Phase4

Development Project
//Audience Description//

My learners will be made up of 9-12 grade students who are taking this course because it is not offered at their home school, or perhaps they are homeschooled students. They might be advanced students who are taking the course to earn extra credits and/or expand their knowledge for personal reasons. Or some of the learners might be at-risk students who need instruction on digital literacy in order to improve their research and writing skills.

The at-risk students will need extra support in terms of instructor interaction, detailed feedback on assignments, and support and encouragement from the instructor. "Although they have the most need for extra educational opportunities, they usually have very poor learning/study skills and have a great deal of trouble with both the techniques and the self-discipline needed for distance learning" (Moore & Kearsley, p. 183). It will be especially important for the instructor to help increase motivation by giving positive feedback for student effort, as well as frequent encouraging communication.

Some of the advanced students may need more of a challenge in their coursework, and so it will be important for them to have access to additional resources and reading material if they want to expand their knowledge of a topic and/or delve more in-depth in a topic.

//Content outline for lesson, with framework or context of course or workplace//

This course will consist of the following lesson units: -How to research -Using search engines and online libraries -Verifying credible sources online -Narrowing down to the most accurate and relevant sources -Definitions and examples of plagiarism -How to cite sources -Direct quotes vs. paraphrasing -MLA formatting

//List of lesson goals and objectives//


 * By the end of the course, students will be able to define the key concepts of digital literacy.
 * Students, when presented with a research topic, will be able to navigate Internet databases and search engines in order to find the most accurate and relevant information (in order to remain open-ended, students will choose their own research topic).
 * When presented with a website or other Internet source, students will be able to analyze the credibility of the source.
 * Students will be able to correctly identify examples of plagiarism, and they will be able to explain why it's unethical. Additionally, students will have the skill set to avoid plagiarism in their own work.
 * Students will demonstrate an understanding of MLA format by properly formatting and citing sources in their paper.

//Description of activities for teaching and learning//


 * Students will be given examples of websites and will be asked to determine the credibility of each website, explaining the reasons why the website is or is not credible. Additionally, in conducting their research, students will find their own websites and will be asked to explain the website's credibility before being able to use that resource in their research.
 * Students will create a presentation that describes their favorite search engines and/or online library resources, with explanations of why they think it's reliable and how other students can use them effectively. Students will be able to present their project using creative platforms such as [|Glogster], [|VoiceThread], or [|Jing].
 * Students will be given case studies that outline ethical dilemmas that relate to plagiarism; students will be required to write responses to the case studies, explaining whether or not the scenario describes plagiarism and whether or not the actions described in the case studies are wrong or right. Instructor will utilize a simulation such as one offered by Rutgers University: []
 * Students will be given a paper that is not MLA-formatted, and will be asked to format the paper properly using the paper's list of references as a guide.

//List of materials and media with rationale for selection//


 * For the lesson in determining website credibility, I would develop an activity similar to one created by FactCheckEd.org, titled "The Credibility Challenge: In Search of Authority on the Internet." [[file:credibility_challenge.pdf]] I believe this activity would be age- and grade-appropriate and would be fun and hands-on. This particularly activity calls for students to work in groups, so it would have to be modified so that a student could complete the activity independently.
 * Students will create a presentation so they can share their favorite search engines and/or online resources, and I chose platforms such as Glogster, VoiceThread, and Jing. These platforms allow for students to really maximize their creativity, and they're free!
 * I believe plagiarism is best understood when using case studies or simulations, so I think the simulation created by the Rutgets University Libraries would be really great for this course. I chose it because it is engaging and memorable.
 * Capital Community College created a very comprehensive guide to MLA formatting ([]) that I would use or modify for this course. I chose this guide because it covers every aspect of MLA. For this lesson, I would create a paper that was not MLA-formatted and give it to students so they can practice properly formatting a paper.

//Synopsis of assessment experiences//

In order to check the quality of the course, I will use the quality standards/benchmarks outlined by the National Education Association (NEA). In their "Guide to Online High School Courses," the NEA provides an outline for assessment that covers the following aspects (p. 13-23): Curriculum; Instructional Design; Teacher Quality; Student Role; Assessment; Management and Support Systems; and Technical Infrastructure. The course will be evaluated based on these benchmarks to ensure quality. [|onlinecourses.pdf] Additionally, I consulted the "SREB Essential Principles of Quality for Online Middle and High School Courses" for additional evaluation standards. For this Digital Literacy course, the success will be measured by the achievement of students taking it (FLVS funding is performance-based). The course will be evaluated over time by FLVS, and each teacher of the course will be evaluated at least once a year.

Students will be assessed throughout the course, using both objective (tests and quizzes) and subjective (projects and coursework) assessments.

//References to learning theory or educational literature justifying decisions//

Bawden, D. & Robinson, L. (2002). Promoting literacy in a digital age: Approaches to training for information literacy. Learned Publishing, 15(4), p. 297-301. [|Bawden.pdf]

Blackall, L. (2005). Digital literacy: How it affects teaching practices and networked learning functions. Knowledge Tree. Retrieved on February 4, 2010 from: []

Capital Community College. (2004). A guide for writing research papers based on Modern Language Association (MLA) documentation. Retrieved on February 22, 2010 from: []

FactCheckEd.org. (n.d.). The credibility challenge: In search of authority on the internet. Retrieved on February 21, 2010 from: []

Henderson, R. & Honan, E. (2008). Digital literacies in two low socioeconomic classrooms: Snapshots of practice. English Teaching: Practice and Critique, 7(2). [|henderson.pdf]

Jones-Kavalier, B.R. & Flannigan, S.L. (2006). Connecting the digital dots: Literacy of the 21st century. Educase Quarterly, 2, p. 8-10. [|digitaldots.pdf]

Moore, M. & Kearsley, G. (2007). //Handbook of Distance Education, 2nd ed//. Lawrence Eribaum.

National Education Association. (2002). Guide to online high school courses. Retrieved on February 15, 2010 from: [] [|onlinecourses.pdf]

Southern Regional Education Board. (2001). Essential principles of quality for online middle and high school courses. Retrieved on February 15, 2010 from: [] [|EssentialPrinciples.pdf]

Sundin, O. & Francke, H. (2009). In search of credibility: Pupils' information practices in learning environments. Information Research, 14(4). [|sundin.pdf]