Benefits of a Synchronous Session

Benefits of a Synchronous Session

I currently tutor two adult students online on Saturday mornings using a platform called eLecta. We spend our time working on different English Language skills based on the student's needs. The greatest benefit of teaching/learning in this manner is that by talking and getting to know one another, I can taylor the lessons to the student's specific needs. For example, if one student has a question about something he/she heard in conversation during the previous week, we can discuss it and address the confusion directly. Additionally, this allows for me to actually hear the student speak, and therefore I can make pronunciation and intonation corrections that I would not be able to assess and correct otherwise. Interacting and using teachable moments is a big part of any learning experience. Synchronous lessons allow distance learners to experience the benefits of these experiences, too. 

Space for news

A place for news on my homepage: 

I used quickmeme.com to create the post for the blog/news section of my homepage. 

Classroom Homepage

Weebly isn't a bad place to create a free teacher homepage. 
It was relatively simple!

My homepage

Levels of Reporting in LMS

Levels of reporting

1. Grades for each course - percentage of mastery for each course. It also gives the number of students that have attempted the course

2. Last student interaction- the last time a student worked on the class

3. Last faculty journal entry - the last comment a teacher added about the student's work

4. Current score

5. Final score

6. Ungraded assignments - hyperlinks to each student's ungraded assignments for quick access

7. grading history

Tools within the LMS

Tools within the LMS

Grades/Reports- For viewing grades, percentages of completion for each assignment and a tab for generating reports for these students. There is also information about the number/percentage of students that have participated and for what length of time.

Calendar- This tool is handy for time management. It keeps the teacher and students on track for course completion.

Assignments- The very important tab for adding assignments. Activities can be added to the whole group or for individuals. This would be good for customizing curriculum.

Discussions - For chats and scheduled discussions.

Files - Where files can be uploaded to the assignments

Syllabus - for the creation/editing of the course syllabus

Creation of a course shell

Creation of a Course Shell

I began by downloading a free version of Blackboard LMS. I have used much earlier versions of Blackboard, and I was familiar with the brand, so I decided to give this one a try.
First, I chose to upload existing course content as directed in the quest from the zip file provided. Then, I chose the course name and decided that I wanted students to be instructor enrolled.
It was very frustrating because it kept saying "Import: DCTools is Complete, with errors. To access the detailed log, click here"'

These are the errors that I received.

Log Details (5)

• Nov 8, 2014 3:57:11 PM - Debug
  no IMS manifest file
• Nov 8, 2014 3:57:11 PM - Fatal
  A fatal error has occurred. The reason for the error is:
  The provided file could not be identified as a supported package format and therefore can not be processed.
  For more information, consult the detailed log.
• Nov 8, 2014 3:57:11 PM - Debug
  blackboard.apps.cx.papi.PackageException: The provided file could not be identified as a supported package format and therefore can not be processed.
  at blackboard.apps.cx.papi.PackageSupportFactory.getReaderInstance(PackageSupportFactory.java:83)
  at blackboard.apps.cx.papi.CxPackage.prepImport(CxPackage.java:1118)
  at blackboard.apps.cx.papi.CxPackage.<init>(CxPackage.java:135)
  at blackboard.apps.cx.Importer.execute(Importer.java:351)
  at blackboard.apps.cx.Cx.invoke(Cx.java:371)
  at blackboard.apps.cx.CxQueuedOperation.execute(CxQueuedOperation.java:89)
  at blackboard.platform.queue.QueuedTaskManager.processTask(QueuedTaskManager.java:395)
  at blackboard.platform.queue.QueuedTaskManager.access$500(QueuedTaskManager.java:79)
  at blackboard.platform.queue.QueuedTaskManager$WorkerThread.run(QueuedTaskManager.java:798)
• Nov 8, 2014 3:57:11 PM - Status
  The operation import did not complete.
• Nov 8, 2014 3:57:11 PM - Information
  The operation took 2.59 seconds to complete.

I'm going to try another platform I guess... 

Created Shell course using Canvas. I uploaded the material and I can see the files from the course content. However, admittedly I am still unsure as to what I'm supposed to do with them. 

Creation of course object

Objects for use in the literature classroom

Romeo and Juliet (using Prezi) This can be used as an introduction Romeo and Juliet in order to map out the main characters and the events of the first few acts.

Romeo and Juliet-the beginning (using GoAnimate)
I would use this as a funny way to introduce the conflict between the Capulets and the Montagues.