MAPPING YOUR COURSE ## Mapping Step 2 Plan Instructional Activities

At this stage you should describe the instructional activities you will use to help learners learn and meet the SLO and identify content resources for each topic and for each set of learners.

For each SLO, consider the following:

- What activities are required in each mode?
- What additional resources are required in each mode?
- How will activities and resources be facilitated and/or provided to learners in each mode?

Designing Instructional Activities

An important part of your task is to choose (or create) specific instructional activities that will help learners meet the SLOs. Different instructional activities may be required in various modes, yet a consistent and effective learning experience is expected by learners in the classroom and by learners online, requiring extensive design work by instructors.

Best Practices

- Consider designing and implementing instructional activities that meet the specific needs of online asynchronous learners to be used for all learners in your course.
- Consider overlapping activities that include a combination of learners from in-person and online. These overlapping activities should be identified explicitly because they may provide unique learning opportunities for learners.

Example

Overlapping discussions involve mixing face-to-face discussion sessions with online discussion forums.

- - - - Start with small discussion groups in class to focus on various aspects of a concept or principle. Have the groups create some form of summary to report back to the larger group in a facilitated debriefing discussion. Ask groups to post their summaries (text, PPT, web links, etc.) to Canvas during class, but prior to the facilitated debriefing portion.
      - Synchronous online learners can join in the live small group discussions, as a separate breakout group or mixed in to the in-class groups using a local computer workstation (typically a student laptop) to connect.
      - Asynchronous online learners who complete their class activities later that week are required to join in the topical discussion forum that was started in class.

This method provides a richer online discussion environment for asynchronous online learners because they can join in discussions already started and their classroom colleagues may be more likely to respond to posts connecting to their previous work completed in class.

Designing Content

In many cases, the exact same resources will work for both in-class and online learners. In some cases, additional content, or alternative content delivery methods must be used for online learners. Identify any additional supports (resources, social interactivity, technology, etc.) that must be gathered or prepared in order to conduct the teaching and learning session.

Best Practices

- Plan to share all resources used in the classroom with online learners
- Record and archive the activities of the classroom for learners to review later

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Adapted from Hybrid-Flexible Course Design by Brian J. Beatty and licensed under CC-B