LInC Online

FermilabLeadership InstituteIntegrating
Internet, Instruction, and Curriculum


Fermilab LInC II Syllabus for Aurora University




SYLLABUS

Aurora University

Fermilab LInC II

5 semester hours graduate credit

Catalog Description

Fermilab LInC II is designed to develop school/district leadership teams that incorporate engaged learning and effective technology integration into their student's learning environments. This is an intensive leadership course where participants create an engaged learning project for/with their students and a plan to work with other educators in their school/district to disseminate what they have learned. The project work focuses on creating an environment where students direct their own learning to investigate a real-world issue using the Internet to communicate and collaborate. The course is open to classroom teachers of all grades and subjects as well as library media specialists, technology coordinators, staff developers and curriculum coordinators. [5 Semester Hours]

Course Overview

The LInC course is intended for educators who are already connected to the Internet and want ideas and support for integrating it effectively into their existing curriculum. They will communicate and collaborate with other participants and course facilitators as they design, develop, and implement a project-based "engaged learning" curriculum unit using Internet tools.

We believe that the skills and strategies students need to be successful today and in the future are effectively taught through Engaged Learning projects. These projects are structured in such a way that students are responsible for their own learning. The projects are collaborative, student-driven, and are technology-dependent. When skillfully applied, technology can enhance learning in new and powerful ways.

LInC course topics include: constructing best practice indicators from your own best learning or teaching experiences, creating a vision for effective technology use, creating a technology-supported engaged learning project; developing strategies for assessment and classroom management of these projects; using a Web page editing software; using a listserv, bulletin board and chat tool to collaborate electronically, using FTP to upload and download files and software; learning about acceptable use, citation, netiquette, safety and copyright issues; and creating a dissemination plan.

Student Learning Objectives

The purpose of the course is to develop participants' ability to:

Teaching Methods/Class Format

This course will be offered in a face-to-face, partial-online, or full-online format. If there are no face-to-face meetings or very few, there will be substantial interaction online. Participants will use online course materials and online discussions to communicate and collaborate with other participants and course facilitators. E-mail, mailing lists, discussion forum software, and chat software will be used. Participants will be required to be available for electronic meetings at designated class times established by course facilitators. They are also required to participate extensively in bulletin board discussions and via e-mail.

The program incorporates engaged learning, a participant project, Web authoring, and a dissemination plan. Participants will experience a variety of learning techniques including: facilitated and independent computer use, projects, discussions, and individual and group work.

Note: LInC has been offered as a face-to-face 4.5 credit course for nine semesters starting in the fall of 1995. Participants met at Fermilab for eighty hours and also spent substantial time outside of class completing assignments and project work. The same amount of work (or more) is involved in the online course. The participants in the online class must complete the same (or more) end products and assignments that the participants in the face-to-face class completed. The participants will spend ninety-six to one hundred and twenty hours in their online work and class time. LInC has been offered in an online format for eight semesters starting in 1997.

Texts and Required Reading

Core course materials (/lincon/intro_overview.shtml) are published on the Fermilab Education Office Web server. Supplemental readings may be assigned by URL or handed out as hard copy. For example, students will be required to read Plugging In: Choosing and Using Educational Technology, 1995. Students also read a selection of materials addressing effective staff development and adult learners. In addition, manuals or instructions for technical skills are included in readings. Some flexibility is required due to the constant flux of current, relevant information.

Units of Work

Topics of study fall into three basic areas: Engaged Learning, Technology Resources and Skills, and Dissemination. The units will be woven together as participants produce an online project. The Engaged Learning component will provide the backbone structure for the class. Technology Resources and Skills are units that are flexible, and may be self-guided. The following topics will be covered:

Electronic Communication
Browser Info
Finding Resources on the Web
Analyzing Project Proposals Before/After: Activity1, Activity 2, Activity 3
File Transfer
Fetch (MAC) or WS_FTP(PC)
Authoring Web Pages

Class Assignments

There will be weekly assignments on the topics covered above. The assignments will culminate in the completion of an engaged learning project on the Web and the creation of a dissemination plan. Participants will be expected to complete assignments by the due date established by their course facilitators. Assignment completion may be adjusted to the needs and abilities of the participants of the course.

For more information, see the LInC assignments page for your course. Examples of typical assignments are:

Evaluation and Grading Procedures

Participants will be graded based on the quality of their work with components weighted as follows: finished project (35%), scenario page (20%), presentation page (10%), participation (25%), and dissemination plan (10%). Grades are differentiated on the basis of quality. Quantity alone is not a significant factor for grade differentiation.

A total of 100 points are possible in the course. Final grades will be:

Participants projects will be assessed based on their incorporation of engaged learning, effective use of technolgy, and demonstration of technical skills. Please click on the four rubrics linked below for a detailed description of the criterion. These rubrics are also included in this document in appendices A through D. Participation is assessed based on participation in all modes of communication that may be used such as class meetings, chats, bulletin board, listservs, e-mail, and online course evaluation forms.

Course Task
Percentage of Grade
Project Rubric
35%
Scenario Rubric
20%
Presentation Rubric
 10%
Participation
 25%
Dissemination Plan Rubric
 10%


Graduate Grading System

At the end of the course, letter grades are awarded as defined:

A (4 quality points per course unit) Excellent. Denotes work that is consistently at the highest level of achievement in a graduate college or university course.

B (3 quality points per course unit) Good. Denotes work that consistently meets the high level of college or university standards for academic performance in a graduate college or university course.

C (2 quality points per course unit) The lowest passing grade. Denotes work that does not meet in all respects college or university standards for academic performance in a graduate college or university course.

F (0 quality points per course unit) Failure. Denotes work that fails to meet graduate college or university standards for academic performance in a course.

Bibliography

Bibliographic references are incorporated into the online materials for each class which are on the Fermilab Education Office Web server at /lincon/intro_overview.shtml. Course materials are continually being revised based on participant feedback and new technology developments.

Attendance Policy

Participants are required to attend all class meetings (whether they are online or face-to-face), to give a presentation of their project, and to participate in online and/or face-to-face discussions and activities.

Academic Honesty and Integrity

Participants are expected to maintain academic honesty and integrity as students at Aurora University by doing their own work to the best of their ability. Academic dishonesty (cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, etc.) will result in the participant receiving a zero for that test, assignment or paper.

Final Examination Policy

Participants will give a presentation about their Internet project to the facilitators and class. Participants will use the computer to display their Web (HTML) pages. The content of these pages will include a project overview, scenario, assessment/evaluation plan, rubric, unit description before LInC, Internet resources for the project, and pages to guide student participation in the project. Participants must transfer (publish) their Web pages to a Web server so that facilitators can review them and other educators can view them for resources and project ideas.

American Disabilities Act

In compliance with ADA guidelines, students who have any condition, either permanent or temporary, which might affect their ability to perform in this class are encouraged to inform the instructor at the beginning of the term. Adaptations of teaching methods, class materials, including text and reading materials or testing may be made as needed to provide for equitable participation.

Appendix A

Rubric for "Publishable Quality" Engaged Learning Web Sites

Rubric for "Publishable Quality" Engaged Learning Web Sites



Project Name:

Project Authors:

Evaluator:

Evaluator E-mail Addresses (comma separated):



Other E-mail Addresses (comma separated) to send a copy to:




One point awarded for a "Meets" answer, no points awarded for a "Not Present" answer, a half point awarded for an "Attempted" answer. N/A answers do not count towards total points possible.


Engaged Learning Pedagogy (weighted 30%)

Meets Attempted Not Present N/A

A. The Web pages for students/participants invite and motivate them to:

1. Start on the project by offering a task or situation that piques their curiosity in the project (invitation to learn/hook).
2. Come up with questions, concerns, issues, hypotheses, or problem-solving suggestions that guide their investigation and overall participation in the project.

B. The Web pages for students/participants provide opportunities for students to:

1. Control their own learning; Web site provides links and challenges so they can make their own choices for how to proceed and engage at their own pace.
2. Determine the topic, aspect of topic, problem, or issue about topic to be investigated.
3. Ask and answer their own questions.
4. Explore concepts, principles.
5. Develop skills needed to complete the project.
6. Collect and compile data, gather information.
7. Do hands-on experimentation or application of concepts.
8. Analyse and synthesize data and information.
9. Produce original work (data, information, analysis, conclusions) (student as producer).
10. Work in collaborative groups.

C. The Web pages for students/participants provide opportunities for teachers to:

1. Have students discuss ideas; brainstorm; problem solve.
2. Provide ongoing feedback/advice for completing activity/project
(teacher as coach).
Note: The Web pages for students/participants should include content that encourages these types of activities to take place. Example: prompts for discussion, mention of intermediate products or checkpoints that provide opportunities for students to get or request feedback. The discussion or feedback itself is not required to take place online or on the actual Web site. These could take place in face-to-face discussions among students and/or with teachers, or these could take place via e-mail. These could also take place via an online bulletin board or chat, but this is not required.

Use of Internet (weighted 30%)

Meets Attempted Not Present N/A

A. Added Value:

1. Project would not be feasible or as effective without the Internet. (Info or resources not available; collaborators have different skills, knowledge, experience, perspective or geography than exists locally.)

B. Links:

1. Links to useful places/sites that provide needed information to complete project
2. Links to places/sites that provide needed skill development to complete project (e.g., a procedure or activity that provides information for "how to")
3. Links to datasets that are updated (if the projects involve data)

C. Communication provides opportunity for students to:

1. Communicate with experts (Q&A, or longer-term mentoring).
2. Communicate with other classrooms (Q&A, or longer-term mentoring).
3. Collaborate with other classrooms (e.g., shared and compared data collection).
4. Communicate data, links, and/or useful information to a wider audience than just the teacher in the form of a presentation or product (e.g., to other people who may be interested in project findings).
5. Publish data, links, and/or useful information for others online (e.g., present analysis and conclusions online).

Curriculum/Content (weighted 20%)

Meets Attempted Not Present N/A

A. Multidisciplinary:

1. Addresses one or more of the national teaching, assessment, and content standards in one or more disciplines
2. Includes skills and/or content from more than one discipline

B. Lab-based:

1. Students are engaged in authentic scientific methods such as researching, posing good questions, designing experiments, collecting and analyzing data, using scientific instruments and procedures.
2. Provides an authentic or field based experience for the students.

C. Task:

1. Meaningful; task advances students' knowledge/understanding of an important concept/principle.
2. Real world; relevant to students/participants

D. Grade Appropriate:

1. Skills, especially those that require technology, are grade level appropriate.
2. Content is appropriate (understandable) by students/participants at the designated grade levels.

Assessment (weighted 10%)

Meets Attempted Not Present N/A

A. Prior Knowledge:

1. Strategies are used to assess students' prior understandings related to the project content and their previous skill development.

B. Ongoing/Embedded:

1. Learner outcomes, activities, and assessment rubric for the project are consistent with each other (i.e., the project activities help students/participants accomplish the learner outcomes. The assessment rubric relates to the learner outcomes).
2. Mechanisms are in place for frequent assessment of student progress; students are provided feedback.
3. Students have opportunities to reflect on their progress (e.g., discussions, journal entries).
Note: The Web pages for students/participants should include content that encourages these types of activities to take place. Example: prompts for discussion, mentions of intermediate products or checkpoints that provide opportunities for students to get or request feedback. The discussion or feedback itself is not required to take place online or on the actual Web site. These could take place in face-to-face discussions among students and/or with teachers, or these could take place via e-mail. These could also take place via an online bulletin board or chat, but this is not required.

C. Grading:

1. Students/particpants have opportunities to review rubrics or other grading procedures.
2. Students'/participants' final grade on the project/activities is based on their overall performance (e.g., performance-based, "authentic" assessment).

Page Design (weighted 10%)

Meets Attempted Not Present N/A

A. Visually Inviting:

1. Colors and patterns enhance readability rather than detract from or make it difficult to read.
2. Page is not cluttered with text; balanced layout, sufficient white space.
3. Pages use the given templates, header and footer information is filled in (including TITLE for bookmarks).
4. Web pages for students/participants have a consistent look and feel.
5. Graphics work. (They are not broken.)
6. Graphics/photos are engaging.
7. Graphics/photos do not take too long to load.
8. Graphics enhance the text rather than are perfunctory (e.g., graphics are logos/symbols that highlight functions or content).
9. Animated gifs stop after a few cycles.

