Straight from the \u201cif you can’t change your mind, how do you know you have one?\u201d department, I am writing an early American history course that violates many of the precepts I have been teaching to online instructors for the last 15 years.<\/p>\n
Don’t rely on outside material<\/b><\/p>\n
No, I have not gone over the the Dark Side and course cartridges. But in trying to avoid my same old thing (writing out and recording lectures with images), I am instead creating custom segments of Films on Demand<\/em> videos. I even plan to use some as discussion prompts. If anything happens to Films on Demand<\/em>, I’m sunk. I have consulted with our library specialist, who says it’s stable \u2013 that’s certainly more of a guarantee than, say, something on YouTube.<\/p>\n Create all your own stuff<\/b><\/p>\n Nope, I’m not. I’m relying on a textbook and sources I put together, a few lectures from me, and my own connecting text on we pages. But a lot of the \u201cmeat\u201d is created by other historians instead, those with actual studios and lighting and funding and doctorates.<\/p>\n Don’t create long video lectures<\/b><\/p>\n Done it, 30 minutes on the Salem Witch Trials using Screenflow. And it’s not actually that good.<\/p>\n Don’t create discussions where the main goal is to discuss<\/b><\/p>\n Doing it, creating two-level discussions where they respond emotionally to a video prompt falsely encouraging two sides, then leading them deeper, as I used to do in my old old method<\/a>\u00a0from 2007 (an eternity in internet years).<\/p>\n Don’t forget it’s college, not high school<\/b><\/p>\n I’m creating an extra credit assignment that has them use a colonial cookbook to make something from their family and share video\/photos. And we’re gonna discuss things like whether slavery was wrong and whether the South had a right to secede (they’ll be chewing on the edge of their playpens).<\/p>\n Have them create something meaningful that’s important to you<\/b><\/p>\n