Review of Palloff and Pratt’s Lessons from the Virtual Classroom: The Realities of Online Teaching

For the IDT 545 course, Emerging Technologies and Issues in Teaching, one of the two required texts was Lessons from the Virtual Classroom: The Realities of Online Teaching by Rena M. Palloff and Keith Pratt. This is probably one of the best books that I read in the Instructional Design and Technology program at CSUF.

I should start by saying that this book is geared towards online teaching in a post-secondary situation, not in the corporate world, but there are many facets of its content that can be used in both environments. For example, the section on administrative issues and concerns spent a lot of time on academia issues such as intellectual property, tenure, and faculty compensation (which was actually fascinating), but it also discussed the planning process, which is a universal subject for learning.

The authors provided a good introduction to online learning, providing an overview of technologies and discussions of what content should be taught and who should be teaching these classes. Good examples were provided, including some that showed the pitfalls of online learning that was not appropriate or properly planned.

There was a more in-depth look at the tools of the trade, describing Web 2.0 applications and the technologies involved in providing the learning. This would not be complete without including a section on money and accessibility issues.

One important area that was addressed was the conversion of instructor-led materials to the online learning format. It is not enough to simply post the PowerPoint online and tape lectures, and there were hints and tips for making learning more interactive. This was followed up with a discussion of teaching online materials that have been developed by others.

There was also a lot of solid information about the online students, their learning styles, and why they may or may not succeed. These students will also hopefully become part of a learning community and there were instructor tips for making this happen, as well as giving warnings about things to avoid so that learners are not excluded. After reading this, I saw a lot of truth when comparing it to the online community that we formed in Cohort 13.

I guess one big question would be, “Does any of this stuff actually work?” The answer is “yes,” and it is easy to verify. As I have now completed an entirely online graduate school program, I was able to witness many of these techniques in action, and have encountered some of the problems that were discussed in the text. The MSIDT program follows a lot of this book’s advice, and I can say this the authors provide excellent guidelines for online learning.

For $38 ($22 used), Palloff and Pratt’s Lessons from the Virtual Classroom: The Realities of Online Teaching is a must buy, and will probably be a book that you will want to keep so you can use it as a reference. I have shared portions of it with my colleagues and they were impressed with it too!

Thank you for checking out the blog today. I will not reviewing Dreamweaver CC: The Missing Manual as I did read the whole thing but did not actually use the content very much. Next time we will start taking a look at the courses for the 5th and final system for the CSUF Instructional Design and Technology program.

Thank you!

Palloff, R., & Pratt, K. (2013). Lessons from the virtual classroom: The realities of online teaching. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Review of Terry Felke-Morris’ Web Development and Design Foundations with HTML5 (7th edition)

For the IDT 540 course, Systematic Approach to Web and Multimedia Design and Development, one of the two required texts was Web Development and Design Foundations with HTML5 (7th Edition) by Terry Felke-Morris. This is an impressive book, but I struggled with it for the course as it was a very comprehensive read.

I must start by saying that if someone wants to learn how to program in HTML5, or if I was teaching a course just on this language this would be the go-to text. It starts from the beginning with the history of the Internet and goes through an exhaustive description of page layout, how each of the elements on the page is created, and CSS. There are even sections on design hints and how to promote your website and even an introduction to JavaScript.

The book accomplishes all of this with in-depth discussions that are followed up with exercises that the reader can use to actually program what they just learned about. This is what constructivism is all about. It is easy to read, but it has to be taken slowly and there is just a lot of book to go through.

This is all great stuff, but it was just a lot more than what I needed for this course, or for my career, actually (it is 704 pages long and $130). I know that I will probably not go into programming online learning from scratch, but on the other hand it did give me a lot of insight into how web sites can be built. The text is current so I went ahead and kept my copy as I can use portions of it as a reference, but it is not going to be something that I pick up every day…

Thank you for checking out the blog today. Next time we will be taking a look at the other 4th semester course, IDT 545: Emerging Technologies and Issues in Teaching.

Felke-Morris, T. (2015). Web development and design foundations with HTML5 (7th ed.). Boston: Pearson

Review of Alessi & Trollip’s Multimedia for Learning: Methods and Development (3rd Ed.)

