CI5630: Instructional Technology

Fall 2023
Online -- asynchronous (Thursdays, 6-8:40 reserved for group work or conferences, as needed)

Image by Marvin Meyer

Required Texts

There are no textbooks for this class. All readings and viewings will be posted for free on AsULearn.

Course Description

The course examines the impact and influence of traditional and emerging media and technology in how we interact with one another both personally and professionally. We will focus on how you, as teachers, will conceptualize media and technology and how you will integrate media and technology into your teaching in thoughtful and useful ways in your Middle Grades classroom.

The course will encourage consideration of the following questions: 1) What do media and technologies mean for our educators and students as people and as members of a local and global society?, and 2) How do we think of and use media and technology in our own teaching to help our students learn more effectively?

Goals of the Course

Upon completing the course, you will:

Identify and explain important theoretical approaches regarding media, mass communication, and learning
Recognize the dominant patterns that characterize the introduction of technology into learning settings
Develop a teaching philosophy statement that articulates your beliefs related to effective integration of technologies and media into teaching and learning, that is based in the literature and targeted toward your desired setting (K-12, Higher Ed, training, etc).
Develop a detailed, thoroughly discussed lesson that integrates technologies fully and deeply into the lesson pedagogically in your desired setting (K12, Higher Ed, training, etc).
Utilize concepts of instructional design in the development/presentation of presentations for specified audience/learners and content/objectives

Hi! My name is Damiana Pyles. I have been teaching writing, media, and literacies for almost 20 years, and I live near Boone with my family and new puppy.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns by email Mondays through Fridays, 8am-5 pm, or set up a time to chat over Zoom during office hours, Mondays or Wednesdays, by appointment. Evening meeting times can be arranged as needed for office hours.

image of hello sign by Adam Soloman at Unsplash

All students are welcome.

All students can learn!

COVID-19 and this course

Though we are all back to school, there may be some issues around the pandemic that affect us in this class. We will be flexible during this time. These are difficult times, but we will get through the course together. If you are having any issues or you become ill, please let me know well in advance, so we can create a plan.

Course Projects

Given the complexity of these assignments, no feedback or comments will be given over email. If you have questions about your feedback, please make an appointment for office hours.

Teaching with Media Philosophy Statement (25% of course grade)
Using course readings as evidence, you will write a detailed and thoroughly developed teaching statement that discusses how they envision using media and/or technologies for teaching and learning in their own classrooms in our current context. This statement will both address the current instructional models explored during class, including both summaries and critiques of these models based on your own teaching and on your growing understanding about students as active, agentive learners. This multimedia statement will include a coherent argument based on research from the course in about 1,000 words. This Teaching with Media Philosophy Statement will be turned in as a Google document that is shared so that anyone with link can edit.

Integrating Technology for Teaching and Learning Lesson (25% of course grade)
For this final project, you will envision a specific class and set of students for whom you will create one detailed lesson using media and/or technology that meet their own content standards. This lesson is not a traditional lesson plan; it is far more detailed in how the media is integrated and the rationale for integrating the media for your own content and students. The lesson must integrate a robust, pedagogically-sound tool for teaching and learning, and the media/tool must be integrated fully either in a face-to-face, hybrid, or remote learning lesson (not as homework, introduction, reward, or assessment) and integrated for sound pedagogical reasons. will be turned in as a Google document that is shared so that anyone with link can edit.

Rough Drafts (25% of course grade)
All major assignments will have rough drafts that will get feedback from peers for peer review. Peer reviews will be completed in small teams on Flipgrid. I will also provide formative feedback on rough drafts in audio format , and final drafts will receive written feedback in the form of a rubric and grade.

Peer Reviews (25% of course grade)
Each rough draft will go through peer review, in which you will give feedback to your peers and you will receive feedback from your peers. These peer reviews will be graded. No late peer reviews will be accepted.

Technologies we will use in class

AsULearn: Check it for announcements, turning in assignments, etc.

Google Documents: We will use Google documents for your Course Calendar and assignment prompts. Your assignments will be completed and turned in with Google Documents -- be sure to share so that anyone with link can edit.

You will explore other media in this course, but all will be available for free.

Inclusive Excellence

The Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Appalachian State University is committed to supporting our students and fostering an environment that is free of bias, discrimination, and harassment, in the classroom and in the broader university community. We are a faculty that strives to model reflection, advocacy, and care for community in order to work toward an equitable, democratic, and sustainable society. We value your participation in this process. If you feel that our courses, programs, or department fall short of this commitment, we encourage you to engage in dialogue with your instructor and/or other program faculty.

Please visit https://titleix.appstate.edu for information related to Appalachian State University's Title IX and http://academicaffairs.appstate.edu/syllabi for the most up-to-date policies on students with special needs, academic integrity, religious observances, and student engagement with courses.

Late work policy

Assignments are paced out to allow enough time to complete them. Deadlines are on Sundays, by midnight, the week they are due. We need deadlines to stay on track in class, but I understand that life happens sometimes. For this reason, all students get a one-time Extra Time token, no questions asked. To redeem this token, email me to let me know that you are going to use your token before the assignment deadline. At that time, we will negotiate the extension (3 days max). Tokens may not be used after the deadline, and they may be used only once for the semester. No Extra Time tokens can be used for rough drafts, though, as your peers depend on your being on time.

Feedback on Rough and Final Drafts

We will have rough drafts and plenty of feedback in preparation for final drafts of major projects. For all drafts, you will receive leveled feedback

Level 1: Rubric and Grade

Level 2: Detailed feedback, by request

Level 3: Meeting to discuss feedback, by request

Choose the feedback that works best for your learning

Other Appalachian State policies

Food Insecurity
Any student who has difficulty affording groceries or accessing sufficient food to eat every day, or who lacks a safe and stable place to live, and believes this may affect their performance in the course, is urged to contact the Dean of Students, 324 Plemmons Student Union, for a list of resources and support. The ASU Food Pantry and Free Store is a free resource with pantry and personal care items, located in the Office of Sustainability on the bottom floor of East Hall. Furthermore, please notify the professor if you are comfortable in doing so. This will enable him/her to assist you with finding the resources you may need.

Reporting Obligations
Appalachian State University is committed to maintaining a safe learning environment for all students, regardless of sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression, and gender identity. To meet this commitment, and to comply with state and federal laws, Appalachian faculty are required to formally report instances of interpersonal violence, such as sexual harassment, relationship violence, stalking, and retaliation, to the Office of Title IX Compliance. Those impacted by interpersonal violence will be provided support, resources, and applicable information. Please visit https://titleix.appstate.edu or call (828) 262-2144 for more information.

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