This semester I taught two completely online and asynchronous half-semester lab modules. I truly enjoyed the challenge and opportunities for new course design and assignments. The experience certainly made me think about the alignment of my expectations and those listed in course maps and syllabi. Both BIT 479/579 High-throughput Discovery and BIT 477/577 Metagenomics had assignments that produced e-portfolio elements we could share on public websites: go.NCSU.edu/htd and go.NCSU.edu/bitmetagenomics
Thanks to the support and lots of suggestions from the Open Pedagogy Incubator, these assignments and course websites developed and improved the course. Importantly, these assignments and experience are emphasized by my teaching philosophy that…
There will be no throw away assignments!
After submitting grades and reflecting on student comments, I shared this post with metagenomics students. However, it is frustrating that they will likely not see how their comments and resources will improve future offerings of the course!
