INFO 250-01
INFO 250-11
Design and Implementation of Instructional Strategies for Information Professionals
Fall 2016 Syllabus

Diane K. Kovacs
E-mail
Office hours: Via e-mail; Chat/Instant Messaging appointments can be arranged.  I really prefer not to work by telephone. We need to both be able to see and work on the computer together. E-mail and chat are best. In an urgent situation you may call me at 216-392-8254 but I am actually more accessible via e-mail than by phone.  Remember this is Eastern Time zone for me. diane@kovacs.com is the best e-mail address to use.

Canvas Information: Courses will be available beginning August 24th, 6am PT unless you are taking an intensive or a one unit or two unit class that starts on a different day. In that case the class will open on the first day that the class meets.

You will be enrolled into the Canvas site automatically.

Course Description

The goal of this course is for information professionals to learn how to design and develop learner-centered instruction within a library or other information organization context.  We will use a project-based approach to integrate learning about Learning Perspectives, formal instructional design processes, instructional materials/learning object development, learner motivation, learner assessment, and formative evaluation, and other related concepts.  We will begin with learner needs assessment as the foundation of good instructional design.  We will learn how to evaluate and choose instructional tools appropriate to a given group of learners. The value of collaboration and cooperation with learners, other teachers/designers, and management in the development of learner-centered instruction will be emphasized.

INFO 250 is designed for information professionals who will be designing, creating, and delivering instruction in the context of a library or other information organization.  The scope is all library types and instructional types from one-on-one tutoring to large group presentation and everything in between and online and in-person.

Course Requirements

Class participation is cultivated through asynchronous guided conversations (in Canvas) and optional Collaborate (was Collaborate) discussion/lecture sessions are an important part of this course. Conversations are guided by relevant questions that require you to self-reflect on the readings, lectures, learning activities, and your other relevant experience participating in instruction as a learner and as a teacher/designer. 15 class participation points are awarded for each guided conversation posting just to encourage participation (105 points total). An additional 20 course participation points are earned by attending (optional) or listening to the recorded Collaborate meetings, responding to teacher emails and other feedback. And 10 extra credit points may be earned by participating in an optional Facebook group where we can interact with guest speakers and each other informally. INFO250 SJSU iSchool Class Discussion Optional Group (Kovacs).

It is important to express your own opinions while also being respectful; suggest constructive ideas for improvement while evaluating other students’ work; pose relevant questions; compare and contrast ideas; share and critique resources; communicate and collaborate.

Course Format
This course will be taught online using Canvas - http://ischoolapps.sjsu.edu/canvas and once monthly Collaborate meetings for discussion, questions, and some lecture, as well as some guest speakers. Collaborate meetings are optional attendance but required listening to the recordings.

Primary Requirements
The primary course requirements are that students will:

• have access to the computing environment as described at http://ischool.sjsu.edu/current-students/technology-support/home-computing-environment
• use Canvas - http://ischoolapps.sjsu.edu/canvas and refer to Tutorials as needed
• submit assignments via Canvas - http://ischoolapps.sjsu.edu/canvas

Assignment Due Dates
(Dates are subject to change with fair notice. See below.)

Blackboard Collaborate
Optional Once a Month Collaborate Discussion/Lecture sessions scheduled as follows
(This will be subject to some possible changes and additional optional online meeting dates depending on availability of guest speakers etc.)

1. Wednesday August 24 at 7 p.m. PT-8 p.m PT (10 p.m. - 11p.m. ET) (10 p.m. - 11p.m. ET) - Attendance strongly encouraged for first class information.
2. Thursday September 22 at 7 p.m. PT-8 p.m PT (10 p.m. - 11p.m. ET)
3. Monday October 17 at 7 p.m. PT-8 p.m PT (10 p.m. - 11p.m. ET)
4. November Guest Speakers TBA
5. Tuesday December 6 at 7 p.m. PT-8 p.m PT (10 p.m. - 11p.m. ET)

Assignments
Full assignments details and instructions are on the Canvas course page. Assignment points total 1000 with up to 10 points of extra credit for participating in the private class Facebook group INFO250 SJSU iSchool Class Discussion Optional Group (Kovacs). Learning Activities total 875 points. Course participation is worth a total of 125 points: participate in each guided conversation (105 points), read/listen to lectures, and respond promptly to emails from the teacher in order to earn those points (20 points).

NOTE: All learning activities must be submitted on due dates. Points will be taken off for submissions more than 3 days late. Learning activities may be revised/rewritten/resubmitted for additional points if the resubmissions are submitted within one week of the scheduled due date. Resubmissions after that week will not be accepted. Guided conversation topic posts must be posted no later than the last scheduled day of the topic in which they are being discussed.

Learning Activities* (875 points total):

Entry Behavior and Learner Characteristics Survey. 25 points Due September 4.

