually and brings along as many satudents and staff as possible. From this (agreeing with Paula) it follows that;

d) leadership is essential. By this I mean leadership by the early adaopters (look at what I can do) but even more importantly, by the institution head and immediate deputies. This is very clear in educational management research so why doesn't it happen. I've addressed a few Principal conferences and many had no idea they had to lead.

So, IMHO, an exemplary course has cognitively-graded exposure, slowly developed by all stakeholders through time, led by supportive senior executive.

As a side issue, I too find the workshop module one of the more complex ones. I have enough to do with my current ideas so I'll leave it until 2.0.

Hope this helps,

Paul

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Mary Cooch - Tuesday, August 11, 2009, 8:30 AM

‹ quote› leadership is essential. By this I mean leadership by the early adaopters (look at what I can do) but even more importantly, by the institution head and immediate deputies. This is very clear in educational management research so why doesn't it happen. I've addressed a few Principal conferences and many had no idea they had to lead........led by supportive senior executive.‹ / quote›
From my experience I will second, third and fourth this

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Tuesday, August 11, 2009, 9:03 AM

I do know this: I have taught dozens of Moodle training courses for Moodlerooms. When the boss (not necessarily the principal) is in the class, the other participants are usually very highly motivated. That's for sure.

Does this always translate into something wonderful after the course is over? I do not know. My gut tells me, though, that it probably does in many cases.

It seems to me that the ideal situation is probably enthusiasm among the folks who actually create and teach the courses supported by leadership from above.

But we already knew that, didn't we?

In the context of this discussion, maybe we need to build some truly exemplary courses before we bring our bosses on board. Maybe we need to have something really, really good to show our bosses. That might help get their support.

So it's good to think about what constitutes an exemplary course, no? And Martin's "Progression" seems to me to be useful in such a discussion.

-- Art

P.S. I am grateful that so many are taking part in this thread. I appreciate knowing what so many Fellow Moodlers think about this topic.

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Tuesday, August 11, 2009, 9:15 AM

Dear Paul,

What a great post. I do not think I can improve upon this: "an exemplary course has cognitively-graded exposure, slowly developed by all stakeholders through time, led by supportive senior executive." I will probably print that out and post it on the wall beside my desk.

This makes me a little crazy, though: "and many had no idea they had to lead." How can a principal not know that his or her leadership is necessary in almost all large, important undertakings at a school? I have been teaching thirty years and this baffles me.

And it is, in my experience, one of the most common obstacles that Moodle faces.

I wonder if you would care to elaborate a bit on making a course congruent with the cognitive development of the students. It would be very interesting to know a little more about that.

I hope that others will respond to your post. I think there's a lot of tasty meat in there we ought to chew on. (What a disgusting metaphor. I like it, though.)

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paul Ganderton - Tuesday, August 18, 2009, 8:00 AM

Dear Art, Mary and others,

Art, thanks for another kind reply. Mary, I so agree with this!

To address your points:

a) I too have no idea why principals are reluctant to lead but I can suggest some causes. In my current system there is a very heavy teacher union presence - this mitigates against rocking the boat. Alternatively, how many principals have management training? There appear to be no requirements for the post except coming up from the ranks. An MBA or equivalent might well do a lot to address this. I think the Scandinavian system is also worth checking out. It used to be the case that principals were appointed and then had to shadow an existing principal for a year to get a handle on the job.

Whatever model works I am convinced (and so is all the literature I read) that top-down support is essential to effect change. By this I mean support and not tech skills - they don't need to be able to build a computer just appreciate that you need one. It also helps if there is a clear strategy in place. Both JISC and BECTA have a lot of work in this area.

b) Your next point was about cognitive development. My thinking behind started from a questioning of the term "digital native" which seemed, to me, both proscriptive and prescriptive. It's a straightjacket that can impede learning. When I started Moodle I noticed that my students seemed to react to the system in different ways. I then investigated more closely looking at student logs and setting up numerous forums and feedback surveys. Students asked for a specific type of Moodle experience and this seemed to be based on their age rather than ability (I'm sure this will change in time and does change between institutions but this is my finding). After about 18 months I came to the conclusion that it was cognitive development that seemed to best fit the phenomenon I was studying. High school students are developing mentally and this can influence how they "see" learning (Think Piaget, Vygotsky et. al - or this very cool site I just found).

