The course unit is composed of 13 “weeks” or “modules”. These are presented on the right hand side of the page, under the categories menu. Additional menus to the right include links to websites of interest, a widget that shows recent comments posted on this blog by members of this class, and a second widget that shows which parts of this blog are the most popular.

Please note that each week’s page will include:

• what we will be working with,
• the reading that will need to be completed for the coming week, and
• the assignment(s) that is/are due for the coming week.

Each week’s page MAY (but not necessarily) include :

• material used in class (e.g. powerpoint slides)
• video updates (or audio-recordings of the lectures)

I will make every attempt to post these materials on the blog, but there will be times when I will not be using any powerpoint slides or times where we will be holding small group discussions in which case audio recording won’t be a viable option. Therefore, think of the above more as a possibility than as a promise.

Also note that you have the capability to post comments on all pages but the homepage.  Please feel free to use this space as much or as little as you wish. I will answer your questions on here, as well as on email. The benefit of posting your questions/concerns here is that they become available for other students to see, making it efficient to quickly resolve common problems or issues.

To get started, simply click on week1.

Before we get started on anything, to ensure that everything is working as intended, I recommend that you:

1. use the Firefox browser (download it here)
2. install the adobe flash player from here – note that this installation is specific to the browser you are using. Since you want to be using Firefox, if you are viewing this page from a different browser you need to revisit this page with Firefox and then install the flash player.

If you are using a computer where you are not given access to install software, you will still be able to access the material provided, but your experience may not be optimal.

Today’s theme: Introductions, Course objectives, Assignments, What is design/development/evaluation?, Personal Learning Goals, Background survey

Schedule:

• Introductions
• Complete this survey
• Bad design examples: Visa Application forms, Entrance door to the Ellen Wilkinson Building, Entrance door to our teaching room.
  
• What is design (of educational software and learning environments)?
• What is development (of educational software and learning environments)?
• What is evaluation (of educational software and learning environments)?
• The design/development/evaluation process.
• Course structure (WordPress blog, Blackboard)
• Course Aims & Objectives
• Assignments
• Preferred email sign-up
• Face to face students: Complete AV release forms.

Class material

• Slideshow presentation available here
• Click below to access the audio recordings from class:

Due for next week

• Read:
  • Raising the bar for instructional outcomes (pdf)
  • What lies beyond effectiveness & efficiency (pdf)

• Do:
  • Face-to-face (F2F) and distance learning students: Please post an introduction of yourself to this blog post using the Add comment feature below. Tell us about yourself, work, hobbies, and aspirations. If you have a picture, video, blog, or any other digital presence that you’d like us to see, please feel free to post a link.
  • Complete a “personal learning goals” exercise (F2F students should bring this in to class next week. Distance learning students should email me a word/pdf document with this information). The document that you need for this is available via this link.
  • Distance learning and face-to-face students: Visit Blackboard and discuss the questions posted (At a minimum, I would like to see 3 thoughtful responses per person (2 posts and 1 reply) – I will close the discussion next week by 1pm Manchester time). Starting early and checking the discussion board often will ensure that all of you complete this assignment on time.
  • And just to see where this semester will take us in terms of design, watch this video:

Today’s theme: Evaluation of educational software (electronic learning environments)

Schedule:

• Housekeeping
  • Good design/Bad design signup (f2f students will learn about this in class – Distance students will receive an email with signup instructions and directions on on how to produce their presentations using the Debut Video Capture Software software
  • Who is in each group, which case study is each group assigned to, and when is the case study assignment due? (all these assignments were made at random)
• Lecture & discussion of the evaluation model (“good instruction”) that we will use in class.

