Online course assessment

Mind the gap…ideas for filling ‘non-lecture’ time Lisa Harris l.j.harris@soton.ac.uk www.twitter.com/lisaharris

Two brief themes to discuss… • Lessons learned as a tutor on University of Liverpool online MBA • The “micro-lecture”

The Liverpool e-MBA • Started 2001 • Now has over 2000 students from 175 countries • Partnership deal with Laureate Online Education • Run separately from Liverpool’s traditional MBA programme, though some staff work on both • Global network of part time Tutors and Module Managers • There is a growing package of online MSc programmes, including topics such as Medicine

Assessment • Students study 8 units plus dissertation • Each unit lasts 8 weeks • The course material is a summary ‘handout’ plus specified reading from core textbook each week • Each week is assessed as follows: – 2 x short essays (750 words) submitted Sat and Mon – Classroom participation (commenting and raising/answering questions on the work of others) – Integration paper submitted Wed which summarises the key learning from the week’s material and subsequent discussions – Grades and individual tutor feedback given weekly on Sat • Total assessment per module = 16 x short essays, 8 weeks’ participation, 8 weekly summaries. There are no exams. • Platform used is Blackboard with integrated SafeAssign for plagiarism checking

Advantages • Ensures full participation throughout (no place to hide at the back…) • Requires excellent time management (students and tutors…) • Builds communication, analytic and writing skills • Students are required to draw upon at least one journal article from the Uni e- library per essay submitted

The weekly summary • Students are encouraged to reflect upon: – Specific learnings that stand out from their own work that week and why – What they have learned from particular discussions with other students and why – How they might apply the learning within their own workplace – Practical issues of what went well/badly with respect to time management and the study process

The ‘micro lecture’ • Student attention span in minutes is equivalent to their age in years…. • Lectures last 1-3 minutes (paired with assignments and discussions) • Framework: – Show them where to dig – Tell them what you’re looking for – Oversee the process • Requires the tutor to be *very* clear about focusing on the key learning points

Modus Operandi • List the key concepts you would cover in a ‘normal’ lecture • Write a 15/30 second introduction and conclusion to top and tail the key concepts • Record as podcast or vodcast • Design an assignment that directs students to summarise/integrate further reading/activities that develop the key concepts • Upload to Blackboard • End result is a series of short but integrated assignments conducted throughout the module

Online course assessment

by lisa harris on Jul 08, 2009

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