Developing your Instructional Design Plan Worksheets: Learning Activities 1-4 (100 points each; 400 total):

• Learning Activity 1. Reviewing Instructional Design Examples and Deciding on Your Topic. 100 points. Supports CLO#1, CLO#2 and CLO#4. Due September 18.
• Learning Activity 2. Instructional Design Steps 1-4 Worksheet: Step 1. Needs Assessment and Instructional Goals,
  Step 2. Instructional Analysis (aka Task Analysis), Step 3. Entry Behavior and Learner Characteristics, &
  Step 4. Learning Outcomes and Motivating Learners. 100 points. SupportsCLO#1, CLO#2, CLO#3, CLO#4, CLO#5, CLO#6, and CLO#7. Due October 2.
• Learning Activity 3. Instructional Design Worksheet: Step 5. Planning Instructional Strategies. 100 points. Supports CLO#1, CLO#2, CLO#3, CLO#4, CLO#5, CLO#6, and CLO#7. Due October 16.
• Learning Activity 4. Instructional Design Worksheet: Step 6. Choosing Teaching and Learning Tools and Planning Instructional Materials & Reviewing Instructional Tools and Materials Options; Practice Screencast. 100 points. Supports CLO#1, CLO#2, CLO#3, CLO#4, CLO#5, CLO#6, and CLO#7. Due October 30.

Final Project Learning Activities 5-7 (150 points each; 450 total):

• Learning Activity 5. Instructional Design Worksheet: Step 7. Formative Evaluation & Creating your Instructional Design Plan Draft; Screencasting your Introduction. 150 points. Supports CLO#2 and CLO#3. Due November 14.
• Learning Activity 6. Peer-Reviewing your Classmates' Draft Instructional Design Plans and Screen casts. 150 points. Supports CLO#2 and CLO#3. Due November 30.
• Learning Activity 7. Final Draft Instructional Design Plan. 150 points Due (May be revised and resubmitted if submitted until ) supports CLO#1, CLO#2, CLO#3, CLO#4, CLO#5, CLO#6, and CLO#7. Due December 12.

Assignment Basic Format Guidelines
Please use the following class header on the top left-hand side of each page AND as the file name you use to save the assignment in before uploading to Canvas:

• INFO 250 _Firstname_Lastname_ Assignment name_CurrentSemester_Year
  Example: INFO 250_Diane_Kovacs_Learning Activity 1_Fall_2016.doc
• Also include in each assignment:
  • Name of the assignment
  • Your first and last name
  • Your email address
  • Date
  • Save as .doc or .txt or other readable format.

top

Course Workload Expectations

Success in this course is based on the expectation that students will spend, for each unit of credit, a minimum of forty-five hours over the length of the course (normally 3 hours per unit per week with 1 of the hours used for lecture) for instruction or preparation/studying or course related activities including but not limited to internships, labs, clinical practica. Other course structures will have equivalent workload expectations as described in the syllabus.

Instructional time may include but is not limited to:
Working on posted modules or lessons prepared by the instructor; discussion forum interactions with the instructor and/or other students; making presentations and getting feedback from the instructor; attending office hours or other synchronous sessions with the instructor.

Student time outside of class:
In any seven-day period, a student is expected to be academically engaged through submitting an academic assignment; taking an exam or an interactive tutorial, or computer-assisted instruction; building websites, blogs, databases, social media presentations; attending a study group;contributing to an academic online discussion; writing papers; reading articles; conducting research; engaging in small group work.

Course Prerequisites

INFO 250 has no prequisite requirements.

Course Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:

1. Demonstrate an understanding of current learning and instructional theory.
2. Demonstrate familiarity with information literacy standards and models.
3. Evaluate tools for teaching and learning in face-to-face and online environments.
4. Conduct a learner needs assessment.
5. Plan, execute, and evaluate a unit of instruction.
6. Integrate information literacy skills into instructional units.
7. Describe the importance of communication and collaboration with key constituents in the instructional design and delivery processes.

Core Competencies (Program Learning Outcomes)

INFO 250 supports the following core competencies:

top

Textbooks

Required Textbooks:

• Grassian, E. S. & Kaplowitz, J. R. (2009). Information Literacy Instruction: Theory and Practice (2nd ed.). Neal-Schuman. Available through Amazon: 1555706665.

Recommended Textbooks:

• Kovacs, D. (2014). 7 steps to effective online teaching. ALA Editions. Available through Amazon: 0838911714

top

Grading Scale

The standard SJSU School of Information Grading Scale is utilized for all iSchool courses:

In order to provide consistent guidelines for assessment for graduate level work in the School, these terms are applied to letter grades:

• C represents Adequate work; a grade of "C" counts for credit for the course;
• B represents Good work; a grade of "B" clearly meets the standards for graduate level work or undergraduate (for BS-ISDA);
  For core courses in the MLIS program (not MARA, Informatics, BS-ISDA) — INFO 200, INFO 202, INFO 204 — the iSchool requires that students earn a B in the course. If the grade is less than B (B- or lower) after the first attempt you will be placed on administrative probation. You must repeat the class if you wish to stay in the program. If - on the second attempt - you do not pass the class with a grade of B or better (not B- but B) you will be disqualified.
  
• A represents Exceptional work; a grade of "A" will be assigned for outstanding work only.

Graduate Students are advised that it is their responsibility to maintain a 3.0 Grade Point Average (GPA). Undergraduates must maintain a 2.0 Grade Point Average (GPA).

University Policies

Per University Policy S16-9, university-wide policy information relevant to all courses, such as academic integrity, accommodations, etc. will be available on Office of Graduate and Undergraduate Programs' Syllabus Information web page at: https://www.sjsu.edu/curriculum/courses/syllabus-info.php. Make sure to visit this page, review and be familiar with these university policies and resources.

In order to request an accommodation in a class please contact the Accessible Education Center and register via the MyAEC portal.

Download Adobe Acrobat Reader to access PDF files.

More accessibility resources.