Article no. 1
Kristen Clanton: Effective Online Course Design Crews, Tena B., Kelly Wilkinson, and Jason K. Neill. “Principles of Good Practice in Undergraduate Education: Effective Online Course Design to Assist Students’ Success.” MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching. Vol. 11, No. 1, 2015, pp. 87-103. The focus of Crews, Wilkinson, and Neill’s study is to apply Chickering and Gamson’s Seven Principles of Undergraduate Success to online course design to increase student success (87). A classroom that exercises the Seven Principles “encourages contact between students and faculty, develops reciprocity and cooperation among students, encourages active learning, gives prompt feedback, emphasizes time on task, communicates high expectations, and respects diverse talents and ways of learning” (88-89). Though these strategies have proven advantageous in the standard classroom, Crews, Wilkinson, and Neill worked to apply the principles to online course design. Prior to their study, the major strategies identified to increase online success are: being highly communicative and providing continuous feedback, moving from using the Socratic approach to being more of a coach, being flexible, and developing a sense of community (Crews et al qtd. DeVine 88). Implementing these strategies can combat the noted disadvantages of online education, particularly regarding the conversation between students and the material, students and their instructor, and students and their classmates, but these strategies do not act as principles that lead to exceptional quality. Researchers Wang, Sierra, and Folger noted that adult learners are engaged and independent thinkers; however, motivation needs to be sustained (90). Responding to these numerous principles, strategies, and studies, Crews, Wilkinson, and Neill suggest that an online instructor should identify student strengths and weaknesses, and then design the course to suit the needs of the students. The success of an online classroom is not solely on the grand scale of course design, but the instructor should also communicate individually with a student to build on strengths and work on weaknesses. All in all, outside of a student’s ability to manage his/her own time, the Seven Principles application to the online classroom is based on the instructor’s ability to communicate consistently, clearly, and effectively. This efficiency of communication on the instructor’s part also informs the syllabus and facilitates online conversation among students (101). Student retention in an English classroom is always difficult. I have read numerous article about increasing retention and student success in the traditional classroom; however, I have not given much consideration to how those strategies can be translated to the online classroom. Now that I am teaching solely online, I find myself incredibly focused on building communication with my students. This is something that came easy in the traditional classroom—I showed up early to class and stayed after, my office door was always open— but building conversation and community is a completely different world through the screen. As an instructor, I have always employed Devine’s strategies of active engagement, but this is the first semester that I have built the course schedule as the class progresses. So far, I’ve found that though it is a little more demanding to build the schedule within the timeline of the course, I feel more accountable and connected to the class, as opposed to the years that I constructed the full course before the first day of class. Article no. 2 Kristen Clanton: Classic works of literature still have a place in today's classrooms Law, Sally. “Classic works of literature still have a place in today's classrooms.” The Guardian, 11 Dec. 2012, https://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/teacher-blog/2012/dec/11/teaching-classic-literature-schools In the Guardian article, ““Classic works of literature still have a place in today's classrooms”, Sally Law, principal English professor at Scotland’s Marr College, argues that classic literature is more beneficial than ever to the modern English classroom. Law’s list of advantages is numerous: studying classic literature gives students the opportunity to study the shifts in language and punctuation throughout history, which will help them to better understand language in its current context (par. 4);experiencing a story through a specific character’s history and perspective permits students to better understand others (par.5); “gaining a broad view of society, through the eyes of another, fosters understanding, tolerance and empathy and the value of these capacities cannot be underestimated in today's world” (par. 5); understanding the past—hopefully—prevents us from repeating previous mistakes (par. 6); and quite possibly the greatest benefit that Law noted is that literature “edges learners beyond their comfort zones but in doing so, [teachers] challenge their thinking and bolster their confidence to become even more skilled in the use of their own language. Or as the Confederation of British Industry might say, [teachers are] equipping them with essential skills for the real world” (par. 5). To those who teach outside of the English classroom, Law’s points read as good teaching pedagogy based on centuries of study. I’m sure each of us has memories of an English teacher who brought a piece of literature to life—a classic that indelibly altered who we are and the way we experience the world. But English classrooms—at least those fundamental composition courses found at the public university—have changed dramatically. Literature, particularly the classics, are no longer present in early composition courses, and have instead made their way into more specialized classrooms of study. In the place of novels, short stories, and poetry, the English composition syllabus is chockablock with nonfiction essays and articles. In a lot of ways, the English instructor teaches spin: how to write spin, how to read spin, how to deconstruct every argument (because everything is an argument), and how to decimate another argument with logic, clarity, and structure. Without literature, the modern English classroom is putting the work in to keep up with the age of technology. And I get it. I absolutely do. The path to graduation has more avenues than ever before, and more students are walking that path than anytime in history, so the English classroom needs to meet the needs of all students and all avenues of study. Furthermore, dissecting an argument and developing one anew are vital skill sets in the modern workforce. But along with Professor Sally Law, I believe that teaching literature can not only improve argument by giving students the opportunity to experience other people in other times and/or other worlds, but the study of literature teaches students how to think deeply. Studying literature develops critical thinking skills, and critical thinking has numerous stages before its ultimate point: argument.
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