Methodist University
Title III Times
From the Director
Volume , Issue
Colleagues,
Here is an update of Title III activities that have occurred in the last months. As most of you know, we are in
the final year (Year 5) of our Title III grant. The grant period will be ending soon on September 30, 2015.
August 10, 2015
Technology Integration Plans (TIPs):
This final year of Title III has again provided funding for faculty-proposed TIPs. The focus this final year has
been on a wider exposure of Title III initiatives to more departments and students. Therefore, TIP funding has
not only been available for single department/faculty TIPs as in the past, but also for cross-disciplinary, collaborative, technology-rich learning experiences. Individual department/program TIPs that have been approved
and funded in Year 5 include instructional technology for Psychology, Physical Education & Exercise Science,
Athletic Training, Resort & Club Management, Biology, History, PGA Golf Management, Chemistry & Physical Science, Education, Marketing, and Music, as well as individual faculty TIPs for iPads.
Cross-disciplinary TIPs that have been funded and are being conducted into Year 5 include a learning experience led by the Justice Studies department with the Applied Forensic Science program and Environmental &
Occupational Management (ENM) department, and an exercise led by the Chemistry & Physical Science department with the departments of Communications, Art, Education, and ENM using 3-D printers.
There is still a small amount of Title III funding remaining for TIPs. Please contact Bruce Morgan or Don
Lassiter if you have a small TIP to be considered for funding. Proposals need to be submitted before the end of
August.
Faculty Development:
In Year 5, Title III has continued to provide funding for faculty to attend workshops and conferences. In spring
2015, Dr. Bruce Morgan, Director of Instructional Technology was also named Director of Distance Education
and has been responsible for helping develop MU’s online learning initiative. As part of this initiative, Title III
has been funding faculty development training conducted by Dr. Morgan during the summer on the upgraded
version of Blackboard and on Black Collaborate. Faculty members who will be teaching online courses this
fall semester have been receiving this training. This training will also be conducted for faculty the fall semester
who will teaching in the spring semester who will be using the upgraded Blackboard system and Collaborate
for the first time. If you are planning to teach online in the spring semester, please contact Dr. Morgan concerning this training.
A Very Important Piece of Business Regarding TIPs and Faculty Development Funds:
If you are a faculty member who received Title III TIP funding during the years of the Title III grant, please, if
you have not already done so, turn in your assessment report regarding the impact of the use of instructional
technology in your classes. This assessment was a critical part of your TIP (and in fact was a condition to be
met in order for your TIP to be funded) and we need these reports as documents to include in our final Title III
report to the federal government. Please send your TIP assessment reports to both Bruce Morgan and Don
Lassiter. These are due by the end of the Title III grant period (September 30, 2015).
If you received Title III funding to attend a conference or workshop, please send to Bruce Morgan and Don
Lassiter documentation of what you did to share what you learned at the conference/workshop with your colleagues. This sharing, and the documentation thereof, was a condition to be met in order for your faculty development request to be funded. Documentation is due by the end of the Title III grant period (September 30,
2015).
Regarding Instructional Technology:
Dr. Bruce Morgan, the Director of Instructional Technology, has continued setting up and trouble-shooting
classroom technology. He also conducted many training sessions for faculty (both in small groups and one-onone) on instructional technology use. Please contact him for any training needs you may have.
(continued on page 2)
Inside this issue:
From the Director
1
Calendar
2
Morgan’s Minutes
3
Teaching Tips
4
Page 2
Title III Times
(continued from page 1)
Inside this issue:
Technology for Student Use Outside of Classrooms
In spring 2015, Title III funded additional large capacity charging stations for student use. These were placed in areas
that students frequent.
Regarding Jenzabar-Related Activities:
Methodist University (MU) Office of Institutional Computing (OIC) Programmers, led by Mary Hupp, the Jenzabar
Database Administrator, continue to do a great job developing, customizing, as well as training on, the main Jenzabar
EX software system for our various administrative offices. OIC Programming staff have also worked diligently to
develop and customize the Jenzabar web portal and launched a mobile version of that portal in spring 2015. Tremendous thanks for all the OIC Programmer’s hard work!
From the Director
1
Calendar
2
Morgan’s Minutes
3
Teaching Tips
4
Back in late May-early June 2015, MU again sent a number of staff who are primary users of the Jenzabar system to
