College of the Redwoods
CURRICULUM PROPOSAL
DISTANCE EDUCATION COURSE
Date: 2/23/2009
1. Division: Student Learning Support Services
2. Course ID and Number: LIBR 5
3. Course Title: Research Skills
4. Please select the distance education method that best describes how the course content will be delivered to most
students taking this class:
CTV
DE 52: One-way video and two-way interactive audio (delivered video and telephone)
ITV
DE 51: Simultaneous Interaction: Two-way interactive video and two-way interactive audio
Online
DE 71: Internet based - Simultaneous Interaction: Session under supervision of instructor not available
by line of sight using the Internet with immediate opportunity for exchange between
participants.
DE 72: Internet based - Delayed Interaction: Session under supervision of instructor not available by line of sight
using the Internet without the immediate involvement of the instructor.
Other
DE 53: Simultaneous Interaction: Two-way interactive audio only
DE 60: Text One Way
DE 70: Audio One Way
5. Attach course syllabus to this proposal.
6. What perceived need will this distance education course address?
The content of this class will be the same as a face to face lecture class. LIBR 5 teaches the
skills necessary to find, evaluate, ethically use and communicate information found in print,
ebooks, subscription databases and on the Internet. Offering this class as a distance
education class gives students a chance to learn to navigate the online environment. It also
allows students to learn to use the tools and resources for gathering information since many
databases and resources are web based. CR has many resources available online for
students' use that they are not aware of or that they are not sure how to use. The Internet also
provides many resources. It is important that students learn ways to find and evaluate these
resources. Knowledge of the tools to use and ways to determine the usefulness of the
resources allows students to be more successful in finding and using information for
research projects. The advantage of having this class online is that students may be a part of
this class from any location with Internet access. This allows students who live at a distance
to attend. It also opens the possibility for local students with full schedules to take the class.
Students could be full time workers, parents with school age children or children at home,
people unable to leave their homes due to illness, pregnancy or other issues, or other
reasons that make it easier for them to take a class online.
Curriculum Approval: 01.23.09
Academic Senate Approval: pending
1 of 5
7. Describe in detail how the course content will be delivered and how students will engage this content. Be sure
to describe the specific technologies and/or software to be used.
The material provided for the online environment will be the same as would be required in a
classroom course. Students will use research tools available through the CR library website
as well as web-based search tools. At least one visit to a physical library is required.
Weekly lectures will be posted as written documents on Blackboard. Weekly quizzes (2-3 each
week), homework assignments, the final annotated bibliography and final exams will be
available online. Weekly discussions of lecture topics and experiences in using search tools
will replace the face to face interactions between instructor and students that happen in a
classroom. Each week lectures will be posted that students must read. Each lesson will guide
students in using a search tool, creating citations, writing annotations, or evaluating
materials. There will be quizzes following each section of the lesson that students must
complete during that week. During the course of the class there are several assignments that
build on each other toward the final annotated bibliography. Each of these cover the use of
one of the search tools discussed. These assignments guide students in choosing a topic,
searching for resources using the tools described in the lessons, evaluating these resources,
citing and annotating them, and using in-text citations to give credit for quotations and/or
paraphrases.
The weekly lectures will be posted on Blackboard including links to support resources. The
lecture will be posted as a website/print document. There will be interactive links to web
resources so that students may access other information on the topics. At this point, there
will be no audio recordings, video or power point presentations. There will be images/ screen
shots of web interfaces that students will encounter. These will give visual examples for the
written explanations of how to use the interface. Each image will have an "alt" tag describing
the image for the visually impaired.
The quizzes, homework assignments and exams will be posted as separate documents on
Blackboard. Students will access the documents, complete them on their home computers
and repost them to the Blackboard shell. These will all be private interactions between
student and instructor. Weekly discussions will be accomplished using the Blackboard
discussion shell. This will allow students to "interact" with each other by responding to
postings.
8. To illustrate the description in #7, describe what students in this course may do in a typical week of this
course. During the week on using the library catalog, students will:
1) Read the sections of the lesson describing how to a) search the catalog
b) choose a book from the results list
c) write the annotation for that book
d) cite the source using Noodle Tools.
2) Take the quizzes for this section a) use specific searches to find items
b) evaluate the usefulness of a book
c) write a short annotation for a book
3) Post a response and respond to another student on ways to search the library catalog.
