Biology for NonScience Majors I A Statewide Online Initiative

1. Biology for NonScience Majors IA Statewide Online Initiative Jennifer Baggett, PhD Grace Rutherford, EdD LeCroy Center Dallas County Community College District March, 2011

2. Why teach biology online? • Sloan Survey of Online Learning (2010): • Surveyed 2,500 colleges and universities in the fall of 2009: • 5.6 million students were enrolled in one or more online courses. • 29% of students were taking at least one course online. • http://sloanconsortium.org/ Sloan Consortium, Eighth Annual Report. Allen, E., & Seaman, J. (2010). Staying the Course: Online Education in the United States, Sloan-C, Needham, MA. Meet student demand Improve student outcomes Increase student access Reduce costs

3. Why teach biology online? • U.S. Department of Education (2010): • “Learning outcomes for students who engaged in online learning exceeded those of students receiving face-to-face instruction…” (p. xiv) • http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/os/technology/techreports.html • U.S. Dept. of Education, Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development, Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practices in Online Learning: A Meta-Analysis and Review of Online Learning Studies, Washington, D.C., 2010. Meet student demand Improve student outcomes Increase student access Reduce costs

4. Why teach biology online? • U.S. Department of Education (2006-7): • Factors most relevant to college decisions about distance education: • Meeting student demand for flexible schedules • Increasing course availability (# sections) • Increasing student access to college • Increasing student enrollment • http://nces.ed.gov/Parsad, B., and Lewis, L. (2008). Distance Education at Degree-Granting Postsecondary Institutions: 2006–07 (NCES 2009–044). U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Meet student demand Improve student outcomes Increase student access Reduce costs

5. Why teach biology online? • Classroom space • Lab space • Lab materials • Instructor to student ratios Meet student demand Improve student outcomes Increase student access Reduce costs

6. Why not use a virtual lab? • National Science Teachers Association Position Statement (NSTA, 2007): • “While reading about science, using computer simulations, and observing teacher demonstrations may be valuable, they are not a substitute for laboratory investigations by students.” • “At the college level, all students should have opportunities to experience inquiry-based science laboratory investigations…” • http://www.nsta.org/about/positions/laboratory.aspxNational Science Teachers Association Position Statement on The Integral Role of Laboratory Investigations in Science Instruction, adopted February 2007.

7. What is this project about? Creation of Biology 1408 course template Free to all Texas community colleges Increase student learning and retention Decrease institutional costs of hosting biology labs Decrease instructor development time Almost “ready-to-go” course for a last-minute section to be taught for first time by faculty member

8. Project Background • College Participation • Virtual College of Texas • TX Community College Teachers’ Association • Advisory Committee • Course Development • LeCroy Center • Lead Content Expert • Instructional Designer • McGraw-Hill • SoftChalk Platform

9. What makes a great course? • The instructor • Clear, consistent, and relatable course materials

10. Research • Areas important for student satisfaction with online instruction: • Interaction among students • Quality and timely interaction between student and professor • Consistent course design • Technical support • Flexibility of online courses compared to face-to-face Source: Young & Norgard (2006) Assessing the quality of online courses from the students' perspective

11. Student-Content Interaction • 15 Lessons • Lesson Summaries • Animations • Interactives • 15 Labs correlate with lessons • Demonstration videos • Kit with lab manual

12. Instructional Design • Engage learner • Student orientation • Clear and intuitive navigation • Consistent course design • Guided learning modules with • clear learning objectives • built-in self-assessment • Lab partner guiding students through lab experiments by video demonstration

13. Instructor Support: Faculty Guide • Syllabus template • Orientation template • Suggested discussion questions • Suggested research and interactive activities • Supplemental test bank

14. Measuring Success - Evaluation • Define learning outcomes • Design assessments • Lecture content • Lab practicals • Administer assessments to: • Face-to-face students • Hybrid students with traditional lab • Online students with at-home lab kit • Evaluate and share results

15. Contact Information • Jennifer Baggett jenniferbaggett@dcccd.edu • Grace Rutherford grutherford@dcccd.edu For more information about acquiring this course, contact: • Becky Stinson bstinson@dcccd.edu