FORKED CLASSROOM OPEN CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

PRESENTER Cameron Wills Ph. D. (ABD) Instructional Technology President- ETRA GSA Research Associate- Faculty Development Northern Illinois cameronwills.net

OBJECTIVES Understand forking as a useful concept in instructional design and development Recall the four freedoms Be prepared to design forked curriculum and projects expressed through a LMS Discuss ideas and alternatives

FLIPPED CLASSROOMS “…work typically done as homework (e.g., problem solving, essay writing) is better undertaken in class with the guidance of the instructor. “Listening to lecture or watching videos is better accomplished at home.”

FORKING “A fork is a copy of a repository. Forking a repository allows you to freely experiment with changes without affecting the original project.” (“Fork A Repo - User Documentation,” n.d.)

FORKING “Most commonly, forks are used to either propose changes to someone else's project or to use someone else's project as a starting point for your own idea.” (“Fork A Repo - User Documentation,” n.d.)

FORKING (“Stash_WhatsNew_Hero,” n.d.)

FORKED CLASSROOMS Curriculum is used as a starting point for students’ own ideas/projects Students personalize/modify core curriculum to meet their needs Students propose changes to core curriculum and its content

FORKED CLASSROOMS Already have materials online Expand, experiment, improve

WHY OPEN SOURCE? At the heart of open source is the idea that by sharing code, we can make better, more reliable software. (“Fork A Repo - User Documentation,” n.d.)

WHY OPEN SOURCE? At the heart of open source is the idea that by sharing, we can make better, more reliable software learning experiences.

FOUR FREEDOMS (freedom 0) The freedom to run the program as you wish, for any purpose.

FOUR FREEDOMS (freedom 1) The freedom to study how the program works, and change it so it does your computing as you wish. Access to the source code is a precondition for this.

FOUR FREEDOMS (freedom 2) The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor.

FOUR FREEDOMS (freedom 3) The freedom to distribute copies of your modified versions to others. By doing this you can give the whole community a chance to benefit from your changes.

FREEDOM How might this look if applied to the classroom?

FREEDOM 0 (edu ver.01) Freedom to learn as you wish, for any purpose

FREEDOM 0 (edu ver.01) Course content can be made to serve students’ individual interests and purposes Multiple ways to assess learning Curriculum is meant to guide, not coerce

FREEDOM 1 (edu ver.01) Freedom to study/review the curriculum, its justification and standards

FREEDOM 1 (edu ver.01) “Why am I learning this?” I do not have to be patronized

FREEDOM 2 (edu ver.01) Freedom to redistribute course content to help others

FREEDOM 2 (edu ver.01) Course content can be used elsewhere (credited) Student work does not die with the course Its not “cheating,” its collaboration

FREEDOM 3 (edu ver.01) Freedom to redistribute course modifications and projects for others to use

FREEDOM 3 (edu ver.01) Suggesting ways to improve curriculum Contributing their work for others to use Receiving credit for their work/contributions

IMPORTANCE OF SCAFFOLDING Give students just enough information Templates | Guides | Resources Provide clear guidelines for assessment Rubrics | checklists | standards | etc.

IMPORTANCE OF SCAFFOLDING Work with students to develop their projects or curriculum changes Tasks | Advice | Coaching

EXAMPLE

FORKED PROJECTS Coding HTML Scratch PythonProject

FORKED PROJECTS HTML ScratchProject Instructor’s Course Curriculum Student Work Final Assessment

ITERATIVE DESIGN Student Contributions/Feedback Part of curriculum design; Use commenting systems expectation

ITERATIVE DESIGN Build from student work and resources

FORKED PROJECTS HTML ScratchProject Instructor’s Course Curriculum Student Work Final Assessment

FORKED CURRICULUM Coding Python Instructor’s Course Curriculum Student’s suggested addition or change

FORKED CURRICULUM Coding Python Instructor modifies core curriculum with adjustments

FORKED PROJECTS PythonProject (a) Instructor adds student contributions to resources (b) Other students can use previous student work in their projects

DEVELOPMENT PLATFORMS Schoology Course Sites Other Learning Management Systems

DISCUSSION Reactions? Anyone doing something like this?

QUESTIONS

PRESENTER Cameron Wills Ph. D. (ABD) Instructional Technology President- ETRA GSA Research Associate- Faculty Development Northern Illinois cameronwills.net