Designing and Developing Interactive Learning Objects for Online Courses
- By Darla Runyon, Roger Von Holzen, Roger Von Holzen
- 06/09/04
Online teaching has sparked new teaching strategies for faculty to incorporate
whether in campus-based courses, web-augmented course sites or in an online
delivery mode. One of the most effective and significant of these techniques
is the integration of interactive, learning objects. This integration of technology
provides a way to engage online students in the learning process and allows
the instructor to take their courses to a higher level of learning.
When preparing to teach online, many instructors look at the campus-based model
and try to design their online course based on this model. In order for online
delivery to be a successful learning medium for the student, though, a major
redesign must take place. The redesign process fosters the emergence of a teaching
strategy, which facilitates students engaging themselves in their individual
learning cycle. This teaching strategy is the integration of learning objects
into the learning cycle for a particular unit of content.
Learning cycles are the process by which students work through course content
and concepts. Typically, critical content is delivered to students via text
and presentations building a foundation of understanding to apply what they
have learned about the content through an instructional concept. Learning cycles
should include the opportunity for the students to practice the application
of the content and provide performance feedback and subsequent opportunities
for relearning and reassessment. Learning objects can become a core component
of the learning cycle.
Learning objects include the application components of the critical content
of a course or module. These learning objects may be: 1) concepts that have
been historically difficult for students and/or 2) critical course concepts,
which students must know to function in real-world situations. Learning objects
provide the students with the opportunity to apply what they have learned and
receive performance feedback. Typically these objects are associated with a
particular content unit.
Once developed, these learning objects can become a part of an integrated learning
experience where critical content is first presented to the student via text
or presentation followed by the integration of the instructional concept. Students
are given the opportunity to work with the concept as many times as needed before
completing a performance assessment providing them with feedback on their progress,
which may lead the student back into the learning cycle for supplemental relearning
and reassessment. The foundation for any course is based on good instructional
design, which begins with the development of clear, concise learning outcomes.
Communication of these outcomes is crucial to student success and they should
be conveyed in related learning objects.
In online and web-augmented courses, learning objects fit well into the course
management delivery system. Course features such as threaded discussions can
be used to supplement the use of learning objects in these learning delivery
environments.
At Northwest Missouri State University, the Center for Information Technology
in Education, a faculty instructional technology office, plays a key role in
the design, development, and delivery of learning objects.
The curriculum design
specialist works with faculty to identify appropriate instructional concepts.
Simple storyboarding techniques are used to outline the initial project and
how the learning object can be integrated into an instructional plan. Student
employees and/or interns are assigned to the project and a meeting is held with
the faculty member, curriculum design specialist, and computer software specialist.
This project development team devises a plan to manage the design and development
of the learning object. The computer software specialist guides the group in
determining the most appropriate delivery format whether it is a multimedia
software, productivity software, HTML, content creation software, or game creation
software. The student employee or intern constructs and develops the learning
object and becomes the main coordinator of the project with the faculty member.
They set up meetings with the faculty member as the project progresses to assure
that the project is on target with the faculty member’s expectations.
A template is used in the planning stages of the design and development of
these learning objects. The first steps are to include the related learning
outcome and determine the appropriate delivery format. Brief exposure to critical
content can be included depending upon the concept. The incorporation of multiple
learning modalities to include text and graphics, animation with narration,
and scripting of narrations is incorporated to provide students with more than
one way to learn the concept. Functionality must be built into the learning
object so that the students are able to complete the application multiple times
providing the opportunity for relearning. A formative assessment of the concept
with immediate performance feedback is built into the learning object. Once
the learning object is complete, a tutorial is created to teach students how
to use the learning object. These tutorials should include text, graphics, animation
and possibly narration of the tutorial and the ability to replay the tutorial.
Learning objects can be incorporated in campus-based, web-augmented or online
course sites. They provide students with engaging, interactive material, which
can be easily integrated into the learning process allowing the instructor to
take their courses to a higher level of learning.
Darla Runyon and Dr. Roger Von Holzen will be presenting on this topic at
the July 2004 Syllabus Conference in San Francisco.
