STUDENT TO CONTENT
LECTURES
Mini
Written lecture material can be divided into short, readable (“chunked”) sections with links to subsequent pages, if necessary.​
Lectures are most effective when used in combination with other instructional strategies. For example, following a section of written material, you can add a practice quiz or an interactive review game (see below) to help with recall and comprehension.
RESPONSES
Written
Papers can be written on various topics. Prior to students submitting their work, papers can be checked by an anti-plagiarism service to ensure that no plagiarism is involved.
DEBATE
Class
Debates can be used to expand upon both sides of an argument. Assigned students present their arguments, and fellow students respond to them and to each other. Each reply can acknowledge a point made by a student and will respectfully refute it, citing factual sources. Debates can take place in the discussion board.
RESEARCH
Conduct
Students can use library databases to research questions, problems, events, etc. Prior to students submitting papers, those papers can be checked by an anti-plagiarism service to ensure that no plagiarism is involved.
SPEAKERS
Guest
Experts on specific topics can be invited into the class so they can present information and/or their experiences to students. This can be done via text in the discussion board. It can also be done in the chat room or by posting podcasts. Students will interact with the guest speaker in the discussion board by posting questions and comments.
Another alternative is to use open access recorded lectures for guest speaker. TED and TEDeD are great sources for these.
SIMULATIONS
Learner
Simulations can be used by students so they can participate in, and learn from, processes that might otherwise be less available because of danger, expense or logistical difficulties.
CONTENT
Video
Streaming video clips can be used to demonstrate procedures and to help students visualize concepts. These clips increase the modalities of learning offered to students and meet the needs of those who learn best by seeing and hearing content. Be certain to provide access to the videos via a text transcript.
FIELD TRIP
Virtual
Students can “attend” virtual field trips to places on web sites that are either too far away or too costly to visit in person. These field trips can be followed by activities, such as discussions.
BOARDS
Discussion
Each module can contain at least one class discussion relating to the topic(s) of the module. Students can be required not only to post their opinions, ideas, and experiences, but they can also be required to reply to their classmates’ posts. The instructor can pose questions relating to the textbook, online presentations, web sites, etc.