Dr. Chrystal Dean from Appalachian State University discussed the use of backward design with another critical element for online courses. The recorded 2020 Lilly Conference presentation included examples and a reflective analysis of the design process. Dean began by having the audience reflect on the silver linings during the pandemic, including more walks with children. Then, Dean referenced the work by Wiggins and McTighe from Understanding by Design. The three steps in backward design are:
- Identify the desired results
- Determine acceptable evidence
- Plan learning experiences and instruction
Dean emphasized planning the learning experience by starting with what we want students to learn, how we are going to measure learning, and then the activities. This is backward design. However, Dean mentioned something was missing to take into account the learning context/environment of the learning experience. The environment will influence the assessment and the instructional activities. This is the plus part of backward design plus. Dean teaches math to teachers and focused on the redesign of a small course that includes both math and pedagogy. The course used a textbook and an Intentional Talk book I’ll have to look into. The technology tool used is Voicethread that allows discussion of media such as videos, slides… even audio. Dean uses a watch activity in which students view a Voicethread tutorial. A create activity encourages students to create and annotate a discussion of a math problem solving strategy. Finally, Dean posts Voicethread assignments for commenting. Voicethread is cloud-based and integrates into the Moodle LMS at Appalachian State University. Dean eloquently explained the rationale for using the Voicethread assignments to allow students to share and analyze mathematical reasoning. It is clear that the tool (Voicethread) is used for the target learning goals. Further, Dean explained the course design focused on specified learning goals and had a consistent structure to help learners progress. Dean is intentional in the selection of assignments that align with the learning goals selected and also offered honest information about what worked and what didn’t. Dean shared that they use a mixture of synchronous and asynchronous and record all synchronous sessions.
