Online Ocean Science course receives national award for use of technology
Memorial University has been recognized with two national awards for its innovative use of educational technology in online courses. On May 28, DELTS accepted two awards from the Canadian Network for Innovation in Education (CNIE) at the CNIE-RCIE & CAUCE 2015 Conference in Winnipeg.
Oceans 1000: Exploration of World Ocean, received the Award of Excellence and Innovation in the Integration of Technology in Instructional Design/Teaching and Learning for the incorporation of Prezi as an exploration tool in an online environment.
French 2300: French Phonetics, received an award of merit in the category of Excellence and Innovation in the Integration of Technology in Formal or Non-Formal Education Program for the creation of pronunciation modules using an ultrasound machine.
“These awards are the direct result of DELTS’ successful collaborations with departments in the Faculty of Science and the Faculty of Arts at Memorial,” said Ruth Hickey, manager of course design and maintenance, DELTS. “The creativity and ingenuity that went into these online courses is nothing short of impressive, so it is fitting they have been recognized on a national level by CNIE.”
Oceans 1000 is the first online development for the department of ocean sciences. It is an introductory course that has a flipped-classroom design, combining face-to-face lectures and online interactive activities in the format of 11 virtual oceanographic expeditions to help engage the learner. Students are required to take on the role of a research scientist and complete an online expedition, log book, and online mini-quiz each week before they attend class, leaving class time available for discussion, and more facilitative and problem-solving approaches.
“It took nearly two years to translate my original idea of virtual oceanographic expeditions into the blended course that has now been delivered to about 100 students, but it was worth every minute and I’m very proud of this award,” said Dr. Annie Mercier, content author and associate professor, department of ocean sciences. “The team at DELTS worked so efficiently and gave me such valuable input. I am particularly glad the incorporation of Prezi worked out so well; I love this platform, which I use both online and in class, and the students seem to appreciate it as well.”
The online offering of French 2300 was a collaborative development by Drs. Ann Thareau (department of French and Spanish) and Maureen Scheidnes (departments of French and Spanish, and linguistics) with DELTS, and provides an interactive means for students to study the workings of speech organs. The course includes a French articulation tool that features an interactive phonetic animation, showing the positioning of the mouth, tongue and voice box in pronouncing a given sound. It also includes ultrasound videos of words and phrases to show how the item is pronounced in three views: front-on, side-on, and internally as captured through an ultrasound. This unique approach, which allows students to see positioning of speech organs when pronouncing sounds in French, was made possible thanks to the help of Dr. Yvan Rose, department of linguistics.
“Our goal was to address pedagogical needs in the teaching of second-language speech sound articulations. Following the motto that an image is worth a thousand words, we adapted methods developed for linguistic research based on ultrasound visualization,” said Dr. Thareau, content author and head of the department of French and Spanish. “Mastering the sound system of a second language requires making fine motor and perceptual adjustments, so by including videos and ultrasounds of French sounds we were able to provide students with visual cues to optimize their learning.”
In developing a course for online delivery at Memorial, DELTS provides content authors with the instructional design and technical support needed to create courses that are high quality, interactive and media-rich. The ultimate goal in creating online courses is to provide students with access to engaging content that enhances the learning experience.
For more information about developing an online course at Memorial, contact Ruth Hickey at 864-2836 or rbhickey@mun.ca, or visit www.delts.mun.ca.