Gavin Porter, Faculty of Science, HKU

1. CMS versus non-CMS common core science courses(alternative title: what I wished I had known previously…..) Gavin Porter PhD Teaching Consultant Faculty of Science University of Hong Kong

2. I came into HKU not knowing what CMS stood for…… CMS = course management system Other popular acronyms: LMS (learning management system) LCMS (learning and content management system) VLE (virtual learning environment)

3. CMS versus non-CMS CC courses 1st semester – Biological Science Common Core course; no CMS 2nd semester – 2 Earth Sciences Common Core courses; WebCT used for both courses 7key factors were readily obvious upon comparing the CMS vs non-CMS experience Tutorial group set-ups Email communication during the course Sharing of student-generated items Sharing of instructor generated items Assignment hand-ins Delivery of feedback on assignments Plagiarism checks CCST9018 CCST9013 CCST9019

4. Tutorial group set-ups

5. Tutorial group set-ups

6. Tutorial group set-ups Less complaints in both of the CMS courses combined, than in the non-CMS course

7. Email communication during the course

8. Student to tutor email communication for the CMS courses: conventional or CMS platforms?

9. Shared student-generated items

10. Instructor-shared rubrics which preceded assessment

11. Assignments handed in via…. Soft copy feedback Return of assignments online (“soft copy”) was deemed valuable or very valuable by 85% of students (and 85% of instructors as well) Lonn and Teasley, Computers and Education, 2009

12. Plagiarism check

13. Caveats/Disclaimers In no way am I championing WebCT over other CMSs – I realize there are limitations to the WebCT program; however, a limited CMS appears to be better in most situations than no CMS at all, particularly with large classes Some things can be done without a CMS (i.e. students could email soft copies of assignments to instructors, rubrics can be handed out in class)

14. Quotation from Steering committee’s recommendations on eLearning Strategies for HKU (April 13th, 2011) “HKU provides very limited general technical and infrastructure support at the university level for eLearning, and the level of support is far below any of the higher education institutions within or outside Hong Kong, which generally include both technical and pedagogical support”

15. Acknowledgements Common core instructors Dr. Jess King Dr. Nathalie Goodkin Dr. Zhonghui Liu Dr. Steve Pointing Dr. Bob Fox The students of common core courses CCST9013, 9018, 9019