iTeach Sitka 2014

The peer review checklist is well organized. Using the checklist enabled me to look in depth at my course and address each category and the contents within each category. I did find many areas that I can improve and I have learned many ways this week to improve my course delivery. Finding the areas in which I meet the criteria is a sign I am moving in the right direction. I will use the checklist, as a guide to continuous improvement, to assess all my courses. I would recommend the checklist to other faculty members because they would benefit from assessing their courses as well. Ultimately the students and University will reap the benefits

I have used the Peer Review rubric for many years and love how it helps to keep you on track with your course.  I can see that I need to add more interactive activities that reiterate learning.  I do use it and will continue to and will encourage others to use it as well.  I have used it to present at conferences as well.

1. The thoroughness of the peer review helped my evaluate a few housekeeping items for my course. The placement of certain instructions could be better placed to make them more obvious to students.

2. Yes definitely. I feel the layout of the peer review rubric is very thorough and could be applied to a variety of settings.

3. Any faculty would find the peer review helpful to identify course needs and help with course success.

I have been using the peer review checklist and rubric for a few years.  I found it very helpful to identify weaknesses especially in the area of course design and course outcomes and goals.  Many items were easy to fix within the syllabus which could then be easily used in other course syllabi.  It also helped me to identify areas that I was doing well.  Bonus!!

I will continue to use the rubric in all my courses.  I have recommended it to other faculty.   It is a nice way to get involved with peer review.   I find that the more faculty who use the rubric within my school increases my network of faculty willing to share how they approach online teaching.  Some of my favorite elements within my courses were “stolen” from other faculty!

In what ways did the Peer Review Checklist help you to uncover areas of weakness or strength in your course?

I am pretty good at organization. Most students comment on how well my courses are organized with expectations pretty well laid out. However, I could make the content in my syllabus more accessible. I like having one place for all of my guidelines. To ensure that students read it I have them take a quiz. But, I think it may be a good idea to provide important information in other areas so that they do not have to read and consume a 12 page document.

In addition, I am focusing on creating lectures that are broken up into 15 minute videos and applying the power of online tools to make the learning process more engaging. I lecture just like I would in a face-to-face class. But this does not work online because I am not in front of my students making the material interesting (my energy in front of a class tends to keep students engaged). So I am focused on creating more animated and interesting video lectures.

Also I need to address the student-to-student interaction and student-to-instructor interaction. This is important to get them thinking at the higher level. And to get them talking about what they are learning. Students learn by talking about material to other students and to the instructor. This part of my learning environment needs much work.

Would you use this rubric on other courses? And recommend it to other faculty? Why or why not?

Rubrics are powerful means to ensure that we are addressing all aspects required for student learning. It provides, among other things, guidelines that create and ensure engaging, well organized learning environments that allow students to focus on content and not on navigation or course management issues. They also ensure that assessments are aligned with course objectives and content. Rubrics are required not just for online instruction but for face-to-face learning environments. I would recommend all instructors use rubrics

1. In what ways did the Peer Review Checklist help you to uncover areas of weakness or strength in your course?

I can see that I need to be more student friendly.  I could provide more detail for students as to what to do but my course has synchronous components which are recorded that provides a lot of information.  I also have a lot of information in my syllabus that could be put in Blackboard.

2. Would you use this rubric on other courses?

I would use this rubric on all of my courses.

3. Recommend it to other faculty? Why or why not?

I would recommend it to faculty because ultimately, it will save faculty a lot of work in the long run.  When a course is well designed there is less opportunity for student confusion and more opportunity for student engagement and success.

1. In what ways did the Peer Review Checklist help you to uncover areas of weakness or strength in your course?

   When comparing the Peer Review Checklist with objectives of iTeach2, it became evident that I need to do more in the area of multimedia for my online classes. What we have covered over the past few days in iTeach fit well with Peer Review Rubric Checklist in the areas of:  

   • Illustrations, photographs, animations and other forms of multimedia are used to present facts and reinforce concepts where appropriate.
   • Use of text, video, animations, graphics, audio, games, simulations effectively present the topics, enhance the concepts are engaging and placed effectively throughout the course.

2. Would you use this rubric on other courses? Absolutely, and I am currently using the rubric to help improve my online courses (especially in the area of developing clear and concise objectives).

3. Recommend it to other faculty? Why or why not?
   The checklist has been very helpful in guiding me in developing my online courses. I refer to it frequently and would recommend new faculty developing online classes as well as seasoned faculty to use the checklist to develop and/or improve the design of their online courses.