For the IDT 520 course, , Instructional Design Level 1: Issues in E-learning and the Design Process, one of the three required texts was the third edition of Multimedia for Learning: Methods and Development by Stephen Alessi and Stanley Trollip. This book is also required for future classes in the MSIDT program.
This 580-page text is fourteen years old, and many of the examples are dated when it comes to technology, but it still has a wealth of knowledge for non-technological curriculum design elements. What is particularly impressive is how well the authors managed to avoid specific platforms or programs throughout much of the book. Unfortunately, this is the last update that Alessi and Trollip are planning to do, so another source of knowledge will have to be found in the future as the content of this text ages even more.
Multimedia for Learning: Methods and Development contains a good general overview of learning principles and methodologies from both constructivist and instructivist perspectives. Definitions of tutorials, simulations, and games are provided, as well as solid examples and comparisons of each, and reasons why each may be good or inappropriate for various learning situations. The authors provide good basic rundowns of testing and assessment methodologies, and relevant guidelines for when they should be applied. There are also good discussions of the administration of testing in online environments. Also included are solid job descriptions for every team member of an e-learning project, even though some of the jobs may no longer exist in today’s educational and business worlds. Lastly, there is a complete description of how to plan a learning project from beginning to end, with checklists and tables that include every imaginable course element, so that nothing gets forgotten.
Despite a great deal of dated content (computers and business world have changed a lot the book in the past 14 years), this book is an excellent as it covers the complete instruction design process, including critical issues such as the needs analysis, planning, storyboarding, design, budgeting, programming, project management, testing, and relationships with the client. Alessi & Trollip’s Multimedia for Learning: Methods and Development is a comprehensive guide, and there is probably not a better alternative out there for the instructional design professional. It is priced accordingly, too, with new ones selling for around $132 on Amazon. This might be a good one to pick up secondhand!
Alessi, S.M., & Trollip, S.R. (2001). Multimedia for learning: Methods and development (3rd Ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.

How Instructional Media Will Change the Way We Learn

Hi there! Today I am taking a break from discussing the CSUF MSIDT program to talk a bit about how I see the future of learning in my industry.
In the 12 years I have been writing curriculum, instructional media has already changed the way that education takes place in all phases of education: primary, secondary, and post-secondary, as well as in industry and the military.
Learning will have to become much more student-centered than in the past. Traditional lectures with the instructor telling everybody what they are supposed to know (with the student involvement through note-taking or asking questions) are gradually being replaced with activities that the students will complete at their own pace on mobile devices, and in many cases, remotely. In our company, paper books went away years ago to be replaced by CDs (and now flash drives, and the cloud in the future) as the students indicated that they rarely used the books after the class was over. Tablets will probably eventually replace paper worksheets, as that is what many of them are now using in their workplaces and at home.
As I see it, the interactive media to support technical training will mostly consist of:
- Tutorials to present the subject and help guide the learner
- Drills to practice basic skills and to provide competency in basic essential tasks, such as searching online databases
- Simulations to practice more complex processes (such as diagnostics) and to verify that learning has taken place
For this future instructional media to be successful, there are at least a few crucial components that must be addressed:
1. For any given institution there has to be an IT infrastructure and networking to support all of these mobile devices, as well as to give the instructor an overview of what the students are doing at any given period of time (especially important when conducting labs).
2. Students, teachers, and the administration (if possible) will have to receive training on how to use these technologies, as well as on how to successfully participate in a distance learning program.
3. Without an instructor’s physical presence the students will have to be motivated to participate in the process. This means that there will have to be some manner of accessibility to the instructor, possibly through some type of chat arrangement. And the learning itself will have to be attractive and engaging, as if it is miserable to access and complete the students will find some way to complete it in the easiest / quickest manner possible, which will reduce the effectiveness of learning.
4. With the increased share of learning that will be accomplished online, the evaluation phase will be even more important as the instructor will not be personally present to verify that the learning took place and that the student was able to actually accomplish the objectives of the course. Tests and quizzes will be a part of this, but realistic simulations (where possible) would be the best indication that the learning was successful.
Thank you for checking out my blog today!
Image courtesy of sheelamohan at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Review of Ledford and Sleemans’ Instructional Design: A Primer

For the IDT 505 course, Foundations of Instructional Design and Web Authoring Environments, one of the three required texts was Instructional Design: A Primer by Bruce R. Ledford and Phillip J. Sleem.
This text provides a general reference of the overall instructional design process, and like a primer it simplifies the entire process and essentially provides the readers with a singular viewpoint. Though the book is written from the standpoint of a generally constructivist approach, the authors do not exactly follow any specific established learning theory or strategy. Instead, they developed their own “paradigm” which follows a repeatable process that most instructors and educators should be able to follow.
Their process is perhaps too simplistic, as it assumes a lot about the learners, the learning process, and instructional design, but overall it is basically sound and rooted in legitimate research. A positive point is the authors’ insistence that the learning loop can be closed and that the learners’ performance can and should be evaluated. Though this is a lofty goal, it is a good starting point when developing a new course.
Ledford and Sleeman’s paradigm includes the following steps: 1) educational goals, 2) operational objectives, 3) pre-test, 4) motivation, 5) media, 6) appropriate practice, and 7) validation. Includes in the book are: a brief overview of instructional theory, writing goals and objectives, activities, media selection, instructional design (including very dated processes), and a section on validation (or assessment).
This text is a good reference as it provides a basic overview at an instructor level, and it might be helpful for those who are not pursuing a formal education in instructional design, but still have to know how to develop coursework.
Ledford, B. Sleeman, P. (2000) Instructional design: A primer. Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing