Developing Resources
Online processes
Once you’ve planned your content it is best to have a look around and find what resources are available. There are many online resources freely available – see the list of websites at the end of this page. If you use a set text the publisher may well provide you with extra materials.
When you’ve had a good look around and you’ve decided which technologies you’re going to use it is then a matter of developing those resources so that they’ll be available for students at the start of semester.
It can be useful to create a grid such as this:
| Content | Resources | Interaction | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| i.e. the topics/subjects listing | For each topic, list the resources you’ll need and whether you have it, is it freely available, can someone create it for you, or are you going to have to create it yourself? | How are the students going to interact with the materials, with you, and amongst themselves. | What formative and/or summative assessments are you going to provide to ensure the students meet the learning outcomes related to this topic. |
Going online – the process
- Consult your colleagues
- Think about teaching & learning needs
- Apply for a Learnline template
- Attend Learnline workshops and drop-in sessions
- Request support from Education Development Unit
- Allow as much time as possible to develop your online unit (up to a semester)
The Essentials
- Unit information – even if everything is online students must still receive this
- Copyright compliance – your responsibility but help available from Ruth Quinn, Casuarina campus library
- Quality Assurance – a quality check will be carried out on your Unit before it is released to your students
Formats
Even for something simple like providing a text document to students there are a number of options regarding formats, for example, is it best to put documents online in pdf or Microsoft Word format, how about using web pages? The answer is, not surprisingly, that it depends on the job (see http://www.solidpdf.com/pdf/_word_format/172 for some guidelines on using pdf or Word.)
Resources
Australian e-portfolio Symposium 2008. A report on e-Portfolio (eP) Symposium by Mona El-Ayoubi, EDU, TLDG.
Presenting practical ideas for designing effective e-learning. The Australian Flexible Learning Framework has collected examples of innovative Australian e-learning course designs for vocational education and training (VET) and drilled down to the details to show you how they work. Here you'll find answers to these questions:
- How are teachers using e-learning in VET?
- Why do they choose e-learning? How does it help?
- How do they go about it? What's required?
- What options are available for designing e-learning?
MERLOT is a
free and open resource designed primarily for faculty and students of
higher education.
The ALTC Exchange is a networking site and document repository established by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council to enable teaching and learning professionals to share knowledge and practices.
World Lecture Hall – an entry point to free online course materials from around the world.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology OpenCourseWare is a free and open educational resource (OER) for educators, students, and self-learners around the world.
The Australian Flexible Learning Framework provides the vocational educational training (VET) system with e-Learning skills, professional development opportunities, products, resources and support networks to meet today's increasingly technology-driven learning environment.
Flexible Learning Toolboxes are a collection of e-Learning resources, suggested learning strategies and supporting material to support online delivery of recognised training packages for vocational and technical education. Toolboxes can be purchsed form the AFLF website or stand alone e-Learning objects from toolboxes can be downloaded from Toolbox Learning Object Repository.
The E-learning in the Trades website provides case studies as examples of trade teachers from the building trades currently using e-learning tools to improve the flexibility and the impact of their teaching.
Nationally developed resource on information & communications technologies and their role in flexible learning. This web site has been designed for teachers and instructors in higher education to access a rich set of resources that support the development of flexibly delivered high quality learning experiences for students.