I teach senior years - in Australia this is years 9-12. I start each course with a common look-and-feel so they develop familiarity with the structure i.e. course logos are identical except the year title; all topics are in the same order - admin followed by subject and then exams. Then for year 9 they have just some basic information (to get them introduced to e-learning). Year 10 get more information and some supplementary ideas to develop their thinking skills. Year 11 start their senior work and so have a more exploratory style of learning whilst the very top guys in year 12 have a fully differentiated course with masses of information, fully interactive through forums and collaborative approach to learning. I am starting to write this up but so far I characterise the responses as the 4 'e's:

Year 9 - engagement: starting to gain control over their learning and developing the ability to manage time and information;

Year 10 - exploration: moving beyond the basic material presented in the textbook or as class handouts. Here the student starts to focus on the ability to gather and synthesise information but also become more organ ised;

Year 11 - experiential: the start of questioning of material. Detailed material provided on the site differentiated by need (essential, useful, supplementary). Here's the start of the student becoming a self-directed learner. Interstingly, on a parallel course I started this year I gave the entire course over to students i.e. one course was teacher-led and fed and the other was student-led. This latter course has, so far, been less successful - they still need the structure of the teacher-as-expert guiding them as to the most accepted ideas. I'll keep running this to see what happens but it does highlight the need for staff to be involved whatever learning theory is current. I've also read research this week suggesting that students want teacher interaction. In my setting, online will not be the mode - I use blended delivery in the sense it's offline (me) and online (Moodle). Each adds to the other but neither stands on its own - these are developing brains and we take the online ideas used in universities and the most often quoted in research at our peril IMHO.

Year 12 - evaluative: they have the skills to put together sophisticated answers from their class notes and from a vast range (currently c. 600Mb) of data stored in their Moodle. They can decide on the value of information and will use forums to discuss and refine their ideas. If you want to see it it should be here - guest login should work. I'm not suggesting its in any way exemplary, just a work in progress.

On top of all this we need a critical mass of users. I don't have this as yet but constant use and staff development days is moving us towards it (and students are great drivers of change if they want to be).

I hope this helps.

Kind regards,

Paul

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Wednesday, August 19, 2009, 5:27 PM

Paul,

Once again, a meaty post, full of useful insights and information.

I am on the way to school, so I will have to come back to it, but I'll bet that your fellow Moodlers will be very interested in knowing more about your student-led course.

Re "students want teacher interaction": That has been my experience over the years. My high school students want me to be present in the course.

This is something I will be thinking about today:

Year 9 - engagement
Year 10 - exploration
Year 11 - experiential
Year 12 - evaluative

I wonder what others have to add to that, if their experiences have been similar to or different from yours.

Have to run!

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Graeme Blank - Saturday, September 5, 2009, 4:51 AM

Hi there

I am very new to Moodle (like, today) and am setting up a new university course. I have used WebCT in university courses in the past. I have really appreciated the comments and ideas I have already read on this forum - thank you. I now only need to work out how to put the pieces together.

In relation to reflection, I just wanted to add an approach I have used with discussion boards (asynchronous) in the past.

I post 10 topics, require a response from each student in a majority of topics. Each response must add something new to the discussion (eg if it is a substantive topic there is usually a 'textbook answer which the first student will post so this limits repetition of the textbook) and at the end of the course the students must reflect on their posting in light of the other comments that may (or may not) have been made to it in that topic.

It forces them to stay engaged despite having 'finished' the topic and to reflect on what they said and whether other posts have broadened their knowledge, perspective or even changed their view.

I have found that the students really benefit from reviewing their thinking in this way.

Graeme

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 3:39 PM

Do you find that the leadership or lack of leadership of the principal or headmaster at a school makes a big difference?

(In the schools in my district where the principal has lead the way, I have seen Moodle really take off. In the schools where the principal has not been interested in Moodle, it has taken much longer.)

-- Art

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Paula Clough - Saturday, August 8, 2009, 11:15 PM

Yes, Art! Leadership support makes a tremendous difference.

I have a big debt to our CTE (Career/Technology Education) Director. He has cajoled, paid, and demanded that teachers get their curriculum into Moodle. Some of them have done that and feel they are done, but some have used it and are setting the example for other teachers who are beginning to become interested in using it. I wish I could get more principals interested. They are beginning to come around.

