2+-+Course+Descriptions


 * 2. Course Description **
 * **Review and describe the course description of the online course in which you are completing your practicum. **

The online course in which I am completing my practicum is entitled **Cultural Identity Through Literature: Understanding Place **. It is an Honors-level English course which runs for 15 weeks. Though there is no grade level mentioned, all of the students in the course are seniors in high school. According to the teacher's course description, the underlying premise behind the course is "that we can come to understand other cultures through literature" and that "reading about the experiences of others can have a great impact on how we view the world." The course is designed to "utilize literature as a primary resource for exploring cultures from all parts of the world," including North America, Canada, East Asia, Middle East, South America, and Europe.


 * **What do incoming students know about the course from the course description? Is it accurate? Is it appropriate? What is the "hook" that makes students pick this course over other courses? **

The course description is accurate, appropriate, and comprehensive. Within the course description, each week's lesson is mapped out with an essential question, a list of related readings, and required assignment(s). From reading the course description, the students are immediately made aware that the course is reading and writing intensive, that they should be prepared to do copious amounts of each, and that they will need to be vigilant about budgeting their time in order to meet all deadlines and fulfill all requirements. They are also made aware that even though this is an English course, aspects of sociology, social studies, psychology, and communication arts are mixed into the content. The "hook" is twofold: the instructor offers that the course will appeal to those who wish to learn about cultures from around the world; in addition, the instructor appeals to those who wish to go further in their education by stating the course is excellent preparation for higher education.

 A "learning-centered" approach is encouraged by the course description and information posted. Though there is an expansive amount of content over the 15 weeks, it is not overwhelming, and the focus is clearly on the learning process. The responsibility is placed on the students to learn, rather than on teacher to teach the content. In fact, in her welcome message to the students, the teacher constantly refers to herself as the "facilitator" of the course, not the teacher. This shift in responsibility is a step in the right direction to promote active, purposeful, effective learning, preparing students to be life-long learners. Also, the variety of readings and course assignments further students' critical thinking skills, another necessary characteristic of a "learning-centered" syllabus.
 * **A "learning-centered" syllabus can be an important learning tool that will reinforce the intentions roles, attitudes and strategies that you will use to promote active, purposeful, effective learning. How does the course description support this "learning-centered" approach? **

I have been teaching a full-year, f2f Junior English course for the past five (5) years at my school, and this is the course I am interested in transitioning to a hybrid course, where part of the course is taught in the online environment. My wish is to conduct the second semester of this course in a f2f environment three times a week (Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays) and in an online format two days a week (Tuesdays and Thursdays).
 * **Review and describe the course description of the online course which you are interested in designing or teaching. **

 During the second semester, student complete an extended unit of study entitled **Identity: What Makes Us Who We Are? **<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;"> The texts we use for this unit vary in their genre and include Harper Lee's novel //To Kill a Mockingbird//, Ishmael Beah's memoir //Memoirs of a Boy Soldier//, and //The Pact: Three Doctors Make a Promise and Fulfill a Dream//, the autobiography of Drs. Sampson David, Rameck Hunt, and George Jenkins. The course is a general-level English course and is team-taught with a special education teacher; generally, the student population is evenly or closely even in mix - just as many regular education students as there are students who have IEPs or are identified as being 504 special education; regardless of the "type" of student, they all typically struggle with writing skills and, more often than not, with reading comprehension.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Since my administration is currently not interested in offering a fully online course, I feel a hybrid course would be a good "bridge," and that once I can provide my administration with hard data about the advantages and successes of the course, and once they can see the benefits of the online courses, they will be more inclined to consider offering courses that are completely online in nature. My hybrid course would ideally be conducted face-to-face (Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays) and online twice a week (Tuesdays and Thursdays).


 * **<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">To what degree can a course outline prepare a student for "self-reliant" learning? **

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">While it is the lessons of the course themselves which lead students to become self-reliant learners, a well laid out course outline sets the underlying tone and establishes the message that self-reliance and independence are key goals of a course. In their article "Independent Learning in Your Classroom," Jo Mynard and Robin Sorflaten describe independent learners as those who "//...are self-directed, self-motivated and capable of learning without a teacher//." A course outline that prepares students to be independent learners is one which explains exactly what is expected, what will be studied, what resources will be made available, what the intended learning outcomes are, and what and how things will be assessed. In addition, time built in for self-reflection and self-assessment is critical if students are to move from dependent to independent learners.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">To that end, I feel the course outline of my practicum course does prepare the students for "self-reliant" learning. The instructor's expectations and policies are clearly explained. The introduction to the lesson of each week of the 15-week course includes sections labeled "What's My Topic?," "What Will I Learn?," "How Will I Learn It?," and "How Will I Be Assessed?" The information provided in each of these sections gives students a clear picture of what lies ahead for them in the week in terms of learning goals and resources available. Assessment rubrics are provided at the start of the course, and are referred to again with each assignment, so students have a very clear understanding of what the expectations are for each assignment and can self-evaluate their own work before submitting it to the instructor. Within the course outline, there is time built in every few weeks for students to complete a reflection log of their learning, where they are asked to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Continue to next page or Return to Table of Contents