From Eye-rolling to Enthusiasm
During my on campus interview this time last year someone somewhere in some meeting (the days just sort of blend together in my head at this point) asked me about an area where my teaching could improve. My response? That I needed to work on my storytelling. It's easy for me to lose track of the story arc of a course amidst the technical list of skills I want students to learn. Those skills are important (I think we can all agree that we'd like the people building our bridges to have a precise grasp of Calculus -- right?!), but they lose their meaning when they're not explored within the context of what Calculus is (which at it's heart is a story about chasing after infinity) and how it fits into the broader context of mathematics (a way of describing the way God ordered our world).
Aside from the fact that you're probably more interested in calculus than you were five minutes ago, you're probably wondering what in the world this has to do with content mapping and designing online courses. I'm glad you asked! I must admit that despite being one to enjoy a good plan that's overly organized, even I found myself rolling my eyes when reading the chapter out of Conquering the Content this week. BUT THEN! But then, I actually made my content map and it clicked. The content map is a plan for telling the story of the course. The content map is a plan for actually improving at what I said a year ago I was going to improve at. The content map is a way to be intentional about communicating that story -- something that is especially important in an online course where it probably won't happen as organically as in a face to face course. I'm a content map convert.
Aside from the fact that you're probably more interested in calculus than you were five minutes ago, you're probably wondering what in the world this has to do with content mapping and designing online courses. I'm glad you asked! I must admit that despite being one to enjoy a good plan that's overly organized, even I found myself rolling my eyes when reading the chapter out of Conquering the Content this week. BUT THEN! But then, I actually made my content map and it clicked. The content map is a plan for telling the story of the course. The content map is a plan for actually improving at what I said a year ago I was going to improve at. The content map is a way to be intentional about communicating that story -- something that is especially important in an online course where it probably won't happen as organically as in a face to face course. I'm a content map convert.
"Telling the story," wow that's it!!! That phrase succinctly explains a content map. It mirrors mathematics as a map builds on itself to get to the final product. I enjoy telling stories in class; but, just like my stories must build on what needs to be learned from the academic rigor, a content map lays out this in a picture setting.
ReplyDeleteAs you noted Melissa, like using an erector set to build a bridge when I was young, we build out our class through a content map which is the instruction guide on how a learner can be successful. I found that after I laid out my content map last week, it made me realize that I can truly make a better learning environment, and a more organized instruction guide. (Syllabus)
Isn't funny how something as meticulous and detail oriented as a content map or syllabus can improve our ability to engage students in class? It seems like the story-telling aspect of a course is a completely different (and more creative) aspect than the details of what students will learn, when they'll learn it, and how they'll demonstrate mastery. However, your point that having it all laid out makes a much better learning environment is spot on. Having the details planned in advance gives us the freedom to focus on communicating the story of our course to our students.
DeleteI like your metaphor! Creating a content map is like the story-line. As teachers, we know this and know where the class is going, having put countless hours into the creation of the materials, lectures, assessments, etc. but putting it out there for students is important because they don't have access to the framework in our brains. Somehow phrasing it as story-telling makes it sound more poetic and appealing as well. Thanks!
ReplyDelete".. they don't have access to the framework in our brains." That's a great description Hope! Working through Bolt 101 has made me realize several times that I expect this of students sometimes and in a face to face class we can easily rectify any miscommunication through questions and immediate answers. However, how much better for students if I just communicate my expectations clearly from the beginning.
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