Paula

Re: What are the component-s of an exemplary high school Moodle course? -- APPOINTMENT IN SAMARRA

by Art Lader - Sunday, August 9, 2009, 12:48 AM

> I wish I could get more principals interested.
> They are beginning to come around.

Everything takes time, no?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Paul Ganderton - Sunday, July 12, 2009, 8:31 PM

Hi Art and others,

I can agree with most of the posts already but here's my 2c on the way I have tried to develop my courses. Basically, I've ignored what Moodle has to offer and ask what my students actually need and like. So:

a) go for student-driven. I use choice/feedback/forums extensively to guide design elements, select options to study and generally try to get them involved. So, they like the book module because it can have all my notes and thoughts plus basic reading (and sections of more advanced work for differentiation);

b) build in learning. I'm trialling a site where it's almost completely designed and run by the students (except gradebook wink

). This contrasts with one on a similar level where I put in most of the work. This shows issues with learning and responsibility for work but it does highlight how they prefer to store and use information (mainly wikis and file uploads - usually with better file management than I've used!);

c) redundancy is useful. I try to get several ways for students to do the same thing. Internal email is standard (not Moodle) and it's heavily used. There are also forums which are used extensively especially around exam times. I do have chat rooms but they are not well used. Students have their own IM (usually MSM) and I don't have that. I think it's easier for them to communicate with their system rather than go through Moodle;

d) feedback is vital. Apart from forums etc. I post all assessments on Moodle along with feedback documents whose content is largely designed by student request. Also, the best examples are put online so they know the standards that have been expected. Students are expected to grade and comment on work submitted (how else will they know what a top answer should look like?).

e) keep it visual. This is a visual generation and so text is not favoured. They want to find everything they need quickly and efficiently (and they'll very quickly point out what's mising or broken - they even suggest fixes). Sadly, after one completed unit I got the comment that it was OK but nothing like a Mac interface (so I've got to learn Flash);

f) bring in learning. I'll trial a new part of Moodle every so often. Workshop is not one of my common units (guess after the positives I'll have to try it out). I see what it does and how clearly students need and want it. I have student guides for each year and a graded approach to Moodle (following developmental guidelines) where less senior classes have a simpler interface and usage than my top year;

Hope this helps. I see Moodle as one tool but I keep my focus clearly on cost-effective learning.

Kind regards,

Paul

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Sunday, July 12, 2009, 10:29 PM

Thank you for your thoughtful response, Paul.

There's a lot of food for thought in your post. I think the thing that resonated the most with me was point "b" - having a truly student-driven course. What a good point that is. I tend to create teacher-centric courses and build in a few learner-centered activities, I think. Not a terrible approach, but maybe not a great one, either.

As I revamp my courses for the coming year, I will keep this in mind.

I hope that others will comment on other aspects of your post! Anyone want to jump in?

Regards,
Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Richard Jones - Monday, July 13, 2009, 12:43 PM

Hello all

Just following through this interesting thread and reflecting on a couple of things quickly (I too should be doing other things).

No one has mentioned the glossary (I think) - I found this useful in ICT where there is a lot of jargon. Getting the students to post their own definitions and signing them seemed to work well (and having the random quote from it in a sidebar - they love it when their own comes up and watch for it therefore seeing what others have done).

This does not have to be jargon-based of course, almost any "knowledge nuggett" will do.

Wikis for FAQ's and expectations on courses.

I think it is also important to remember to make it exciting/interesting if we can like we do when we are not using technology (not to let the technology take over - is this too obvious?). I love scenarios and stories but student responses vary.

The practical aspects are nice and simple - digital delivery of work, using a marking block, posting homework tasks - and should not be under-rated for starting teachers. Smarter uses will follow.

How to gather this together - maybe a wiki page in the documentation section?

Cheers
Richard

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Monday, July 13, 2009, 11:39 PM

Hi, Richard,

> How to gather this together - maybe a wiki
> page in the documentation section?

I am sure that Helen will have a suggestion about that. Maybe here? -- http://docs.moodle.org/en/Teaching_Good_Practices

You know, you bring up an interesting point, I think: Moodle is used to enhance both student achievement and teacher productivity. Both are important. I really have known teachers who felt like it was one or the other. (Have you not run into that among your colleagues?)