Class Material

• Slideshow presentation available here.
• Audio recording available below

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)


• Video recap below

Due for next week

• Read:
  • E-learning evaluation methods
  • Dix, A. (2004) Human-Computer Interaction (Chapter 9: 318-364). Available under Required Texts via http://tinyurl.com/EdesUnit0809

• Do:
  • Distance learning AND face-to-face students: Visit Blackboard and discuss the questions posted (At a minimum, I would like to see 3 thoughtful posts/replies per person – I will close the discussion next week by 1pm Manchester time). Starting early and checking the discussion board often will ensure that all of you complete this assignment on time.

Today’s theme: Methods used to evaluate educational software

Schedule:

• Good/Bad Design presentations
• Lecture & discussion of educational software evaluation methods.
• Evaluation exercise

Class Material

• Slideshow presentation available here.
• Audio recording available below

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)


The good/bad design websites discussed in class are:
http://www.languagesonline.org.uk/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/french/
http://www.german-grammar.de/

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)


• Video recap below

Due for next week

• Read:
  • Norman, D. (2002) ‘User Centered Design’ (Chap. 7: 187-217). Available under Required Texts via http://tinyurl.com/EdesUnit0809
  • Kirschner et al “Designing electronic collaborative learning environments.” Available on http://www.springerlink.com/content/w204530g786m0m83/ Click on log in, choose country and U of Manchester and login using your username and password.

• Peruse:
  • ‘What is Interaction Design?’ in Sharp, H., Rogers, Y. and Preece, J. (2007) Interaction Design: beyond human-computer interaction (Chapter 1: 1-42). Available under Required Texts via http://tinyurl.com/EdesUnit0809
• Do:
  • Distance learning AND face-to-face students: Visit Blackboard and discuss the questions posted (At a minimum, I would like to see 2 thoughtful posts/replies per person – I will close the discussion next week by 1pm Manchester time). Starting early and checking the discussion board often will ensure that all of you complete this assignment on time.

Today’s theme: The design process (or, one design process)

Schedule:

• Good/Bad Design presentations
• Lecture & discussion of interaction design , 6-stage model of interaction design, and the 3-dimensions of educational tasks

Class Material

• Slideshow presentation available here.
• Audio recording available below

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)


The good/bad design websites discussed in class are:
www.0tutor.com/
www.learnphotoshop.net
www.flashvalley.com/
www.astate.edu/

• Video recap below

Due for next week

• Read:
  • Norman, D. A. (2002). Emotion and design: Attractive things work better. Interactions Magazine, ix (4), 36-42, Available at http://www.jnd.org/dn.mss/emotion_design.html
  • Allen, M.W. (2003) ‘The Essence of Good Design’ in “Michael Allen’s Guide to e-learning” (Chap. 3: 57-98). Available under Required Texts via http://tinyurl.com/EdesUnit0809
• Peruse:
  • ‘The Designer’ from Löwgren, J. (2004) Thoughtful Interaction Design: a design perspective on information technology. Available under Required Texts via http://tinyurl.com/EdesUnit0809
  • Hokanson, B., Miller, C. and Hooper, S. (2007) ‘Commodity, Firmness, and Delight: four modes of instructional design practice.’ Available under Required Texts via http://tinyurl.com/EdesUnit0809

• Do:
  • Distance learning AND face-to-face students: Visit Blackboard and discuss the questions posted (At a minimum, I would like to see 2 thoughtful posts/replies per person – I will close the discussion next week by 1pm Manchester time). Starting early and checking the discussion board often will ensure that all of you complete this assignment on time.
  • Case Study #1 group will be presenting next week!

Today’s theme: What are we designing? Are we designing products? Experiences? Entertainment? Systems?