4) Complete a homework assignment using the student's chosen topic a) search for a book using the library catalog
b) describe the search
c) write the citation and annotation in Noodle Tool
9. Title V mandates “regular and effective” contact between DE students and the instructor. Describe the nature
and frequency of instructor-student interactions in this course.
Curriculum Approval: 01.23.09
Academic Senate Approval: pending
2 of 5
Communication between instructor and students and between students is an integral part of
an online course. A schedule of the class will be posted and available as soon as the shell for
the class is available. The structure of the class builds in the consistency many students need
by having weekly announcements of lectures, weekly due dates for discussion postings and
specified due dates for homework assignments. A syllabus for the class will be posted that
includes contact information for the instructor and the best times and locations for contact.
Online office hours may be limited, but times will be scheduled twice a week for grading and
email responses to students so that there is a guaranteed time that students can expect
contact.
Before class begins the instructor will contact students by email to remind them to “check-in”
to the class. (If there is no email, the instructor will phone the student.) At this point, the
schedule and syllabus will be available for students. It is the student’s responsibility to have
an email account and check it regularly during the class. The student is also responsible for
accessing the Blackboard class to read the lectures, post discussion entries, and complete
and post assignments. If the student has problems with the technology, it is important to
contact the instructor and/ or the technology help desk at the college.
Weekly announcements will be posted to the Blackboard discussion board and emailed to
students. Each week the instructor will post a discussion topic and read the discussions. The
instructor will respond to the postings weekly so that students know they are being read and
to offer suggestions. Each week the instructor will grade and comment on the quizzes and
homework assignments in the gradebook through private postings and/or through email. The
instructor will use email to contact any student who seems to be falling behind or needs help
understanding the material. If the student needs help on specific issues, it is their
responsibility to contact the instructor through email or a discussion board posting.
If a student has a documented disability, the instructor will expect contact from the college, or
documentation from the student that verifies that the student is getting help and/or needs
accommodation. Efforts will be made to create lessons that allow for multiple levels of
experience to discuss specific problems with the instructor. The final annotated bibliography
and final exam will be posted to Blackboard. These are the only assignments that cannot be
resubmitted.
10. Describe the nature and frequency of student-student interactions in this course.
Each week a discussion topic will be posted for students to respond to. They will also be
required to respond to at least one other student's comments. Students may interact with
each other more often if they choose. If there is a chat component to the software, chat
interactions between students and between students and instructor will be scheduled.
11. Describe how you will identify and respond to students experiencing difficulty in this course.
Students may contact the instructor at any time using email, which is private. Students may
post issues to Blackboard, especially if there is a problem whose answer may allow other
students to benefit from the answers. When assignments are submitted, the instructor will
make comments and corrections. Students are allowed to resubmit assignments to make
corrections.
In some ways it is easier to determine if a student is falling behind in an online environment
than a face to face lecture class. Some of the ways of determining this and helping these
students are:
1) If students are not completing work, they may not be able to keep up in the class or they
may not understand the content.
a) The instructor will contact these students to see if there is any way to help them catch up
or explain problems.
2) If a student's grade is low
a) the instructor will contact the student to offer suggestions.
Curriculum Approval: 01.23.09
Academic Senate Approval: pending
3 of 5
3) One common concern is English language learners. In an online class the written
responses will often demonstrate difficulty with the language.
a)The instructor will recommend that these students get help from the Academic Support
Center, a tutor, or other help in correcting language problems.
b) Some accommodation and suggestions for search terms is given for these students
when their language needs cause problems with searching assigned tools.It is the student's
responsibility to contact the instructor if they realize they need help. The instructor has no
responsibility for a student's workload or life issues. The instructor does need to help
students be aware of deadlines for credit/no credit and drop dates and to help a student catch
up with the work in a class if that's the direction they choose.
12. Will exam proctoring be required?
No
Yes
If yes, who will proctor exams?
13. Describe how assessments are used in this course to ensure that student work is evaluated effectively and
accurately.