I guess those must overlap at times. There must be a Venn Diagram in there somewhere, right?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Monday, July 13, 2009, 11:46 PM

> Wikis for FAQ's and expectations on courses.

You would develop these collaboratively, Richard?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Richard Jones - Tuesday, July 14, 2009, 6:16 AM

I suppose everyone sees the tool in a different light and that shapes how they begin to use it - if I demo the marking block they will see it as a tool for that. That should change over time - it's all about getting even a little use at first isn't it? (I'm assuming you don't have a management that is pro-active in driving everyone to your LMS - which would give you a chance for a more rational approach in theory).

Yes, there is a place for non-collaborative wikis (or read only pages) but usually collaborative is best. You could argue that the glossary is a better collaborative tool for the FAQ's but I often start with a wiki anyway.

Richard

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Tuesday, July 14, 2009, 7:28 AM

Thanks, Richard.

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by John Rodgers - Saturday, July 18, 2009, 11:03 AM

I just finished delivering two courses (calculus and physics) completely on-line. The demands of simultaneous design and delivery meant keeping things simple. Generally the same sequence of activity was followed throughout the courses

Investigation: Students would investigate a concept.
generalization: Students would use and extend their findings to answer questions
application: Students would explain something or solve a problem using 1 and 2 or with further research

Investigations were uploaded (assignment module) , debriefed directly using the quiz module or a combination of the two. The quiz module in adaptive mode was used heavily in the generalization phase, and the Q and A version of the forums provided application questions.

All content and activity descriptions were delivered using embedded YouTube screen casts.

Students responded extremely well to the environment. The results far exceeded my expectations.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Sunday, July 19, 2009, 11:48 PM

Investigation --> Genralization --> Application: That sounds like a great approach, John. I appreciate your sharing that. I could see using that approach in my high school German classes.

If I understand correctly:
* Investigation: Students gather information and resources about education in Germany.
* Generalization: Students create graphic organizers showing the similarities and differences between vocational and academic education in Germany.
* Students create a plan of study for one young person who wanted to become a mechanic and another who wanted to become an attorney.

Or is that example not quite right?

I have not used the Q & A forum format much. I am glad to know that it worked well for you. Maybe I should give to a try this year.

I wonder how one would apply the Investigation --> Genralization --> Application approach to the "Appointment in Samarra" example... Any takers?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by John Rodgers - Monday, July 20, 2009, 7:52 PM

Your example sounds significantly more interesting than mine ever did Art!

The investigation would be something like:

identify the relationship between these rational functions and asymptotes. Explain why the function never touches an asymptote. Explain why a function behaves asymptotically. Provide an example fo a rational function and what its asymptotes would be.

followed by a scaffolded group of questions used in the quiz module:

Match these rational functions to their graphs.
What is the equation of the asymptote to this function.
give the rational function for these graphs.

The questions would be organized into banks with each student receiving their own question set. Explicit instructions that characterize Mathematics instruction (ie: When you see this kind of a problem, do this...) in North America were avoided, and instead pushed to the student network. This helped foster significant "math talk" among the students.

Quizzes operated in adaptive mode with three or four allowed attempts. Students would typically repeat the quiz 2-3 times. The quiz results block was particularly motivating (In fact, it was frightfully motivating), fostering competition between schools and letting students know where the leading edge of the course was.

Then a forum post like:

Why is the ideal gas law called the "ideal" gas law.

The Q and A format nicely reiterates a "bansho" activity, with students thinking carefully about their answers before posting, and extending their answers after reading the other posts. Once again, this gave the students an opportunity to "learn from the network" and shifted the emphasis to self assessment.

This example would fit into a larger sequence on curve sketching, with the pattern reiterated on a larger scale.

This was part of an effort to redesign courses provided by the province, which contained so many instuctor based assessments that teachers were significantly overwhelmed, even after the students had quit the course in huge numbers.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Monday, July 20, 2009, 10:23 PM

Thank you for responding so helpfully, John.

This really struck me: The quiz results block was particularly motivating (In fact, it was frightfully motivating), fostering competition between schools and letting students know where the leading edge of the course was.

You know, in all the years I have been Moodling, it never occurred to me that the quiz block could be a powerful motivator. Odd that I never even tried it. You can bet that I will do so this coming year.

