UNIVIRTUAL FOR INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN Versione 00 del 29/07/2009

The aims of this short presentation are to…  … introduce the model of Instructional Design implemented by Univirtual to maximize the effectiveness of its online courses;  … show how practical model is applied to our courses, emphasizing meaning and purpose of the various steps with reference to the planned activities;  … underline the phases that characterize an online working week, to understand its typical structure and organization.

Main Features This trademark has the following features: Specifical and consequential phases; Customized solutions; With this model is possible to foresee and capture a wide range of training solutions.

FOUR-LEAF CLOVER TAXONOMY MODEL Univirtual Taxonomy mixes the theory of social constructivism Bruner with the fundamental characteristic of distance learning of third generation (socio-cognitive). Knowledge become "located" and "distributed" and it is achieved through cooperation and negotiation of meanings. The model is integrated and collects the best indications emerging from previous taxonomies (Bloom, Guilford, R. Gagné, E. Gagné) paying particular attention to social and group interaction activities (Bruner). The model is new because proposes as first a taxonomy for blended training. It is divided into four stages (Information, Laboratory [interaction], Check, Customizing (personalization) and 18 training functions.

Four-Leaf clover Taxonomy ® Margiotta 2006

This first step is characterized by the following training events:  Introduction of the module/unit's learning goals;  Timing of the online work programme;  Arrangement of a short abstract to introduce module/unit's contents;  Provision and linkage to specific glossaries in order to promote acquiring of a specific vocabulary required by the course;  Contextualization of the training path;  Content’s presentation; WHY IT IS IMPORTANT?  Because it represents a first important approach to the content meaning;  Because it outlines the sense of the training path and its complexity;  Because it gives a clear idea of the route to be followed and of the practices that characterize the participation.

Course Presentation What the courseware aims to achieve Abstract content of the module and specific learning goals Propaedeutic tools Learning contents

The laboratory is the second stage of the model, the one designed to improve social interaction. This phase must be understood in two ways: 1. as online activities and as a way to perform the personal knowledge of the course's objects; 2. as a way of social construction of knowledge. In this phase the follow activities are relevant :  questions about key concepts;  specific topics in order to promote discussions;  case studies;  improving the problem solving's capacity. WHY IT IS IMPORTANT?  It represents an important approach to the social construction of knowledge;  It allows a personalization of the learning process;  Throughout the laboratory phase, it is possible to promote an active role in discussions and of course a meaningful approach to knowledge;  It allows the development of a meta-cognitive dimension of learning processes.

The example shows a typical online discussion in the presentation’s forum. This represents a very important area where, starting from team building, it is possible to promote the social construction of knowledge.

This is a typical example where the tutor suggests to the online classroom a topic of a discussion on a specific theme

Evaluation is the third step of the model and it includes three significant educational functions ranging from the knowledge's evaluation to the test of the problem solving capacities. Specifically this phase includes the following actions:  Knowledge evaluation (Contents of Learning or Declarative Knowledge);  Skills assessment (Rules of Problem Solving or Procedural Knowledge);  Examination for the capacity of problem solving (transversal skills) WHY IT IS IMPORTANT?  Because through a systemic way of information's collection it can provide specific answer and compensation procedures;  It allows to set up new scenarios for action;  It makes possible to observe the interaction between all the elements involved in the courseware and if necessary to correct them with a customization process or with a new course set-up.

Evaluation activities play a very important role in the learning experience because they drive students to reflect in different ways on their own learning. Usually the evaluation activities of a module are: -Multiple Choice Questions; -Short Open Questions; -Essay Questions or study case

Self evaluation: thanks to Self-evaluation students can make judgments about their own work and reflect on their strengths and weaknesses.

Open questions: open questions’ aim is to understand the mastery level of the contents.

Essay Questions and Study Case: formative evaluation focuses on the process, collecting continuous feedback from participants in order to improve the contents.

Customization is the fourth stage of the model. It is built on the results collected through the evaluation process. Teachers have the opportunity to customize the learning of each student thanks to the following training activities:  Provision of specific bibliography;  Suggestion of alternative training paths;  Setting up of additional documents and training material. WHY IT IS IMPORTANT? The customization is relevant because it allows to move from a teaching centered approach to one more focused on learning.

Video presentation: the video presentation can be used to deepen particular topics. The integration of different media (audio, images, written text…) maximizes the learning opportunities and may be useful to fix some key concepts. Movie: using film to fix learning's concepts is another fine example of training's customization Readings: The suggestion of further readings is another way to promote the training's customization. Recommended readings can be useful to be used with different levels of knowledge: to promote the study's deepening or to bridge the gap detected.

Monday is the week's day when usually students can download contents to be studied. Each module is arranged as a file or as learning objects (Scorm). In the days from Monday to Friday there is the start up of all the activities, both individual and laboratory. A wide range of the whole activities planned required the interaction within group and tutors inside the online forum. On Saturday is the day on which activities are usually delivered. Deliveries will be evaluated at the end of the module.