Schedule:

• Good/Bad Design presentations
• “What are we designing” lecture and discussion
• Case Study #1

Class Material

• Slideshow presentation available here.
• Audio recording available below

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)


The good/bad design websites discussed in class are:
Sandra
http://www.chazrapley.co.uk
http://www.kidspsych.org/index2.html
http://www.sesamestreet.org/games

Uzma
www.MyJobSearch.com
www.connexions-direct.com/Jobs4u
www.totaljobs.com

• Video recap below

Due for next week (November 5)

• No class next week.
• Work on case study/final project activities

Due for November 12

• Read:
  • Boettcher, J. (2007). Ten Core Principles for Designing Effective Learning Environments: Insights from Brain Research and Pedagogical Theory. Innovate 3 (3). Access via http://www.innovateonline.info/index.php?view=article&id=54 (free sign-up required)
  • 25 principles of learning: http://www.psyc.memphis.edu/learning/whatweknow/25principles.doc
• Peruse (You should already know this. If you don’t, this is your chance to get introduced to it):
  • Alessi, S.M. and Trollip, S.R. (2000) ‘Learning Principles and Approaches’ (Chap 2: 16-47). Available under Required Texts via http://tinyurl.com/EdesUnit0809

We will not have class on this day. You should take this opportunity to relax, recuperate, catch up, and check-in with your group members to ensure that they too are doing the same. Ideally, you will also take time to converse with your group members as to the status of your final project and what you need to do next …and since video games are relaxing, and may spark your creative endeavors, enjoy a flash version of the snake game at this page!

Remember that Case Study #2 group will be presenting next week!

Schedule:

• Learning principles lecture
• Case study #2
• Flash instruction

Class Material

• Slideshow presentation available here.
• Audio recording available below:

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)

• Case study #2 materials:

Slideshow presentation available here, wiki available here, and audio available below.

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)


• Video recap below.
• Screen recording of classroom Flash activities below.

If the video below is too small, click this link to download a larger movie file to your computer

Do for November 19 (next week):

• Flash modules 1 & 2 are due next week (scroller & xylophone).
  • Access the scroller module here (the file is in .zip format. To unpack it, right click, select extract all, and press next and next.)
  • Access the xylophone module here (the file is in .zip format. To unpack it, right click, select extract all, and press next and next.)
  • After you are done with these modules, you will need to upload them to your webspace. Directions on how to use your wesbspace are available here.
  • Directions on what to turn in for this assignment are available on the document explaining all assignments.

Remember:

• Case study #3 group will be presenting next week.

Neil’s Good/Bad design presentations:

Schedule:

• Turn in Flash modules 1 & 2 (scroller & xylophone)
• Good/Bad Design presentations
• Case study #3
• Flash instruction

Class Material

• There was no slideshow presentation used today.
• The flash learning materials used in class are here. Please go through the long document and practise your frame-by-frame animation skills for next week. The second document (movie clip properties) is part of next week’s work, but i thought i’dd post it here either way.
• Audio recording available below (good/bad design presentations and case study):

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)

• Case study #3 materials: slideshow presentation .
• Video recap below.
• Classroom flash activities were not recorded this week, because i thought to try giving you the directions I linked above (flash learning materials). Please let me know if you have a strong preference for one or the other.

Items due for next week:

• Flash module 3 (simpleFunction). Access the simpleFunction module here (the file is in .zip format. To unpack it, right click, select extract all, and press next and next.)
• Final project Storyboards
• Good/bad design presentations
• Case study 2 materials due via email

Remember:

Case study #4 group will be presenting next week

Schedule:

• Turn in Flash module 3 (simple function)
• Good/Bad Design presentations
• Case study #4

Class Material

• There was no slideshow presentation used today.
• We did not do any more flash work in class today. You were given lab time to keep on working on your materials and ask questions.
• Case study audio recording available below (good/bad design presentations and case study):

(Click here to download the MP3 file of this recording)

• Case study #4 materials: slideshow presentation .
• TK’s good/bad design presentation .
• Georgia’s good/bad design presentation .

For next week

• (REQUIRED) Case Study #3 written components due.
• (OPTIONAL) Flash Module 4 (setRGB). This module teaches you how to change the colors of movie clips on demand. I decided to make this an optional module because of your concerns regarding the amount of work you have to do. The module files are available here. If you do want my feedback, feel free to email it to me.