Artifact 2 Educational Report
Adam Brown
Artifact 2: Science of Brainwaves and Entrainment Blackboard Course
Educational Report
Adam Brown
Spring 2013 Beck
The Story Behind this Portfolio
The main story of this portfolio is demonstrating the ability to create multimedia learning
objects w/ practical assessment in a variety of different delivery methods. The goal is breaking
complex subjects down to an understandable level, where the learner can develop understanding
and measurable technical skills in three topic categories:
Software Training: Learning how to complete specific projects using software applications in
order to remember, understand, apply and create using these software tools.
Scientific/Technical Education: Learning about complex science-related topics and concepts, in
order to be able to remember, understand and apply this knowledge.
Technological Education: Learning about technology-related topics and concepts, in order to be
able to remember, understand and apply this knowledge.
The secondary goal of this portfolio is to demonstrate application of project
management best practices and methodology in the creation of strategic planning that positively
enhances utilization of essential and advanced technologies in higher education.
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Adam Brown
Project Description:
Abstract:
Science of Brainwaves and Entrainment is an online course created in the Blackboard
learning management and course delivery system. This course demonstrates proficiency in
designing and integrating multiple forms of instructional media and assessments. This project
accommodates policies surrounding media based learning through the use of accessibility best
practices in the creation of items in Blackboard.
This project consists of several content areas that guide the student through the course,
quality instructional presentations, interactive multimedia, print materials and assessments. The
course is designed to give students a basic but technical understanding of brainwave function and
measurement, as well as brainwave entrainment technology, the mechanics of its technologies,
and its functional benefits and possible applications.
Project Description:
Science of Brainwaves and Entrainment is a Blackboard course created for the Distance
Learning class in the ETEC Master’s program. The reasoning behind including this project into
my portfolio is threefold. First, I wanted a clear and compelling demonstration of instructional
design and creation of a high quality course in the Blackboard LMS that has clear learning
measurements and utilizes formative and summative strategies to evaluate quality instruction.
Secondly, I wanted to demonstrate proficiency in creating high quality instructional media that
enhances learning while staying compliant with the policies related to media based learning. My
third reason for inclusion of this artifact is to demonstrate mastery in implementing various
delivery systems of instructional technology including Blackboard LMS and HTML5/Flash
based learning modules and assessments.
This project fits under the 2nd category; scientific/technical education. There are vast
arrays of new technologies that are propelling scientific discovery in the 21st century. There
needs to be quality instruction that conveys the importance, applications and inner working of
these technologies in order to empower students to find new and creative ways to apply them to
the challenges we face worldwide. The rationale behind this project is to demonstrate what is
possible for multimedia educational and assessment inside the established learning management
systems. The flexibility of HTML5/Flash for delivering instruction allows the students to
discover content in new and exciting ways, while still adhering to the organizational and
standards-based requirements needed to ensure quality control.
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Adam Brown
Program Identification
2.1 Appropriate use of Print Materials
Print materials are used in this course to both supplement the multimedia elements and to
deliver learning content consistent with course and lesson level objectives. Print materials are
designed to be informative, clear and complete in terms of each document’s role in guiding the
student towards course completion. These materials include Word documents and .PDFs. The
specific print materials in the Blackboard course are; Lesson 1 and 2 PowerPoint presentations in
PDF format, as well as the Lesson 1 and 2 handouts in .DOCX format. The content delivered in
the handouts is another version of the content in the main lesson pages found in Blackboard. This
was done to enable students to view a non-Blackboard version of the content in case of an
internet outage or issues with the LMS. Print format for these topics is important because there is
a body of introductory knowledge that must be read before going further with the supplemental
readings and presentations. This foundational understanding makes it easier for the learner to
understand subsequent topics in the course.
The reason for using print materials along with the multimedia presentations is to
accommodate learning styles that prefer static text and image based instruction and well as
accessibility concerns for those who have outdated software or computers. The print materials
created for this course closely match the content of the HTML based lessons in the Blackboard
LMS. This is to demonstrate multiple delivery forms of the same educational content while
adhering to the stated learning objectives at all levels.
2.2 Integrate Instructional Use of Two or More Media Forms
The Science of Brainwaves and Entrainment course consists of the following items and
respective media forms:
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Course Banner: .PNG created in Photoshop
Course Instructions: HTML/CSS
Syllabus: HTML/CSS
Course Schedule: HTML/CSS
Lesson Instructions/Objectives: HTML
Concepts Maps: .PNG created in PowerPoint and Photoshop
Lessons and Assignments: HTML/CSS
Print Version of Lessons: .DOCX, .PDF
Video Presentations: .MP4/HTML5/Flash created in Camtasia Studio
Video Presentation Self-Assessment Quizzes: HTML5/Flash created in Camtasia Studio
Lesson Presentations: .PPTX
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Adam Brown
HTML/CSS
The most common media form in this course in the HTML/CSS based pages in the Blackboard
LMS. All HTML pages in this course were designed in Dreamweaver then copied into the LMS
where they could be fine-tuned for the correct heading structures, image accessibility issues,
typography and content organization. All HTML editing in Blackboard was accomplished in the
HTML view editor in Blackboard instead of the WYSIWYG editor. The reasoning for this was
to ensure clean HTML programming.
The benefit of this media is that overall it is possible to deliver large amounts of
information in relatively small file sizes. Another benefit is that through HTML a developer can
format text, images and insert multimedia content in ways that are cumbersome to perform in a
WYSIWYG editor. Sometime, the nuances of formatting a web page to look and operate
correctly require web programming by hand.
PowerPoint
Another integrated media form is the embedded Slideshare PowerPoint presentations.
Lesson 1 and 2 PowerPoint Presentations were designed to be the center piece of educational
content design for this course. Each presentation has a course and lesson outline for its
corresponding content areas, as well as specific learning objectives. The benefit of this media is
that it lays the groundwork for the multimedia presentations by creating a visually appealing and
informative base from which to integrate video learning modules with animation sequences
created in PowerPoint.
MP4/HTML5/Flash
The Lesson 1 and 2 Video Presentations utilize HTML5, Flash and .mp4 file types. These
projects consist of a PowerPoint presentation that was taken into Camtasia Studio 8, where it was
screen captured and narrated. After editing the video and ensuring quality control, the video
presentation was produced in an HTML5 envelope that was uploaded to Blackboard.
This media form is very important to enhancing the quality of instruction in this course
because it adds a multimedia element to the PowerPoint presentations through the use of scripted
narration. Scripted narration adds another layer of explanation to the content topics in the
presentation, which is vitally important for this subject matter, which is both obscure and not
intuitively understandable. This media form demonstrates HTML5 video’s role in bringing
lecture capture presentation into the course in a way that directly reinforces learning objectives
by explaining complex concepts in conjunction with diagrams, images and animations.
Images/Diagrams
The images and diagrams integrated into this course were edited/created in PowerPoint
2010 and Adobe Photoshop CS6. Use of stock images provided by the SME for this project got
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Adam Brown
me most of the way through visually reinforcing the learning objectives of the course. There
were several instances where diagrams showing the mechanics of the different concepts had to
be created using a combination of stock images and images created in PowerPoint and
Photoshop.
2.3 Create Visual Materials that Enhance Learning
All visual materials tie directly into the course and lesson level learning objectives and
are not there for superfluous visual imagery. Each image, presentation and video visually
illustrates and enhances the content as the student moves through the course towards completion.
A good example is the Lesson 1 and 2 Concept Maps. These maps visually communicate the
lessons and different learning objectives in a way that show the student the content organization
of the lesson. The Lesson 1 Concept Map is directly below:
Another example of visual materials that enhance learning is found in the Lesson 1 and 2
PowerPoint presentations. A specific example is slide 4 in the Lesson 1 presentation. This slide
visually enhances learning by demonstrating how measuring the frequency of different
waveforms can be accomplished by understanding Hertz (cycles per second). In this diagram two
different brainwave patterns are compared with their respective cycles measured and displayed.
The combination of visual imagery with supplemental text enhances learning by eliciting higher
levels of learning in Bloom’s Taxonomy such as application and analysis. The visual materials
created for this course enhance learning by clarifying complex concepts, visually demonstrating
processes and adding to the perception of quality through sound graphic design principles.
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Adam Brown
2.4 Create Interactive Media
There are two different ways that interactive media was created in this course; linking to
resources inside lesson presentations and through interactive quizzing in the video presentations.
In the HTML/CSS lesson pages for Lesson 1 and 2, there are several links to external
web-based information resources that were selected through sound application of pedagogical
content knowledge because of the clarity and value they add to the lesson content and learning
objectives. This interactivity enhances instruction because it allows the student to read the
overall explanation of a topic or content area and click links to visit web-based resources that
expound on, clarify and reinforce the educational content of the media and lesson.
