Final Project

Design of a CMC Unit
 

Final projects for this course will be done in groups, and the course is designed so that much of the work you do during your group collaboration will lead to the final project. 
We want these group projects to both work well and and to not be painful for you!

What is it worth?   
25% of your grade

You will work for throughout the course on your project. You will revise your initial draft several times, frequently based on feedback from your online peers. Explicit instructions and suggestions for providing feedback are given before each online meeting. Here are a few things to bear in mind in the design:

•  Your project should be well-sequenced (the activities build on each other so that students are using prior knowledge to continue their learning)
• It should integrate different types of interaction (cooperative work, individual work, pair work)
• The activities should all be clearly tied together so that the students understand the ‘big picture’ of where they are going with the project.
• It should integrate multiple-competence aims (linguistic, intercultural, digital, social, etc.)
• It should include a significant use of technology.
• There should be clear support for the students to be able to achieve the expected outcomes of the project.
• It should include assessment activities throughout the project implementation.

Your group project may take a wide variety formats:  Online documents, wikis, blogs, movies, podcasts, etc. Due to the huge variation in the amount of work involved in the various technologies, it is impossible to give a page requirement for this project (especially since most probably won't have pages at all).  We'll be looking at a variety of final projects from previous years to give you some ideas of what "size" we are looking for in this important part of your grade.

Due Date:  December 15th, noon.

What might you do??  Your final project must include Computer-Mediated Communication as an important element.  Here are a few options!

Option #1:

The final project might be something you do in a Virtual World.  If you choose this option you would create “something” or design a series of lessons to take place in a VW that would require a comparable amount of work to those who chose other options.  In this case, you might develop some educational materials and/or tools that could be used by others in SL, most likely educational simulations (as we will discuss and work on in class).  In this case, depending on the size of the project, you might also work with a partner or team on the simulation(s) since you may bring different strengths to the project.  Under Option 1, the project would include the simulation itself (again, we’ll talk about this in class) and the supporting materials that are needed to use that simulation as a tool for language learning.

Option #2:

The final project for this course might consist of creating a complete unit that focuses on some topic related to language learning that makes use of CMC (for those of you who have taken my Teaching L2 Reading & Writing course, this option is similar to that final project).  This would include both a syllabus/overview for the unit and daily schedule, as well as a rationale for the unit, how it meets the course goals and objectives, etc.  In short, it should be a unit that you might actually use in a future class—so make it both useful and realistic!  As noted in class, this unit might evolve from some of the postings we’ve had on the CMC forum, or you might have a new idea you want to work with.  The important thing for me in terms of grading your final project is that I see a unit that focuses on some aspect of language that utilizes CMC in a way that enhances student learning.  This means that you should not use CMC in a way that has no real purpose and/or is inferior to just talking to a partner in class face-to-face.

Option #3:

If you discover that you enjoy podcasting, your final project could consist of a series of podcasts (audio and/or video).  If you choose this option, you final project would consist of the recordings and the accompanying exercises.  While not absolutely necessary, I’d suggest you develop some overlying theme for your podcasts, though they do not necessarily have to be a “unit” as in option 1.  If you choose this option, I’ll post your podcasts on the site that we’ll create together this semester.  I’d expect that you’d do 2-4 podcasts for this option.

Option 4:
You tell me!

Length of project:  This may vary “greatly” since these options produce quite different products.  However, option 2 would likely be something like 15-20 pages