And this, too: This helped foster significant "math talk" among the students.

When my high school German courses go really well, I do see this. To me, it has become an indicator that my students are really engaged. It does not happen as often as I would wish, though.

I'll bet that very few students dropped your modified course. And I'll bet your teachers were happier, too. Am I right?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by John Rodgers - Tuesday, July 21, 2009, 7:59 PM

The results exceeded my expectations on almost every parameter, particularly for calculus:

A number of students preferred the on-line format to the regular classroom.
The "basic skills" of the weak math students improved significantly (much to my surprise).
A good portion of the "math phoebes" enjoyed math, for the first time.
Almost all of them took advantage of the asynchronous nature of the course, yet no-one seemed to fall behind once the course started.

There were a number of "network topologies" present in the group. (some students at home working alone communicating only electronically, some sitting together working at the same time etc etc), there was good evidence it played a very significant role in the over all learning, especially for the weaker students, although the outliers demonstrated a network wasn't a necessity. The network effects (beyond "community building") may be the most ignored, yet most important aspect of instructional design in the K-12 context. As you mentioned, the "talk community" has an important multiplier effect on quantity and quality of learning within the activities that are provided.

There was one unsuccessful student out of 24 in calculus, which compared favorably to 2 successful students out of a remaining 7 in the previous semester. Physics had similar statistics.

I was the only teacher (our district only ran one section per semester), but the assessment load was tremendously reduced (mind you the development load was over the top). Having a chance to design and deliver (I also had an opportunity to observe the a portion of the students directly) was extremely rewarding.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Tuesday, July 21, 2009, 9:52 PM

That is fantastic. Really terrific. You must be so pleased!

You know, John, it is so good of you to take the time to share your experiences with the community. I am absolutely certain that your doing so will inspire math teachers to adopt your approach. Thank you for your generosity.

Do you maintain a blog about your Moodling?

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by John Rodgers - Wednesday, July 22, 2009, 10:18 AM

I have often thought there would be some great opportunities to harvest data and do some research.

I am most intrigued by the network concept and wonder if there are ways to strengthen it (using a rss feed for a particular activity on twitter for students to record impressions, ask and offer quick answers).

I wouldn't be a good blogger I'm afraid. My time would always be directed towards development.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Wednesday, July 22, 2009, 4:49 PM

> I wouldn't be a good blogger I'm afraid.
> My time would always be directed towards development.

I can certainly understand that, John. I hope that you will continue sharing with the community the way you have in this discussion.

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by John Rodgers - Thursday, July 23, 2009, 7:54 PM

I have put the calculus course on Coloodle, as it was too large for the course exchange here. I hope to get time to make physics suitable for general release shortly.

I have become less than sanguine about re usability. As always, localization and personalization are probably issues. The course is far from perfect (one limitation to sharing is concern of the exposure of imperfection) , but I do think it's possible to improve by a whole order of magnitude.

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Friday, July 24, 2009, 2:27 AM

You know what, John? I did not even know about Coloodle. Well, maybe I knew and forgot. wink

Re: one limitation to sharing is concern of the exposure of imperfection

Yes, of course. You are certainly right about that, John. I teach German, but I am not a native speaker, so I sometimes do get a little insecure about sharing my stuff. But I keep hearing that we should not let the perfect be the enemy of the good. I am going to try to take that to heart a little more this year and you will be one of my role-models. (I'll bet your courses are a lot better than just good, though!)

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Stephen Rogerson - Thursday, August 27, 2009, 7:31 AM

Hi Art,

Thought I would kick into the conversation from an Australian school perspective. We have been using Moodle in a High School situation (12-18 year olds) for 2 years now and we recently had a brain storm on what Moodle features keep our classes interested to come back and consistently use the product. Here is a list of 19 of the suggestions from our staff:

Even if you have some great resources on your class page, you are competing against all the other Web Based Activities that your students are doing at home (Facebook, Twitter, Games Sites, MySpace, etc.)

The trick is to encourage your students to want to visit your class Moodle site at least once or twice a week. Here are a few of our hints to encourage students to use your Moodle Class Page.

