Distance Learning Mentoring Group

Minutes for August 26, 2004 - 4 P.M. - 5:00 P.M. AS192

In attendance at the DLMG meeting :    Jennifer Townsley, Jennifer Grimes, Stacey Cochran, Sheryl Girard, Amadou Gaye, Charles Hall, Donna Gaudet, and Peg Johnson.

Introductions were in order for the first Distance Learning Mentoring Group (DLMG) of the semester. Jennifer Townsley teaches full time at DeVry Institute of Technology in addition to teaching communication classes on the MCC campus. At DeVry she has been teaching a hybrid class where students spend several weeks coming to campus and then several weeks working exclusively online. Jennifer plans on developing COM230, Small Group Communication.

Amadou Gaye has been teaching math as an adjunct faculty at MCC for seven years but is now a full-time faculty member. He also worked for a small business that developed mathematical modelling software. He plans on developing a hybrid or online Calculus III class.

Amadou, along with several others in the group, has taken Donna Gaudet's CIS 236 Web-Based Teaching and Learning Class. He highly recommends taking it to give you the experience that an online student will have.  The class fills up quickly so if you are interested, register soon for CIS 236 section 1020 (contact Records and Registration at MCC). The class is approved for advancement on the pay school for full-time faculty (or a tuition waiver) and for tuition waivers for adjunct faculty. If you have questions or want to talk to Donna, her email address is donna.gaudet@mcmail.maricopa.edu and her phone number is 480-461-7929.

Stacey Cochran is a fiction writer who has taught English 101, 102 and 210 (Creative Writing) classes at MCC. He is developing a one-credit course on Readings for Writers. He plans to use the WebBoard (bulletin board) to have students critique each other's work. He has used WebCT before in teaching his classes.

Chuck Hall (another Donna Gaudet graduate), took EDU 250 as an online class and enjoyed it. He will be developing an online version of Management 229, Management and Leadership. Chuck has also taken classes in using the WebCT gradebook and Fundamentals of WebCT.

Sheryl Girard (the third happy Donna Gaudet graduate – do you see a trend here?) has taught for Rio Salado Community College , Chandler-Gilbert Community College , and MCC. In addition she works full-time at SRP. She has used WebCT extensively with her traditional classes. This semester she is experimenting with having students submit their assignments via the WebCT Drop Box.  We'll be interested in hearing what she thinks of this tool as the semester progresses.  Sheryl will develop an online BBC110 class, Applications to Computer Usage.

Jennifer Grimes is a senior research analyst for the Arizona Dept. of Corrections. She was a student in an online environmental health class and had a positive experience.  She is working on her doctorate in the School of Justice . Jennifer will be developing an online Corrections course.

Peggy indicated that the many of our meetings would focus on having faculty present online courses they have developed or workshops to develop skills that useful to developing online classes,  She gave out a schedule for the first few weeks of the semester.

Donna and Peggy both recommended that faculty focus on the big picture of what they want students to learn in their class. Once you've identified your major objectives/goals, then you can investigate what options are available for helping students learn in the online environment.

To set up a development course in WebCT, follow the directions at this link: Setting Up a WebCT Development Course . If you need help, contact Peggy (phone 480-461-7703 or email at johnson@mail.mc.maricopa.edu ) or Melanie or Donna in the CTL. (Remember Peggy will be out of town from Sept. 1 to 13 however.)

Faculty were instructed to log on to http://www.mc.maricopa.edu/~johnson and scroll down to Distance Learning Mentoring Group Resources to explore what is available there and see if there are any E-packs for your course.  

Also try to find at least one online course in your discipline that you like. Be prepared to share the URL with the other DLMG faculty and explain what features the course has that are useful. You may start by investigating the courses listed at the World Lecture Hall .

Donna Gaudet will discuss the Most Common Mistakes Online Faculty Make at the September 2 meeting (4 P.M. in AS 192).

P.S. If I made any errors in describing your background, please let me know and I'll correct it. I was trying to take notes but I got caught up in just listening several times – you guys are too interesting!  

Peggy Johnson

Staff Development

MCC Center for Teaching and Learning

(480) 461-7703

johnson@mail.mc.maricopa.edu