the Jenzabar JAM annual conference. Attending were Mary Hupp (Database Administrator), Ryan Pretlow (OIC Programmer), Jasmin Brown (Registrar), Dawn Ausborn (Associate VP for Business Affairs and Controller), Mary Mercer
(Accounts Receivable Accountant), Gina Thornton (Assistant Controller), and Gena Johnson (Academic Services Associate). Our attendees continued their learning about our Jenzabar system (the main system, the MYMU portal, and
Jenzabar Mobile).
If you have any new faculty or staff who need training on the Jenzabar system (whether the main system, the web portal, or the mobile version), please contact the OIC Programming Office for details.
Contacting and Locating the Title III Staff
Also, a reminder – you may remember that the Title III staff are located in various locations on campus. Bruce Morgan
is in the OIC office suite in the Services Building located between Clark Hall and the Mallet-Rogers House. Don Lassiter and Beth Butler are in the basement of the Davis Memorial Library, Room 001 in the former Tutoring Center.
Our phone extensions are: Bruce Morgan (x7465), Don Lassiter (x7081) and Beth Butler (x7422). Call us anytime or
stop by!
Best regards,
Don Lassiter
Calendar of Events
September 2015
August 2015
Su Mo Tu We Th Fri Sat
4
5
6
7
1
8
2
3
9
10 11 12 13 14 15
16 17 18 19 20 21 22
23 24 25 26 27 28 29
30 31
8/17—First day of classes
9/7—Labor Day Holiday (University Closed)
Su Mo Tu We Th Fri Sat
6
7
1
2
3
4
5
8
9
10 11 12
13 14 15 16 17 18 19
20 21 22 23 24 25 26
27 28 29 30
Page 3
Title III Times
Morgan’s Minutes
I have been offering a series of workshops regarding teaching in the Blackboard Learn LMS. (BB).
One of the topics discussed has been approaching teaching using Learning Modules. Presented here
is access to a more detailed description of that approach and how to use it in BB.
What is a Learning Module?
A Learning Module consists of content items with an accompanying path for progressing through
the items. Faculty can decide whether students should view the content sequentially or whether
they can view the content in any order that they choose. Any type of content, including text, audio,
video, quizzes or even a Mashup* may be included in a Learning Module. Files are added or edited
in a Learning Module in the same manner as they are in any Content Area.
(*MASH-UP: something created by combining elements from two or more source
as:
a piece of music created by digitally overlaying an instrumental track with a
vocal track from a different recording
a movie or video having characters or situations from other sources
a Web service or application that integrates data and functionalities from
various online sources )
A Learning Module is a logically structured collection of course content. Conceptually, it is
similar to a chapter in a textbook
A Learning Module may consist of several sections and activities. Faculty members can add
folders and sub-folders to a Learning Module and impose a hierarchical structure over the
content.
The Table of Contents displays the hierarchy in an outline view and enables students to easily
comprehend the scope and structure of a lesson.
Sequential viewing of the content can be enforced, or students may progress through the material independently.
Resouce:
Blackboard Learning Modules Quick Guide
http://www.niu.edu/blackboard/guides/learning_modules.pdf
Inside this issue:
From the Director
1
Calendar
2
Morgan’s Minutes
3
Teaching Tips
4
Page 4
Title III Times
Teaching Tips
Inside this issue:
As proposed in March of 1987 by Arthur W. Chickering and Zelda F. Gamson , good practice in
undergraduate education is comprised of 7 principles:
1. encourages contact between students and faculty,
2. develops reciprocity and cooperation among students,
3. encourages active learning,
4. gives prompt feedback,
5. emphasizes time on task,
6. communicates high expectations, and
7. respects diverse talents and ways of learning.
Principle #1, encourages contact between Students and Faculty. Essentially, "Frequent studentfaculty contact in and out of classes is the most important factor in student motivation and involvement. Faculty concern helps students get through rough times and keep on working. Knowing a few faculty members well enhances students' intellectual commitment and encourages them
to think about their own values and future plans. "
http://www.tltgroup.org/programs/seven
http://www.smith.edu/deanoffaculty/Chickering%20and%20Gamson.pdf
This principle not only applies to face to face teaching but has application for teaching online. Below are a
number of ways in which this principle can be applied to you in house as well as your online teaching.
Course Quality: Types of Regular Effective Contact strongly impact
your Online Teaching Pedagogy
Instructor—Student Interaction:
 Courseannouncements
 MessagingviatheLMS
 Personalizedfeedback
 Discussionboards
 Chat/IM
 Videoconferencing/Skype
 Phone/voicemail
Student—StudentInteraction:
 MessagingviatheLMS
 Discussionboards
 Chat/IM
 Collaborativeprojects:groupblogs,wikis
(continued on page 5)
From the Director
1
Calendar
2
Morgan’s Minutes
3
Teaching Tips
4
Page 5
Title III Times
Teaching Tips
Inside this issue:
(continued from page 4)
How to Implement Regular Effective Contact to your
Online Teaching Pedagogy