1. Use your class Moodle site to post all work that has a due date as either an offline or online assignment
2. Use the Calendar to post any class activity dates such as tests, excursions or special events
3. Introduce images to your page that break up the list of resources…100 X 100 pixel images are a good size for course page images
4. Avoid scrolling by putting like files into folder directories
5. Use PODCASTS and VOKIs for the Auditory learners
6. Use links to and embed videos or SlideShare Presentations for the visual learners... Embedding Youtube videos are still a problem because the students do not have access to YouTube at school. You can download the video as a FLV file (Use KISSYOUTUBE method as one possibility) and link to that file using a normal file link or using a label or website. Another way is to download the YouTube video to Teacher Tube and then you can embed the code
7. If you have existing Powerpoints to include on your page, have a look at this Makover for Powerpoint video. Probably best to save your powerpoints as .pps (Powerpoint Show) documents so that the students just view the show without having to have Powerpoint as the opening programme. If the Powerpoint has no animation in it, it may be smaller and easier to save it as a PDF file so the students just view the pages of information. Try going to http://www.slideshare.net/ to look for educational slide shows that could be used in your course pages.
8. Include photographs of students and their work using the Lightbox Galleries (Learn how to bring in multiple files using a ZIP file so this task is quicker) Lightbox Gallery photos fill the screen at a size of about 500 X 500 pixels.
9. Add something to your class page at least once a week
10. Add a Random Glossary Entry Block if you have an extensive course glossary (Make sure you construct your glossary properly so it becomes interactive)
11. Add a Countdown Block to display a digital countdown to a big event
12. Think about interactive activities such as Quizzes, Forums, Wikis, Choices and Feedbacks to get your students interacting with the course material.
Think about making an assessment (Grades or Profile Attribute) to be involvement in Forums or Wikis
13. Find a relevant Learning Federation Learning Object to introduce a topic or for extension work
14. Create a Class Blog to let students know what happened in each class…this is great for evaluating the content and timing of your course and also great for students who miss classes.
15. Use the label resource and Moodle's indenting tool to change the long list of similar resource files
16. Read about some of these Moodle Course Makeovers in http://www.packtpub.com/article/moodle-makeover
17. Communicate with your students by using Moodle Messaging
18. Ask a course question using the Moodle Messaging Module and reward answers with Chocolate
19. Use Look2Learn activities as part of your course…use a provocative image and ask a “Big Question’

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Paula Clough - Thursday, August 27, 2009, 9:34 AM

Very nice list, Stephen. I like the idea of giving some very specific suggestions and yet enough that teachers can pick a chose what might be really useful to them. I am definately going to share with some of my teachers.

Paula

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Bernat Martinez - Thursday, August 27, 2009, 4:32 PM

Hi all,

My example from an European school perspective. We are starting to design a maths course in the context of the ITEMS EU LLP project.

The TEST course (1 of 3 teaching units is shown) can be visited at:
http://www.itemspro.net/moodle/

GEOMETRY: Lines, Angles and Circles (TESTING)
Non editing teacher role (user =alu, password= alu)

The course has some constraints:

content: a plane geometry module, lasting 1-2 months teaching. Intensive use of interactive (flash, geogebra) learning objects created/adapted purposely for the course.
learning objectives: develop many differnt basic skills/competencies (maths, science-astronomy, reading/writing, digital, social,...)
students: first year of secondary school ( 12-13 years old)
teachers: attend an online course, starting October, 15/20 hours-long, non editing teacher role. The course being aimed to familiarise with the material (preference for teachers wishing to test it with students).
schools: the project will create a course for every school wishing to participate and will help enrol their students (in the project server). Teachers will have most of editing permissions on their own course.
feedback: A social-course will be created for teachers sharing experiences on the course being tested in classroom.
activities: intensive use of QUIZES (in fact a mixing of quiz with format lesson). The aim is to have the possibility, at any time, of changing/correcting questions, from the system question bank. Then the change would affect automatically to every school course.
collaboration: Use of collaborative tools, mainly forums (Q&A type). Use of google docs
grades: All activities graded: best way of tracking students activity
....

The main aim is to get feedback and to improve the course design and to share experiences with the Moodle community.

After testing in different schools, in different countries (available in English, later in Spanish, Catalan, German and Slovenian), the course will be freely released.