Interactive quizzing was created and placed at the end of each of Lesson 1 and 2 Video
Presentations. Each video has a HTML5/flash based non-graded quiz that can be used both by
the student as a self-assessment tool and for the instructor to formatively evaluate progress. This
interactive quizzing feature not only helps tie together the concepts of the lesson with the
evaluation criteria, but it also allows them to measure their progress in comprehending,
analyzing and applying the content in preparation for the course final exam.
2.5 Engage Students with a Variety of Instructional Materials
The instructional materials developed for this course were designed with the goal of
engaging the student through static text and image based pages, PowerPoint presentations,
multimedia learning modules and web-based supplemental resources. The graphics, text, video
content and interactive resource links are all designed to engage students by being exciting,
visually appealing and conceptually clarifying. The text-based print materials and Blackboard
items were created to engage the student by exciting the imagination and curiosity about this
subject, since many of the concepts in this course are not widely known outside the field of
neuroscience.
The real goal of the course is to get students excited about the brainwave and entrainment
mechanics, as well as gaining understanding of the basic concepts that provide a scientific basis
for this technology. This requires engagement beyond static presentations. The video learning
modules were instrumental in accomplishing this goal because they were able to synthesize text,
diagrams, imagery, animation and narration to create a high quality virtual learning environment.
My reasoning for employing this type of instructional material comes largely from a
research study conducted at Towson University in 2007. In this study 3 types of video
presentations were compared for comprehension and retention among students: The results
indicate that students make noticeable improvements and have positive perceptions and attitudes
towards the implementation of video in blended learning. Also, findings suggest that media
designs able to control the focus of a learner’s attention to one specific stream of information,
a single-stream focused approach, may be the most effective way to present media-based
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Adam Brown
content. The video presentations in this course employ the single-stream focused approach by
integrating narrative over diagrams, imagery and animations that demonstrate key concepts.
3.3 Develop and Implement Polices Related to Media-based Learning
Policies related to media-based learning were developed for the project and implemented
in accordance with relevant Section 508 standards for HTML objects in Blackboard. There are
several aspects of both the HTML items in the course, as well as the multimedia presentation that
comply with these accessibility standards. First, text equivalents for non-text elements were
provided by creating alternative text and long descriptions where available. An example of this is
in the alternative text for each lesson’s concept map. The concept map alt text actually describes
each learning objective as it is presented in the graphic display.
Equivalent alternatives (captioning) for multimedia presentations were provided by
having presentation narrative in text format on each slide along with the images, diagrams and
narration. Documents are organized so that they can be readable without requiring an associated
style sheets. The syllabus, course instructions and lesson HTML pages were created without the
use of external CSS, utilizing inline styles to format text and positioning.
Appropriate H1, H2, H3 heading structure was utilized in all HTML objects to ensure
accessibility for students tabbing with assistive technologies such as a screen-reader. Another
policy that was selected for application in this project was the use of HTML5 object instead of
Flash for the multimedia learning objects. This policy ensures that students can view the
multimedia on MAC, iPad and iPhone devices. A standalone player with associated files
uploaded to Blackboard content collection was chosen instead of an embedded player to increase
accessibility. Also, for interactive quizzing, the time response requirement was met by having no
time restrictions of the HTML5 quiz pages.
4.4 Implement and Manage Various Delivery Systems of Instructional Technology
This course is implemented and managed in the Blackboard Learning Management
System. This course demonstrates proficiency in implementing course and lesson level
objectives through the development of items in the LMS, as well as importing and using different
media and objects built outside the LMS with the use of Content Collection. Assignments and
assessments were created and implemented for this course including Blogs, Discussions, and
Exam assessments, as well as self-assessment tools that were uploaded to the LMS.
Another delivery system implemented and managed for this course is HTML5/Flash
based multimedia content packaging. While in this case the multimedia presentations and selfassessment quizzing was uploaded and utilized in Blackboard, it is also a standalone system
which is often used to provide instructional content and assessment outside an LMS with the use
of emailed grading results as a substitute for the integrated quiz features found in Blackboard.
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Adam Brown
5.1 Use Formative and Summative Strategies to Evaluate Quality Instruction
The course provides avenues for formative feedback from students in the form of
discussion groups and Collaborate-based office hours at crucial milestones in the course,
specifically at the end of Week 1 and Week 2. Another formative strategy utilized to gauge
student progress and therefore Instructor performance is the use of integrated self-assessment
measures, specifically Lesson 1 and 2 Video Presentation Self-Assessment Quizzes. In this way,
the instructor can evaluate the quality of their instruction by seeing learner progress in the key
concepts of each lesson. This feedback on instructor performance is performed by the fact that
each self-assessment quiz score is automatically emailed to the instructor. Through this feedback
mechanism, the instructor can see where they can improve areas of the course.
Another formative strategy is the use of assignments to evaluate the quality of instruction
mid-course. In the Week1 Discussion assignment, students must explain how the 5 brainwave
patterns correlate with situations and mental states they have experienced. The level of depth
given in this discussion assignment lets the instructor know how thoroughly they are presenting
the content, which again opens up opportunities for redesign of content and materials to improve
the course.
For example, in the Lesson 1 Self-Assessment, students must make the connection
between Hertz ranges and specific brainwave patterns. They must also make the connection
between specific brainwave patterns and related mental states and neural processes. This would
fall under the category of remembering and understanding. In Lesson 2 Self-Assessment, the
student must tie both of these conceptual connections together to take a given Hertz frequency
and specify the mental states associated with it based on the correct brainwave pattern. Both selfassessment quizzes are cumulative in nature and prepare the student for the final exam at the end
of the course by testing content knowledge in three ways according to Bloom’s Taxonomy;
remembering, understanding and applying.
The course provides summative evaluation of the course objectives utilizing a
Blackboard-based exam at the end of the course. This cumulative exam connects both brainwave
and entrainment concepts, terms and measurements into an exam that tests application of both
sets of content. This assisted by the use of chunking and scaffolding in the course lesson
structure to build upon each concept is stages, which decreases the possibility of overload.
5.2 Identify and Implement Learning Measurements or Assessments
All of the course and lesson level learning objectives are matched to specific assessment
measures in the form of multiple choice and matching questions in examination format. Students
are prepared for the type of application knowledge needed for the final exam through testing
progressively higher levels of concept application in the self-assessment quizzes attached to each
video presentation. Here is an example of this progression as the student moves through both
Lessons 1 and 2:
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Conceptual Progression
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Brainwaves are based on waveforms
Waveforms are based on Hertz frequencies
Hertz frequencies can be measured, thus brainwaves can be measured
Specific brainwave patterns correspond with specific Hertz frequencies
Specific brainwave patterns correspond with certain mental states and processes
Hertz frequencies can be changed through entrainment, therefore brainwave patterns,
mental states and processes can be altered.
Beyond exam-based assessment, Blog and Discussion learning activities/assessments are
assigned in order to test understanding of the topics and concepts found in both lessons, with
special attention to creating learning activities that elicit application. An example of this is
Discussion 1: Patterns, located in Lesson 1. In this assignment, the student must discuss specific
situations that could correspond with each of the 5 brainwave patterns covered in the lesson,
including why each mental state is attributed to the brainwave pattern. This assesses
understanding of the 5 brainwave patterns and their related states and processes in a way that is
tangible and understandable to the student because it forces them to relate to personal
experiences.
Personal Reflection
I learned 4 major lessons relative to my professional growth through the creation of this
instructional project. The first lesson was practical design and implementation in the Blackboard
LMS. Specifically, learning how to build and edit HTML programming for use in Blackboard
was slightly challenging because of some of the particular ways that Blackboard uses HTML.
HTML objects must be built outside of Blackboard using clean and simple coding, then copied
into the HTML view interface for finishing touches, images and formatting.
The 2nd major lesson was how to implement different media forms into Blackboard. I was
already familiar with attaching different file types to course items, but for this course I decided
that it was important to showcase the possibilities of multimedia in Blackboard. This required
learning how to implement HTML5 multimedia into my lessons.
The 3rd and most important lesson was how to do the above two task areas while staying
compliant to Section 508 and general accessibility guidelines. This directly affected the media
selection for the PowerPoint presentations, how I implemented HTML5 multimedia, and how I
created alternative text for each diagram and image used in the course. In conclusion, this was a
captivating learning experience that taught me about the operational realities of implementing
and managing instructional systems in an LMS, as well as how to implement different forms of
media that enhance learning while maintaining accessibility.
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Adam Brown