This class involves much hands-on use of the research tools discussed. The lectures provide
guidance in how to use each tool. The quizzes allow students to have guided practice. The
homework assignments give students a chance to apply the new skills to their own topic to
build the final bibliography. Each assignment is posted to Blackboard, graded and
commented on by the instructor and may be resubmitted incorporating the corrections. Class
participation is important and will be evaluated based on the completion of weekly quizzes
and discussion postings and responses. This is also a way for the instructor to recognize
when a student is getting behind so that steps can be taken to help retain the students. The
final exam and final annotated bibliography will assess the level of proficiency students have
gained in the class.
14. Describe the equipment and staff resources necessary to support the course for students and instructors.
This class is taught online using the Blackboard shell. Students will need their own computer,
an email account, and internet access, but CR will not need to supply any equipment or
staffing other than the instructor's time, maintenance of Blackboard and whatever IT is
involved in maintaining availability to the library's internet based resources. The instructor
will need training in the use of Blackboard or whatever software the college uses to provide
online instruction.
15. Describe the contingency plan for this course if access to the delivery system is interrupted.
Blackboard is the connection between instructor and students. Other access is not needed. If
Blackboard were to be down the first course of action would be to postpone class till it could
be restored or allow students equal time to complete assignments. If Blackboard were not to
be restored, the instructor will maintain a backup copy of the lectures that have been posted
and students' email and resident addresses. As a last resort, the instructor can create a class
website that is independent of the college. Communication, at this point would be through
email, the website, phone and mail.
16. Both state and federal law require community colleges to design courses to ensure access for students with
disabilities, including compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. Please indicate the steps taken to
ensure accessibility by checking the Yes, No, or NA boxes below. For further assistance with accessibility and
assistive technology, please contact DSP&S.
Yes No NA Requirement and Purpose
1. The course delivery provides a text equivalent for all non-text elements such as
images, animations, applets, audio/video files and art. This will enable a screen
reader to read the text equivalent to a blind student.
Curriculum Approval: 01.23.09
Academic Senate Approval: pending
4 of 5
2. The course delivery provides descriptions for important graphics if they are not fully
described through alternative text or in a document’s content. The description would
inform a blind student of what a picture represented.
3. The course delivery ensures that information conveyed by the use of color is also
understandable without color. For example, so a blind or color-blind student could
understand a color-coded representation of DNA.
4. The course delivery provides textual equivalents to audio information (captioning).
The text will enable deaf students to know what others are hearing.
5. The course delivery provides an alternative audio description for multimedia
presentations. The sound will enable blind students to know what others are seeing.
6. The course delivery ensures that moving, blinking, scrolling, or auto-updating
objects or pages may be paused or frozen. The movement can be distracting for
students with certain disabilities.
7. If using faculty web site vs. college provided course management system, the web
site identifies, by labeling or other appropriate means, row and column headers. The
identification will enable screen readers to discern the headers, which disclose the
purpose of the data in the rows and columns.
Yes No NA Requirement and Purpose
8. If using faculty web site vs. college provided course management system, the web
site provides title frames and includes sufficient information as to their purpose and
relationship to each other. This will help blind students understand the
organizational purpose of the frame.
9. If using faculty web site vs. college provided course management system, the
instructor has ensured, through HiSoftware’s “Cynthia Says”
http://www.cynthiasays.com/ or other appropriate verification, the usability of pages,
and will attach to this proposal evaluation printouts of Section 508 and WCAG—
Priority 1 compliance.
10. My course syllabus recommends that students who require accommodations for a
disability, such as accessible formatting of course materials, contact me immediately.
Example: “In compliance with equal access laws, I am available to discuss
appropriate academic accommodations that you may require as a student with a
disability. Students are encouraged to contact Disabled Students Programs and
Services (DSP&S) for disability verification and for determination of reasonable
academic accommodations.”
Submitted by: Sarah Haman
Tel. Ext:
Approvals:
Department Chair: Jason Leppaluoto
Distance Education Coordinator: M Winter
Division Chair/Director: Jason Leppaluoto
Date: 2/23/2009
Review Date: 2/23/2009
Review Date: 2/24/09
Review Date: 2/24/2009
CURRICULUM COMMITTEE USE ONLY
Approved by Curriculum Committee: No
Yes
Date: 3.27.09
Academic Senate Approval Date: 4.3.9
Board of Trustees Approval Date: 5.5.9
Curriculum Approval: 01.23.09
Academic Senate Approval: pending
5 of 5