The course can be visited at:
http://www.itemspro.net/moodle/

GEOMETRY: Lines, Angles and Circles (TESTING)
Non editing teacher role (user =alu, password= alu)

Thanks in advance for your feedback

Bernat

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Paul Ganderton - Friday, August 28, 2009, 6:31 AM

Hi Stephen,

Nice to see things are similar South of the border (I'm in NSW!!). Totally agree, I do the same on my sites but I would like to emphasise one of your elements that I think is overlooked.

You note that we are competing against other forms of web usage e.g. Facebook. On the face of it, yes we are (so graphics are essential in any course/topic structure). I'd like to think though that Moodle and Facebook are in different categories of web use and we can capitalise upon that and gain our market share. Moodle will only be used if students see it as a benefit (hence putting work up, demanding online submission etc. are all valid). We also need to make sure that the design is student-friendly (back to graphics) and that feedback is a course constant. I also think that there is one huge area untouched by most web offerings and that a critical assessment of the material. If the Moodle course is developed with web-critiquing materials then it will be a resource to help our students navigate the net with confidence and accuracy.

In other words, we position our Moodle courses to help students become confident and critical learners. It's what we should be doing and too often are not, hiding under the idea of whitelists and "think of the children" ideas that breed fear and not safety. When we develop courses that are demanding of their skills and offer them real guidance at a time when the web provides less then I think they'll use it.

Hope this helps,

Paul

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Stephen Rogerson - Friday, August 28, 2009, 7:36 AM

Thanks for the feedback Paul,

Sometimes we do feel a little alone using Moodle and it helps to know other schools in the country are using it. I do like some of your statements about positioning this product in a must use section of the education market. What do you mean by "web critiquing materials" is relation to Moodle site development?

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by John Andrewartha - Friday, August 28, 2009, 10:17 AM

This debate is starting to get interesting

. We seem to have moved from a content based discussion to marketing strategies. In most instances we need a introduction, something to grab and hold attention. Why not use the toy retailers approach? A 10 second high visual, must have, followed by content and the obligatory adverts every 7.5 minutes. I am stuck in the back blocks of Tasmania about as far removed from main stream as you can get. I asked my 15 year old what she thought. Apart from being told to get a life she, suggested Facebook look and feel with objects like farm town as learning objects. A tall order.

John

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Art Lader - Friday, August 28, 2009, 10:39 AM

> with objects like farm town as learning objects

Well, many years ago, Dale Carnegie said you had to "bait the hook to suit the fish" when trying to make friends and influence people. Maybe it makes sense that an exemplary K-12 Moodle course has to do the same thing.

I am not sure how I feel about that, though. I want my courses to be appealing to my students, of course, but I honestly do not know how far I am willing to go to make that happen. Hmmm...

A tall order, indeed!

-- Art

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Paul Ganderton - Saturday, August 29, 2009, 9:18 PM

Hi,

Yes I agree - a decent discussion! I'm not sure about the toy approach but I can relate the substance of a few conversations that have inclined me to comment in the way I have. The first was with a sysadmin who was discussing the value of Moodle and e-learning generally. I argued that although I supported Moodle I was also aware that we were in danger of losing more than we gained. Web 2.0 is a buzz-word and it's tempting to fall for its siren call. What I meant by web-critiquing was that in using Moodle as a hook for learning we should also make sure that students had the skills of "old". I used to expect students to read a book and evaluate its content, method, direction etc. i.e. to become critical readers and not passive acceptors (since my field includes global warming you can see this as a useful area!!). Today, anyone can make a website that looks professional. I want my students to be able to assess the accuracy of that site's arguments, to deconstruct its message and generally act like an active web user and not a receiver.

John, the Facebook look-and-feel is an important idea. Students will respond better to a site that looks like other sites they visit (this is a design and useability issue. Your daughter is partially right (but don't quote me in family discussions!). We need a good design but that doesn't mean we need every object. We need to promote e-learning but with a specific focus as a "critical friend". BTW by sons like my Moodling and wished their University did likewise (they also suggest that Moodle is not a substitute for a real life - although I disagree there).

Don't feel isolated people, there are Moodlers all over - it's just that despite all the education revolutions (Australia's first, my third in 35 years teaching and 30 years in ICT education) things change very slowly - these forums tell us we are not alone

Re: What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?

by Aaron Metz - Monday, August 31, 2009, 8:45 PM

Thank you very much for sharing this feedback Stephen!

General help

What are the components of an exemplary high school Moodle course?