Initiated Interactions
Include means for all types of interaction in the course design.

Utilize appropriate media for accessibility.

Design daily or weekly assignments and projects that promote collaboration among students.

Model course netiquette at the beginning of the semester with instructor-guided introductions.

Pose questions in the discussion boards which encourage various types of interaction and critical thinking skills among all course participants.

Monitor content activity to ensure that students participate fully and discussions remain on
topic.

Create a specific forum for questions regarding course assignments.

Ask students for feedback about the course on a regular basis and revise content as needed.

Frequency & Timeliness of Interactions
Maintain an active daily presence, particularly during the beginning weeks of a course.

Establish guidelines for frequency of contact, and define what interactions a student can expect each week.

Make known response time for student questions/inquiries and assignment feedback (e.g. 1-2
business days).

Give frequent and substantive feedback throughout the course.
Expectations for Interactions

Specify course policy regarding frequency and timeliness of all contact initiated by the instructor in the syllabus.

Explain course policy regarding student-initiated contact (where to post questions, assignments, etc.) in the syllabus.

Outline and explain netiquette in initial course documents.

Clarify important dates, such as assignment and assessment deadlines not only in the beginning but also throughout the course.

Absences from Interactions
Inform students immediately of course designee should an illness, family emergency or other
unexpected event prevent continuing regular effective contact for a prolonged period of time.

Let students know when instructor-initiated regular effective contact will continue.
(continued on page 6)
From the Director
1
Calendar
2
Morgan’s Minutes
3
Teaching Tips
4
Page 6
Title III Times
Teaching Tips
(continued from page 5




















Means of achieving “regular” contact include, but are not limited
to:
Threaded discussion forums with regular and appropriate instructor participation based on
course topics and specific content of the course addressed to all students and/or to individuals publicly.
E-mail and/or messages within the course management system.
Regular “Announcements” posted in the class.
Regular deadlines, distributed throughout the term of the course, for assignments and other
student participation.
Regular, timely, appropriate feedback and evaluations of student work
Virtual online office hours in real time, such as chat, during announced periods of time, and/
or asynchronously during announced days and hours.
Instructor-prepared online e-lectures, podcasts or other forms of addressing course content
and topics, presented in an appropriate format for the subject, such as written documents, audio and/or video files, and/or introductions and explanations for any publisher created materials (written, audio and/or video, etc.) that, combined with other course materials, creates the
“virtual equivalent” of the face-to-face class.
Instructor-prepared Syllabus, specific to each distance education course section, to document
how regular contact between the students and the instructor is achieved.
Guidelines for frequency of contact at least equivalent to contact in face-to-face classrooms
Defined response time for student questions and assignment feedback.
Establishing an active presence in the class.
Frequent and substantive feedback throughout the course.
Course policies defining regarding student-initiated contact, such as, where to post questions
certain types of questions, in the instructor’s Syllabus.
Assignments and assessment deadlines that are spread throughout the term of the class.
Modules on the LMS
Lectures (recorded/streaming)
Podcasts/webinars/screencasts
Videoconferencing
Creative Commons - BY-NC-SA - 2012
Available at :http://online.pasadena.edu/faculty/files/2012/10/faculty_handbook.pdf,
http://www.tltgroup.org/programs/seven
http://www.smith.edu/deanoffaculty/Chickering%20and%20Gamson.pdf
Inside this issue:
From the Director
1
Calendar
2
Morgan’s Minutes
3
Teaching Tips
4