This is a beginner course of moon and its phases. The topic is about teaching the words related to the moon in unit 1; the definition and characteristics of phases of the moon in unit 2. The goal is to allow students have a better understanding of how the moon moves and gain a new perspective on star patterns.
Lesson Student Demographic
This course is intended for students who are interested in space and the changes of the moon and stars. The minimum age for this course would be recommended to Grade 4 students. Also, this course is also created for students who are English language learners.
Lesson Objectives
Students will know the definition, the process of phases of the moon, including its color and shape appears changes. And they will know its rule with regard to the month changes.
Methods of Instruction
There are a variety of multimedia methods and materials used in this course.
Customized Video Lesson
Google Form Short Essay Questions
YouTube Video
Online Discussion Form
Google Form Quiz
According to Mishra & Koehler (2006), TRACK models emphasize the importance of technology and knowledge. When we teach in the technology-enhanced assessments, students would tend to participate in the class more actively. In the lesson design, I include two discussion forum in both unit 1 and unit 2, since I consider the most effective feature of online learning is the online discussion forum in LMS. It is a communication tool for students from different social backgrounds to interact with each other. I set the discussions as asynchronous ones. Therefore, students have more time to search supportive examples and then organize their expressions appropriately. And I require students to reply at least one classmate. Then they can get inspired by others’ posts.
Section 2 Phases of the Moon Lecture
Pre-assessment
Students will take this pre-assessment about anything related to the moon. This counts to 10% to your grade. The purpose of doing this assessment is to inspire students with a brainstorming bubble for the word “Moon”.
When it comes to the layout design, according to McCue (2021), Canva is a popular tool to create info graphics. Therefore, I use this tool to create the lecture video to educate students on the words about the moon and the phases of the moon.
When I was working on this presentation, I paid more attention to its visual layout as well as background and font colors. According to Merrill’s the sixth design principle, white space is like the silence part in the musical composition. I added larger white space between each lines. The design of white space can make each information distinguished from each other. In addition, According to Merrill’s second principle, colors can be used to stand out the contents form the background. I alternately use black and white background colors. When I use the black background colors, I use bright yellow as titles; while I use the white background colors, I use black font colors. In this way, I can pop out the main ideas to make sure readers can see the information at first.
As for the content design, I am inspired by Bloom’s Taxonomy, which breaks students’ cognitive processes in six levels, respectively remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating. As it is shown in the presentation, I organize the activities based on these steps.
I make use of gamification and apply the game “World of Warcraft” to the course about the Phases of the Moon. World of Warcraft can be a useful tool in teaching phases of the moon. The game’s day and night cycle can be used as a visual aid to demonstrate the different phases. For example, during a full moon in the game, the night sky is bright and the moon appears full. The application of game can boost active learning in the class.
Kurt, S. “Instructional Design Models and Theories,” in Educational Technology, December 9, 2015. Retrieved from https://educationaltechnology.net/instructional-design-models-and-theories/ Dr. Serhat Kurt, Instructional Design Models and Theories. February 17, 2021.
Merrill on Instructional Design – (5 min)- Merrill is one of the pioneers of modern instructional design thinking from a problem-centred perspective. He reflects here in particular on multimedia design and delivery.
Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. J. (2006). Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for integrating technology in teachers’ knowledge. Teachers College Record, 108 (6), 1017–1054
I chose the video I created in EDCI 339 and upgrade it with the current understanding of multimedia learning principles in this course. The goal of this video is to instruct the definition of science fiction.
I have changed some elements based on multimedia principles and theories. Firstly, I changed the opening page. Mayer (2014) proposes in the multimedia principles that engaging visuals can increase the effectiveness of the video. I thought the previous one was not intriguing enough and did not outstand that this is my personal instructional video.
Secondly, I have changed the background and font colors for many times. In the end, I decide to change the purple and black background to white or black. The font colors are mainly the high-contrast colors, which can highlight the content. According to Merrill’s second principle, colors can be used to stand out the contents form the background, emphasizing the main ideas to make sure readers can see it at first glance.
When I was changing colors, I also left more negative space in the video to represent the contents. I try to use the high-contrast colors to experiment the visual effects to create a distinct visual form to engage viewers.
When it comes to the elements that I do not change, I decide not using the background music. Mayer (2014) proposes the coherence principle and argues that when teaching, teachers should not include too much non-related elements in the lesson plan, such as background music. Secondly, I did not upgrade the three parts in contents. According to Mayer (2014)’s Segmenting Principle, it is important to keep the video short. Shorter videos helps the audience to choose the topic and makes it easier for the audience to process the information and retain it. Therefore, I do not change the previous three parts, including H.G. Wells’ original descriptions about sci-fi, definition approaches, and popular definition from Professor Jon Paul Henry. Each part is still about 2 minutes.
