Professor Ahmad Atawneh Center for Excellence April 2013

1. جامعة الخليل المؤتمر الأول للتعليم الالكتروني Professor Ahmad Atawneh Center for Excellence April 2013 MA electronic course activates the teacher and the studentsExperience Of Teaching A Course In The MA Program In Applied Linguistics

2. Introduction • Today's technology has changed the style of teaching from limiting materials to the textbooks and some written homework to more wide and open area of uploading and downloading electronic materials available to both students and teachers.

3. Introduction • Teachers used to queue in line at the printing room to make copies of the course outline and some materials for distribution to students. • Using the electronic system today will relieve teachers from such tasks.

4. Introduction • Almost everybody including students and teachers and laymen have access to internet connection at home and the work place, and of course, at the university. • Students are seen in the building corridors holding laptops or mobiles and connecting to the internet.

5. Introduction • Therefore, as a teacher, you have to catch up with technology and live this age, or stay behind your students who excel in technology and get what they want from open sources challenging their teachers.

6. The structure of the course • The course outline This outline explains in full details, in about 7 pages, the description of the course, the recommended materials to be used in the discussions, course objectives, course outcomes, course policies, assessment methods and a calendar of classes with dates on exams and due assignments. There is no need to print the outline because students can look at it any time they want at home or in class.

7. The structure of the course • A list of references This is a collection of books and articles most of them are online materials. Some are not online but must be bought at the book stores (Students tend to make copies at the coping places because it is cheaper). But no student can avoid the blame if he/she cannot get the materials. The course is divided into topics not chapters in books. Even if a chapter is assigned, that does not mean discussion will be limited to the chapter. Students are encouraged to collect materials from any website that is possible for access.

8. The structure of the course A list of references

9. The structure of the course Important books for reading

10. The structure of the course • Course policies students are told to follow the policies of the teacher in running the course in relation to absence, late submission of homework, plagiarism, submitting the assignments on the given time and preparing their presentations.

11. The structure of the course • Requirements for the course This is a very important part of the course. The practice is to assign one topic for each student to read well and prepare a presentation to lead the discussion in class with the supervision of the teacher who usually stops at every point for clarification and making sure that the students understand the point bringing examples from experience. The student has also to upload his presentation to the forum for all students to see before they come to class.

12. The structure of the course • The student response to material of class discussion This step is very important because it guarantees that every student has read the material before coming to class. This happens as it is required for each student to write a response to the reading of the topic commenting on things that he likes or understands and things that he cannot understand. Everyone will have to write at least two questions about the materials. The response and the questions will have to be posted for everyone to see on the forum

13. The structure of the course Homework submission

14. The structure of the course 6. The news forum for the teacher Any time the teacher finds something to be announced for students, he can post it right away and students are supposed to look at it and do what is required. There is no need for calling student on their phones and ask them to meet so that you can announce what the teacher wants for them. This is a great advantage for both teachers and students.

15. How are teachers and students activated by the electronic course? • Teachers should be sensitive to what they post and write on the page of the course because it is seen by all students and probably by others. • A confident teacher does not mind displaying the course to the public or the field experts. • Online websites publish course materials and syllabi to the public. • Such websites are accessible to everyone interested. So, why don't we do the same?

16. How are teachers and students activated by the electronic course? • Students are also under challenge because they have to expose themselves to their colleagues and to their teacher. Yet, they are students in the process of learning, so, no much blame goes to them like teachers.

17. How are teachers and students activated by the electronic course? • The interesting thing about the electronic page of the course is that a learning community is created teaching each other and learning from each other. Such a thing does not happen in a classroom with a chalk board. • There is a challenge for both teachers and students to learn how to use the page. It is not easy at the beginning. But later it becomes routine work and enjoyable as well.

18. Other technology equipment to be added to your page • As it is easy to download YouTube videos and color pictures to illustrate certain concepts and ideas in both fields of science and humanities, the new technology of smart boards is extremely useful to be added to the page of the course. • The smart board allows you to write by hand anything you want or even drawings on number of pages.

19. Other technology equipment to be added to your page • All you need is a projector and laptop besides the smart board with internet connection. • Anything you or your students write on the board can be saved in a file and uploaded to the page of the course. • These files can be accessed later by students and teachers. • This is a new development in technology which saves all what is written on board in a file that can be copied or stored in a bigger file for future access.

20. Other technology equipment to be added to your page • Without the electronic page of the course nothing can happen. • We live in the age of technology; and if we cannot catch up with this modern technology we stay behind age. • Our students will challenge us in the age of great advancement in science and technology.