B. Writing:

1. Headings and subheadings are clear; enhance readability.
2. Changes in text size and color are used sparingly to enhance understanding.
3. Text is well organized; easy to follow.
4. Text is grammatically correct with no spelling errors.
5. Text is well written, clear.
6. Student/participant pages are directed at students/participants.
7. Observes copyrights and citations

C. Links:

1. Links work.
2. Consistent navigation bars provide links among pages.
3. Links have good names and/or annotation; they don't say "click here."

Comments:

 

Appendix B

Scenario Rubric

Scenario Rubric

Purpose: The purpose is to evaluate project scenarios and to give some feedback to the participants for further project development.



Project Name:

Project Authors:

Evaluator:

Author E-mail Addresses (one per line):



Evaluator E-mail Addresses (one per line):


Criteria
Yes
Attempted
No

Possible Points

2
1
0
Communication:
Uses the Internet for two-way/one-way communication
Mentors or collaborates with experts in the field
Receives the latest and frequently updated information on the Internet
Technology Design:
Depends on the Internet and is effective because of the Internet
Provides access to challenging tasks, opportunities, and experiences
Integrates technology in a meaningful way
Provides opportunities for sharing student's work
Curriculum Area:
Integrates multiple disciplines
Engaged Learning:
Students are energized by and responsible for their own learning.
Project includes an authentic task or ill-structured problem.
Assessment is ongoing—reflects both content and process.
Engages children in challenging learning
Students are flexibly grouped in order to provide equitable learning opportunities.
Teacher is a facilitator or a co-learner of learning.
Student is a knowledge producer/explorer.

Total Points Earned

30 possible



Comments:


 

This rubric was designed to evaluate the engaged learning scenarios. It will also be a handy tool for you to assess your own work. If you would like a more detailed rubric, please view the project rubric that will be used for the final assessment. Sharing project rubrics or having students generate criteria for these rubrics can ensure a deeper understanding of the expectations.

**Note: A successful project does not need and probably won't contain every single indicator listed in the above chart.**

Appendix C

Presentation Rubric

Presentation Rubric

Project Name:

Project Authors:

Evaluator:

Author E-mail Addresses (one per line):



Evaluator E-mail Addresses (one per line):


Purpose: The purpose of this rubric is to assess the participants' presentation pages as well as to help guide them in the development of their presentation page.


First Section - each worth one point. "Yes" answers earn one point; "No" answers earn zero points.

Criteria

Yes

No
Title of Project/Unit

Link to Scenario Page

Link to Student Pages

Subject and Grade Level

Time Frame



Criteria

2
Developed

1
Attempted

0
Not Present
Includes Abstract

Abstract Summarizes Project Clearly and Concisely

Learner Description/Environment

Goals and Objectives

Alignment with Standards

Structure of the Learning:  
Challenging Content

Engaged Learning Evident

Best Use of Technology Evident

Assessment/Rubric

Project/Unit Evaluation

Total Points: 25

Comments:



Appendix D

Action Plan Rubric

Action Plan Rubric

The guiding questions support the criteria identified in this assessment tool.

Project Name:

Project Authors:

Evaluator:

Author e-mail addresses (one per line):



Evaluator e-mail addresses (one per line):



Developed
(2 pts.)

Attempted
(1 pt.)

Not Present
(0 pts.)

Plan has a clear and distinct statement for integrating engaged learning and best use of technology in their learning environment.

Provides a brief summary of the current situation in their school district including climate, culture of the learning environment and technology support

Identifies all the necessary people and funds to facilitate implementation

Has goal/objectives which support technology integration with engaged learning

Plugging In (1995)

Plan is feasible given the technology support.

Provides a timeline of clearly defined steps and activities to implement the plan and achieve the stated goals

Has an evaluation that will be ongoing, including initial and ending assessment pieces



Points Possible: 14

Comments: