Facilitating Design Experiences

Part I: Letter of Invitation

Good morning,

I would like to invite you to attend a LEM meeting for the redesign of LS 4223.  This course is part of a current project I am working on with Jennifer Barger-Johnson.   It is also the project I have chosen to model for the module three Facilitating Design Experiences activity.

The meeting is slotted for 30 – 60 minutes and will be held in the ID lounge.  I will provide all the resources for the modeling interaction.  For your review prior to the meeting, I attached the meeting agenda and the LEM of the current course design. 

Thank you in advance for taking time to participate in this modeling activity.

Attachment (2):

(1) Meeting Agenda

(2) PROJECT Original LEM: LS 4223
Jennifer Barger-Johnson

Project Type:  Diagnostic for the purpose of redesigning the course for additional interaction and feedback.

Part II: Meeting

Three instructional designers and one elearning accessibility specialists joined me to discuss the original model of the LS 4223 course and to create a new LEM model.

Meeting Pictures

Part III – Thank you Letter

Good Afternoon,

I would like to thank you for attending the diagnostic LEM meeting.  The feedback you provided helped me to identify areas needed additional interaction, feedback and practice assessment.  Please let me know if you have any additional thoughts regarding the project.

Regards,

Tracy Fairless

Thoughts on the LEM Design Meeting

I think there is tremendous value to holding a design meeting with a group of people familiar with LEM.  Even though the project topic was not familiar, their ideas and suggestions were on target and helped me pinpoint some weaknesses in the design. 

Modeling Agenda Design

This agenda was created prior to meeting with a faculty member assigned to redesign LS 4223.  This course is due for reevaluation and it is in need of change.  The diagnostic approach will serve to create a sound starting place from which to add new ideas and increase student interaction with each other, with the content and with the instructor.

Designing the Design Space

The learning environment design meeting I choose to share today is a diagnostic meeting for a course redesign project.  My space would include the learning environment modeling agenda for the participant, sticky notes for the building blocks, markers, a white board, and a pre-developed model of the existing course.  

The environment should be free of clutter with good lighting and space for everyone to work and move around.  As an added touch, I would provide something to drink and of course, some munchies!  Who doesn’t think better with chocolate?

Planning a Learning Environment Design Experience

Planning a Learning Environment Design Experience

I selected a learning environment that I designed last summer with a faculty member.  The original design [see below] follows the path the professor has used in the past to deliver this course and it closely matches other online courses she teaches.  I am not satisfied with the model because it limits self-awareness and multiple forms of feedback and dialogue that typically occurs in her face-to-face classroom.

In the Discover [Empathy Research] step, I would begin with a conversation about the face-to-face classroom.  Details about how the class is facilitated, what is shared, interactions that occur, key questions, points of student interaction, instances of reflection, and other key details would fuel the conversation. 

The initial model above would be a great visual to move through the Understand [Diagnostic Model] step with the professor.   By placing the elements that occur in the f2f classroom on the model, it would help her to recognize the missing elements in the online model.  These are shown using the sticky notes below.

The Envision [Design Model] step would be best demonstrated with a revised LEM.  You can see in the example below that the elements identified in the previous step have been addressed. 

The Build [Development Environment], would include building a module out in the course shell and reviewing the LEM and module side-by-side.  Revisions would be made if needed and the additional modules would be built.

Innovation occurs as the course is taught as well as a point of reflection at the end of the course.  The LEM model can be used to quickly visualize where additional change is needed.  If there are significant issues in the course, I would go back to the LEDx and use it to problem solve with the professor.

The LEDx provides a deeper exploration into the mechanics and outcomes of the course.

 

Applying the LEDx to BIG Design Challenges

Applying the LEDx to BIG Design Challenges

 

The design challenge is choose is the design of an ideal introductory video to an online course.  Note ideal and the pressure is on!  This should be a quick 10 minute project that touches on the most important information a student will need to know to start the course.

In the Discovery Stage, I would quickly talk to peer instructors teaching the course and identify the most important information students need to know in the first week to be successful.  I would also review notes from former students; review the Q/A’s from previous courses and any survey information that I might have from previous courses.    I would make note of why this information is important to students,  typical challenges students have in the class and the most commonly missed information.

With the primary areas of concern identified in Discovery, I would move to the Understand Stage.  Pulling the critical information together and putting a sense of order to the information to enhance understanding is part of this stage.  To maximize understanding, I would identify content that needs to be verbal, visual or a combination of verbal and visual.

In the Envision Stage, I would record a rough first take of the video.  A thorough review of the video using my checklist of information identified in the Discovery Stage would be important and a bonus might be getting feedback from a peer instructor. 

Finally, the Build Stage would include the final recording/editing of the video followed by uploading it to YouTube, captioning and sharing with my students.