Aside from learning styles and preferences, what else should we take into account regarding learners or our audience in designing instruction?

My answer would have to be everything. As an instructor we need to take into account the age, level, attitude, and social status of the students your teaching. Not to mention your own demeanor and style.

For instance, you wouldn’t want to go into a classroom of inner-city kids who struggle daily to stay out of gangs and do good to have meals on the table and complain because the navigation system went out in your new Lexus. They wouldn’t care, probably wouldn’t show much respect for you and you might not have a car left when class ended. In our paper we had to offer suggestions and look at things that are important such as classroom control and teacher/student barriers.

I think that if you’re a tenured professor that’s been doing the job forever you can get away with coming to class in your shorts and flip-flops. I in fact had a professor last semester that did this and for him it worked. He had a level of knowledge and experience which allowed for his personal style to be very casual and still work. On the other hand if I started teaching tomorrow I would have to work and learn exactly how to keep that barrier in tact while still effectively teaching and helping students. In my case I’m lucky. I’m an older student who has worked for years in the real world and I’ve worked in a higher education environment. Before that I was a junior high secretary so I’ve been in the classroom and I understand already how to maintain a good sense of balance on this issue which because of those years working in the school I know and understand why so many of our new teachers had problems in this area. Most new teachers wanted the students to like them. Eventually, the ones who stayed in the field figured out that having the students respect them was much more important. Once the students appreciated what was being taught and had an appropriate level of respect for the teacher, those teachers were automatically catapulted to a level of teacher the students LIKED.

Online Myths

I guess two of the myths I found most interesting were that there is no involvement for online classes and that they are easy. I've been taking classes for years now. It took me 12 years to finish my associated degree because I'd take 6 hours one semester and then not take anything for another year or two. Therefore, as online classes have evolved over time I've taken quite a few of them. I would have to say that for the most part they are usually more interactive than an in person class. You can always go, sit, keep your mouth shut and leave. With an online class there are usually required postings and required responses. You have to stay involved. You have to read what others have to say and develop an opinion about it. If you just sit there no one can see you so it doesn't count. As far as being easy it's the same as in person classes. Some are easy, some are hard. It all depends on the instructor, the level of work and the amount of work. I've taken classes online that required a few minutes each week to do a quick post or two then take an open book exam in which you had plenty of time to find the answers. I've also taken ones that you have to know everything before you start the exam because you barely had enough time to read the question and pick one. I've had the same in a traditional class so from my personal experience I really find that online classes are usually more involved but can also be a lot of fun. You always have a voice and you don't have to wait for someone to call your name. If you want to put your two-cents in you just click respond and do it.

Copyright Issues

Copyright issues can be very vague and hard to interpret even for the experts. To make this worse, everything being so easily available on the web from so many sources both legitimate and not, muddies the waters even further. In the late 1990’s a meeting was held “in Washington to negotiate Guidelines for Educational Uses of Digital Works in a two-year-long Conference on Fair Use” (Fair Use). At it’s conclusion it was decided that they still did not have a handle on the issues facing the use of the web and intellectual property and materials. The rules and guidelines are constantly being re-considered and re-written or changed entirely. One thing remains constant however, if you use someone else’s work without permission you can and probably will be punished.

To determine if you may use a work you must answer questions like is it protected. If so do you want to use the work in a way that will infringe on the owner’s rights or are you using it in an approved manner. Many materials are available on the web and depending on the age of the document may be open to public use. For example, you can easily find many of Shakespeare’s works on the internet. Because “any work published on or before December 31, 1922 is now in the public domain” (Fair Use). This means if it was written anytime after that you need to research its copyright rules before you use, distribute or print it. Even a flyer for a party could get you in trouble if you use clip art or pictures that are protected.

One case that comes to mind for everyone when discussing online copyright infringement is that of A&M Records v. Napster case. Napster is an online music sharing network that allowed users to upload their songs and share with all other Napster users without having to purchase individual download licenses. This case paved the way for many suits to come in which individuals where sued for peer-to-peer file sharing (Adkins). “In July of 2003, the Recording Industry Association of America announced it would begin compiling information that would lead to the prosecution of persons using peer-to-peer file sharing for individual use. In September of 2003, the RIAA began filing suit against 261 individuals who had been caught using peer-to-peer file sharing” (Adkins).

Since these and other cases of this nature have been filed, systems like Napster have been required to implement safeguards that will both protect property and remove personal liability for the company. They now have programs which attempt to filter copyrighted information and prevent its unauthorized distribution. A good rule of thumb for the user is that if you did not purchase an original, in the case, product or one that comes with a registration code, do not use it. By purchasing or downloading, boot legged copies of movies, music or even papers you as an individual set yourself up to possible lawsuits which can be time consuming and extremely costly.

Works Cited

Fair Use of Copyrighted Materials (2005, March). UT System, Retrieved September 15, 2009 from the World Wide Web: http://www.utsystem.edu/ogc/intellectualproperty/copypol2.htm

Adkins, R. Court Cases. The Law and File Sharing. Retrieved September 15, 2009 from the World Wide Web: https://webspace.utexas.edu/rra56/cases.htm

Typical class/session

In an online course such as this one there is not the face to face contact or even a face to put with the professors name which makes the learning environment vastly different from a traditional classroom setting. The good thing is that with this type classroom you can complete your assignments and read the information from anywhere while wearing your pajamas. This makes online learning very convenient. For me a typical session includes logging on, checking for emails, jumping over to check things like my bank balance then getting back to the class. I then read through the assignments, try to make sense out of what I’m suppose to do and then I start typing, posting or taking whatever exam or quiz is assigned.

Course Expectations for LTEC 3440

For my LTEC course I'm expecting to learn more about the instructional uses of technology. I'm planning to be a secondary education teacher and I know that the student's are all very technologically savvy. To keep up with the youth of today is a difficult task. Many of the students in my classes at UNT are of a much younger generation. In fact one of my friends has a son who is now a sophomore at UNT. I feel too old most of the time but hopefully this class will get me up to date and I will at least know what students are chatting about in my future teaching classrooms.