The Non Learning Management System Build for Online Courses
Below I have provided a list of what I would consider using when designing an online course without a Learning Management System. For my Non-LMS build I am focusing on connection, flexibility, and simplicity for the student. Of course my overriding priority is to provide a platform to support and encourage students to have greater engagement with the course, other students, and myself while taking greater responsibility for their own learning. I also want any tools / software that I use in the course to be ones that students may continue to use long after the course is finished. Learning to use these tools will be designed into the structure of the course, as well as assigning a percentage of credit for this activity. I am focusing on tools that are free, including the synchronous learning platform. Although programs such as Collaborate Blackboard and Webex are wonderful, they are quite pricey unless subsidized by larger organizations.
Image by Barry Switnicki
Online Learning should be like a trip to the oceanside!
Content - Weebly
Weebly provides an area where students go to access what I would call the more static components of the course. This would be their initial point of contact with the materials, resources, references and contact information. Weebly is a simple Website building tool that is free and the initial learning curve is quite shallow so people new to this type of activity can build a basic site quite quickly. Students could use also use Weebly for presenting, creative journaling and reflection.
Content / Assessment - Edmodo
Edmodo brings it all together! This is the dynamic hub where assignments can be posted, turned in and marked. It can house a file library and calendar for the course as well as surveys and quizzes. It even has Android and iPhone Apps to allow more versatility. Edmodo would also be the "Badge and Prize Center".
Community / Content - Zoom
Zoom is a video conferencing program that is so much more. It can be video, audio or simply chat depending on your needs, desires and available bandwidth. You can share and annotate documents and also allow others control of your keyboard and mouse which provides some interesting capabilities, especially for allowing you access to another's computer to assist them in navigating a program or process. You can easily create groups and students can easily hook up to work together on assignments.
Zoom has great potential to be used as a simple synchronous learning platform, even without the teaching add-on (paid subscription). It also could make an amazing platform for student presentations, as well as students mentoring each other. Zoom meetings can be recorded, both video and audio which creates interesting possibilities for multi-media presentations, projects and reflections and announcements.
Community - Whatsapp, Skype, email, text
Whatsapp is an App that allows you to text messages on a mobile device without texting. Whatsapp texts can be sent using wifi or cellular data. This works especially well with an international community and replaces texting in many areas of the world such as Brazil. You may send group messages as well.
Skype can be audio or video chats. You may screen share but it is not as robust as Zoom. Many people already use Skype so this may be a more common method of connecting and working together. You can set up permanent group chat rooms and have up to 25 people live. You can also send video messages which can be an engaging method of making announcements to students.
Email and text should be part of the tool box for student/teacher interactions to promote more inclusiveness and ease of communication for students.
Assessment / Feedback / Peer Evaluation / Quizzing / Surveys - Socrative
Socrative is a student response system (SRS) where you can engage in real time with students to poll, survey and quiz. I have seen it used more commonly F2F or synchronously online, and would use it in this way, but I am intrigued with the concept of polling students by distance outside of the classroom throughout their day. This would also linked into the Badge and Reward Center on Edmodo and using Google +. As Socrative can be accessed on a variety of devices it's very accessible for students.
Community / Reflection /Feedback / Gamification / Feedback - Google + Sheets, Docs, Sites and Circles
I have learned the power of creating a community of interactivity in OLTD504 and believe this is key. Questions can be posted to support curiousity, discourse and engagement. Linking it to gamification activities such as Avi Luxenburg's "500" (Google Sheets) is brilliant although I would link badges and community awareness of achievement back into the community page and Edmodo. This means more work for the facilitator but I think it provides a more visible system without the occasional glitches that come out of Google +. Google Docs would be used for sharing documents Teacher/Student as well as Student/Student. This also provides a venue for further reflection and even journaling.
In addition to this I would also like to mention the only software in this list that costs money,that I consider essential to online teaching. This is Camtasia which is a screen casting program, a wonderful tool for easily bringing the multimedia component into your course design.. Whatever type of program you use, multimedia incorporated into online teaching helps to increase engagement, integration and motivation to learn. The more we incorporate applicable audio, video and meaningful personal messages and fun, the more our students will succeed!
Weebly provides an area where students go to access what I would call the more static components of the course. This would be their initial point of contact with the materials, resources, references and contact information. Weebly is a simple Website building tool that is free and the initial learning curve is quite shallow so people new to this type of activity can build a basic site quite quickly. Students could use also use Weebly for presenting, creative journaling and reflection.
Content / Assessment - Edmodo
Edmodo brings it all together! This is the dynamic hub where assignments can be posted, turned in and marked. It can house a file library and calendar for the course as well as surveys and quizzes. It even has Android and iPhone Apps to allow more versatility. Edmodo would also be the "Badge and Prize Center".
Community / Content - Zoom
Zoom is a video conferencing program that is so much more. It can be video, audio or simply chat depending on your needs, desires and available bandwidth. You can share and annotate documents and also allow others control of your keyboard and mouse which provides some interesting capabilities, especially for allowing you access to another's computer to assist them in navigating a program or process. You can easily create groups and students can easily hook up to work together on assignments.
Zoom has great potential to be used as a simple synchronous learning platform, even without the teaching add-on (paid subscription). It also could make an amazing platform for student presentations, as well as students mentoring each other. Zoom meetings can be recorded, both video and audio which creates interesting possibilities for multi-media presentations, projects and reflections and announcements.
Community - Whatsapp, Skype, email, text
Whatsapp is an App that allows you to text messages on a mobile device without texting. Whatsapp texts can be sent using wifi or cellular data. This works especially well with an international community and replaces texting in many areas of the world such as Brazil. You may send group messages as well.
Skype can be audio or video chats. You may screen share but it is not as robust as Zoom. Many people already use Skype so this may be a more common method of connecting and working together. You can set up permanent group chat rooms and have up to 25 people live. You can also send video messages which can be an engaging method of making announcements to students.
Email and text should be part of the tool box for student/teacher interactions to promote more inclusiveness and ease of communication for students.
Assessment / Feedback / Peer Evaluation / Quizzing / Surveys - Socrative
Socrative is a student response system (SRS) where you can engage in real time with students to poll, survey and quiz. I have seen it used more commonly F2F or synchronously online, and would use it in this way, but I am intrigued with the concept of polling students by distance outside of the classroom throughout their day. This would also linked into the Badge and Reward Center on Edmodo and using Google +. As Socrative can be accessed on a variety of devices it's very accessible for students.
Community / Reflection /Feedback / Gamification / Feedback - Google + Sheets, Docs, Sites and Circles
I have learned the power of creating a community of interactivity in OLTD504 and believe this is key. Questions can be posted to support curiousity, discourse and engagement. Linking it to gamification activities such as Avi Luxenburg's "500" (Google Sheets) is brilliant although I would link badges and community awareness of achievement back into the community page and Edmodo. This means more work for the facilitator but I think it provides a more visible system without the occasional glitches that come out of Google +. Google Docs would be used for sharing documents Teacher/Student as well as Student/Student. This also provides a venue for further reflection and even journaling.
In addition to this I would also like to mention the only software in this list that costs money,that I consider essential to online teaching. This is Camtasia which is a screen casting program, a wonderful tool for easily bringing the multimedia component into your course design.. Whatever type of program you use, multimedia incorporated into online teaching helps to increase engagement, integration and motivation to learn. The more we incorporate applicable audio, video and meaningful personal messages and fun, the more our students will succeed!