Sarah Miller

3.3 Online & Blended Learning

Candidates develop, model, and facilitate the use of online and blended learning,
digital content, and learning networks to support and extend student learning and
expand opportunities and choices for professional learning for teachers and
administrators.

1. Briefly describe the artifact and the context in which it was created. What was/were
your individual contribution(s)?
The artifact for this standard is my Online Learning Experience (OLE) and houses
components for entire unit. The unit is for Genetics, as taught in 7th grade Life Science,
and is designed to be implemented online in a blended setting. My contribution was the
complete design and development of the unit and the majority of its supplemental
materials.

2. Explain how this artifact demonstrates mastery of the standard/element under which it
is placed. See the portfolio rubric and watch the videos for more details on what to
include in your reflection for this question. You must respond to each of the items on the
rubric in this question! It is VERY IMPORTANT that you address ALL of the criteria on
the rubric. This one question may need to be several paragraphs long in order to address
all of the items on the rubric.
Design Principles
When developing this blended online learning experience, I used the Online Course
Assessment (OCA) and the W3 (Website Accessibility in Mind) components for
guidance. These guidelines require online learning environments to have key pieces to
enhance the success of all students. The components I added to my online learning
experience include: welcome statements, site navigation instructions, technology
requirements, links to technical support, ADA Compliance statements for the LMS,
netiquette expectations, discussion opportunities to foster student-to-student interactions,
clear course schedules and to-do lists, lists of required assignments, and much more.

Pedagogy Principles
To design this Online Learning Experience, I focused on strategies from Formative
Instructional Practices and Universal Design Principles. Formative Instructional Practice
(FIP) is found throughout the unit with clear learning targets; aligned activities; frequent,
targeted feedback; and use of assessment data to drive further instruction. Each module in
the unit houses the learning targets first, with a variety of formative assessments planned
throughout before a summative assessment. These formative assessments allow me to
gauge students understanding of the concept and allow me to provide supports as needed.
These formative assessments are also strategically designed to provide insightful data.
The questions and answer choices are worded so that I can pinpoint the misconceptions
as narrowly as possible. For example, if a student chose “wrong answer b” I know it’s a
vocabulary misunderstanding versus a process misunderstanding.

To address the Universal Design Principles, I have provided a simple, clear navigation
for the modules within the unit. I have also provided easily readable text and accessible
document formats. Additionally, all the videos provided have accompanying captions.
 Sarah Miller

3. What did you learn from completing this artifact? What would you do differently to
improve the quality of the artifact or the process involved in creating the artifact?
I learned so much from this assignment. I had no idea how extensive it can be to make
online content accessible. I think accessibility was the most difficult component of this
assignment, simply because I have no background or experience. Going through the
OCA, W3 Checklists, and the Universal Design Principles were very enlightening for me.
It opened my eyes to ways in which teacher can modify their content to reach all
students. If teachers prepare the content to fit these design principles in the forefront, then
more students will benefit- not just those with assistive technology needs.

To improve this artifact, I would put more effort into making those changes needed to
fulfill the Universal Design Principles. I admit that I did just enough to get by with this,
simply because of the breadth of this assignment. However, I would really like to make
adjustments in order to use the Universal Design Principles with fidelity.

4. How did the work that went into creating the artifact impact school improvement,
faculty development, or student learning? How can the impact be assessed?
I think this artifact impacted student learning and faculty development. It impacted
student learning in a direct way, while faculty development indirectly. I was able to take
what I learned from this experience about using what we already know about Formative
Instructional Practices and implementing them in a blended or online format. I have
added some of the strategies for FIP with technology into professional learning with
faculty at my middle school, as well as at a local high school.