CIT Events
Flattening the Classroom: Building Collaborative Learning Environments
Net Gen students are active and prolific participants in flat-world phenomena in their personal lives: posting updates to Facebook friends scattered around the globe, playing online games with teams crossing international time zones, and collaborating on digital works bearing the imprint of multiple contributors. At the same time, the global economy demands students who can think creatively, build collectively, and adapt willingly to change. Are we fostering those skills in the classroom?
Join us September 23 and 24 for "Flattening the Classroom: Building Collaborative Learning Environments," the 2009 Educause Learning Initiative (ELI) Online Fall Focus Session. Hosted in Adobe Connect, this virtual event will be much more than just a "usual" online seminar. You'll exchange ideas and collaborate interactively with the ELI community - all without leaving your campus. You'll also receive all the resources and guided activities you need to help frame discussion and organize team events.
We'll explore an approach to learning that engages students in the active construction of collective knowledge, empowering them to build meaning together, and challenging them to examine issues from multiple perspectives. We will work together to:
- Develop an understanding of what it means to effectively collaborate in the classroom
- Create a framework for the design of meaningful and purposeful activities in the classroom
- Reflect on the potential for social learning to promote critical thinking and spark student discussion
- Explore emerging practices for designing collaborative environments in physical spaces and virtual environments
- Consider assessment strategies for collaborative activities
The events in this series are webcasts presented by ELI and locally hosted by CIT (in other words, we will gather together physically on campus, in 039 Bostock Library, to view the online sessions broadcast by ELI). Please register for the individual sessions which most interest you (or all of them), so that we can plan how much space we will need for each session and the follow up discussions.
How did WE work? Assessing collaborative assignments
Janet Salmons, Professor, Capella University
The keynote session "How Did We Work?" will explore assessment of progress and outcomes in collaborative assignments and projects.
How can we help students achieve their best individually, while encouraging them to participate meaningfully in collaborative activities? We need to give formative assessments (how are they doing?) and summative assessments (did they achieve learning or project goals?). We need to assess the individual and/or team contributions and the individual and/or collective outcomes of the collaborative process.
Salmons' Typology for Assessment encompasses seven types of individual and collective, self- and instructor-generated assessments for formative or summative purposes. An overview of these types will provide a framework for practical examples and strategies.
| Registration | Date | Time | Location | Presenter(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Closed | Thu 09/24/09 | 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM | Bostock Library Room 039 | Staff, Center for Instructional Technology |
