Below are examples of instructional resources I created for my coursework in the Educational Technology certificate with James Madison University.
Instructional Handout
The goals of the instructional handout assignment were to present a component of Universal Design or accessibility feature for an operating system. The instructional handout linked on the image on the left provides instructions for the user to replace computer sounds with visual or text cues within Windows 10. To present this information, I wanted to provide easily identified steps with contrasting colors for visual appeal, choosing the yellow tones and blue. The use of arrows and circles highlight focus areas within the screenshots to aid users. I kept the text concise as well, bolding text from the screenshots as another level of visual emphasis within the handout. After submission of the final product, I made minor changes to be sure text boxes and images were aligned properly.
The instructional handout meets ISTE-C Standard 3 – Digital age learning environments. The handout provides teachers with instructions on how to meet the needs of hearing-impaired learners within their classroom. A key component of the standard is for technology coaches to evaluate and implement adaptive technologies to support student learning.
Interactive Learning Object
To construct my interactive learning object, I wanted to present material that I could use with my students as well as give them a different perspective on the uses of PowerPoint. I created a “Meet Isaac Newton” page where students could click on different images to learn some background about the scientist, followed by explanations of his three laws of motion. At the end of each law, I created quick checks, where students could click on the answers to see if they were correct. A final overview quiz is given at the end of the show in the same format. I wanted the learning object to provide multiple interactive opportunities. I originally wanted the final quiz to be in more of a sort format (instead of the multiple choice style), but realized in presentation mode of PowerPoint this would not be possible.
The interactive learning object meets ISTE-C Standard 2 – Teaching, learning and assessments. Through the use of Powerpoint as an interactive learning object, I can coach teachers to develop their own technology-enhanced learning experience for their students to address content.
Poster Design
The instructional poster was created using Adobe Photoshop Creative Cloud. For my instructional poster, I wanted to present a topic related to the Earth Sciences so I chose cave formations as I already had images I took from Luray Caverns using my digital SLR. I wanted the images to stand out from the background, so I chose a dark green color with contrasting text. Initially, I wanted a gray, but the grey tone did not blend well with the browns in the images. For the image captions, I made the formation name larger than the description to emphasize the vocabulary terms. Lastly, I added the cave borders to frame the poster and focus the eye on the middle of the poster.
The poster design meets ISTE-C Standard 6 – Content knowledge and professional growth. As a potential ITRT, it is important to continue to expand my knowledge of technology and software. I had no previous experience with Photoshop, but understand this is a valuable tool in the education world and hope to find ways to integrate it into my classes for my students to develop their own foundation in the software.
Podcast
This year in my classes, I have begun using Goobrics as a way to assess using International Baccalaureate (IB) rubrics for Science and Design. Having had success in using this tool in the classroom and seeing the ease at which it can be implemented, I wanted to share this Google app with others. My first iteration of the podcast was a little wordy, although I was able to stay within the one minute timeframe. After the peer review, I decided to remove the portion explaining how to install the app to one’s Chrome browser. This helped the flow of my podcast, making it easier for the user to follow.
The podcast meets ISTE-C Standard 3 – Digital Age Learning Environments. As a technology coach, one must be able to provide resources to teachers through a variety of digital tools. In addition it provides teachers with an example of a digital tool to use within the classroom to engage students in the content.
Instructional Video
As Schoology is a new online learning platform to my school district this year, I wanted to highlight an aspect of the program which can allow teachers to create a blended learning environment. I chose to show users how to create student completion rules within a folder. In order to streamline the video, I uploaded files and created pages and quizzes ahead of time rather than show users how to create these as well. I kept the main focus on how to order the assignments and the different completion options available for the teachers to set.
The instructional video meets ISTE-C Standard 4 – Professional development and program evaluation. The video represents technology-rich learning platform to help users to use Schoology as a blended learning environment. The use of student completion modules also develops teacher pedagogical skills as well as increase student learning.
Concept Map
The purpose of the concept map assignment was to synthesize the various learning theories learned throughout the course. My design stemmed from rock ternary diagrams which classify rocks based on their mineral assemblages. The concept map presented on the right shows relationships which exist between the theorists and the five major domains of learning theories.
The instructional video meets ISTE-C Standard 6 – Content knowledge and professional growth. The concept map demonstrates my continual learning in order to further my pedagogical knowledge and professional knowledge in education.