In terms of accessibility and equity, I get inspired by the practical design choices in week 4. I use a simple and plain language to define science fiction. And I upload the revised video through Google Drive and choose the option that everyone can view and comment. Viewers can have full playback controls according to their pace.
Mayer, R. E., & Fiorella, L. (2014). Principles for reducing extraneous processing in multimedia learning: Coherence, signaling, redundancy, spatial contiguity, and temporal contiguity. In R.E. Mayer (Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of multimedia learning (pp. 279-315). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
Merrill on Instructional Design – (5 min)- Merrill is one of the pioneers of modern instructional design thinking from a problem-centred perspective. He reflects here in particular on multimedia design and delivery.
I have access to several multimedia learning theories in week 3’s reading. I am so impressed by the Sketch noting, which include a mix of handwriting, drawings and visual elements created by the user. Personally I did not use this kind of creative form to remember information before. I preferred to use systematic table forms to outline the information. After learning the principle of this method, I realized that it can be used for vocabulary, comprehension, and note taking. And furthermore, it enables users to engage, focus, comprehend and remember the information and document. Therefore, I tried to use sketch noting to change my ability to recall the information interestingly and uniquely.
Here is my first sketch notes about why and how I use sketch noting today.
As for week 4’s reading materials, I realize that media and multimedia play an important role in a learning environment designed with UDL guidelines. UDL refers to Universal design for learning, which emphasizes on providing multiple means of engagement, representation, action and expression in the process of learning. According to the UDL video, it is so important in the classroom domain, since it makes the students’ learning experience more positive. For example, closed captioning on videos helps students to improve their language skills. Besides, it is also necessary to consider the furniture in the classroom. Modular furniture is convenient for students who have physical problems or the needs for other mobility devices. Generally speaking, UDL is very reactive and proactive. It designs the teaching contents or learning environments that can be used by anyone.
In addition, inclusive designis very interesting and intriguing to me. According to the inclusive design paper, it creates for a diversity of users by addressing barriers and aims to provide ways for people to engage. It aims to look for suitable solutions that fit every learner. For example, in schools, building entrance can be designed to be a slope that is attractive, barrier-free and minimalistic, instead of an entrance with narrow stairs.
Nice to meet you. Same as you! I would like to access to different interactive teaching skills and multimedia tools for my future career. I am very impressed by your reflections on week 1. I agree with you that animation is a good example of multimedia, since it would arouse students’ interests in learning the assigned topic. But as I learn from week 2, teachers have to keep key multimedia elements in an appropriate ratio due to the coherence principle by Mayer (2014). At last, thanks for you sharing about the new fun perspective on Interactive Multimedia, including video games and VR.
Hi everyone. My name is Ziyi Liu. You can also call me Hazel. I was born in Hebei, China. My hometown is extremely attractive since it is a prosperous and dynamic province. Mixed with different cultures, it broadens my learning and inspirational horizons since I was young.
This is my second year and I am majoring in economics. I am always keen on reading certain books related to social development and philosophies.
When it refers to my personal interests, I like boxing very much. I join a local boxing club and it arranges two online classes a week. It teaches actions, notes and diet collocation with multimedia tools. When I have problems in boxing, I can have interactive feedback and assistance from my group mates in time.
In this course, I hope to attain more useful knowledge about multimedia management. Multimedia learning is necessary in our daily life and it is important for us to know how to learn effectively with interactive skills and multimedia tools.
Photo by DeepMind on Unsplash
As for week 2’s reading materials, I am very impressed by certain basic principles of multimedia learning. Mayer (2014) proposed several important principles of multimedia learning. His words give a new perspective in certain ways. Firstly, he proposes the coherence principle and argues that when teaching, teachers should not include too much non-related elements in the lesson plan, such as background music. Previously, I thought both acoustical and visual elements are important in the multimedia class. I mistakenly thought the more teachers used these elements, the better students learn better. However, through the principles provided by Mayer, I get to know the key multimedia elements and ratio.
Reference
Mayer, R. E., & Fiorella, L. (2014). Principles for reducing extraneous processing in multimedia learning: Coherence, signaling, redundancy, spatial contiguity, and temporal contiguity. In R.E. Mayer (Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of multimedia learning (pp. 279-315). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.
Recent Comments