Post 41: How to keep track of Course Revisions

Post 41: How to keep to keep track of Course Revisions

When I worked for AMU, I was Course Lead for many classes. The responsibilities of Course Lead involves maintaining a class you are assigned by the boss. I was assigned to do ENGL 498 and ENGL 110 and I was required to make revisions based on suggestions given to me by the teachers teaching the class and by the bosses.  I would make so many revisions like changing dead links, changing e-books or sources, rewording assignments or changing assignments altogether, changing forum assignments or prompts etc...I kept track of all these changes by making a file called ENGL 110 or ENGL 498 Revision List.  I would post this list in the Messages or as a hidden message in the Announcements so teachers who are entering the classroom would know what changes were made to the Model Site. If you want to keep track of all the changes you make to a class and impress everyone with the amount of work you do, keep a revision list.

Advantages of keeping a Revision List

1. Teachers teaching the class can keep track of the changes the CL has made to the class.

2. Evaluators who evaluate your job performance in Class Prep will be able to see how much work you have put into your Model Site and that you did not abandon your Model Site. So the Revision List becomes a record of your hard work.

3. A Revision List makes you look organized that you have everything in order.

4. Inspires confidence in bosses that you can get the job done.

Here is an example of the ENGL 110 Writing Across the Disciplines of the Revisions I made as
Course Lead to that class.

Changes to ENGL 110

March-May 2018

Test and Quizzes

Comma Quiz

Added the Comma Worksheet from Gina to the comma quiz

Grammar Quiz

Added the Grammar Worksheet to the Grammar quiz

Resources

Added Comma and Grammar Worksheet from ENGL 101 to the Resources section

Week 2 Forum

This has become a brainstorming forum where students decide on topics for their class projects from their field. Students will choose one informative topic (for their class speech) and 2 debatable topics (for their position paper) and for their analytical paper.

Week 3 forum

Initial post: Students choose a Week 3 speech topic from their field of discipline.

Added student replies where students ask each other what topic they will have for their speech and students ask each other how they will make their speech.

Week 4 Forum Discussion 1

Initial post: Students post an outline of their position paper.

Added Position paper essay structure outline in forum description

Student replies suggestion: Peer Review questions

Students ask each other if each other’s papers has ethos, pathos and logos.

Week 4 Forum Discussion 2

Added student replies suggestion:

Did the article they chose have ethos, pathos and logos?

Week 6 forum

Added more examples of analytical interview questions in the forum description

Week 7 Forum

Initial post: Student post an outline of their Week 7 Analysis paper.

Added example Analysis paper essay structure outline

Student replies: Peer Review Questions/Students ask each other if adding a counterargument and rebuttal paragraph adds ethos to the paper.

Assignment changes

Week 3 Speech Assignment

Added a description of 4 kinds of Informative speech topics==Explanatory informative speech topic, Descriptive informative speech topic, demonstrative informative speech topic and definition informative speech topic

Added a sample Power Point Speech outline

Added a speech outline for audio

Week 5 Position paper Assignment

In the Week 5 paper, students learn the 5 paragraph essay structure and students learn how to defend a thesis with supporting paragraph and students argue one side of an issue.

Added sample Position paper outline

Added an explanation of what a position paper is

Added that in the conclusion students explain how they used ethos, pathos and logos in their argument.

Week 7 paper Assignment

Added an explanation of how the Week 5 and Week 7 assignment is different.

While the Week 5 paper argues one side of an issue, in the Week 7 paper, students learn to write a counterargument and rebuttal paragraph in addition to the 5 paragraph essay from the Week5 essay.

Added a sample Analysis Paper outline

Added a question in the conclusion paragraph: How did adding a counterargument and rebuttal paragraph add ethos to this paper?

August 2018

Added supplementary readings

Elements of Style by Will Strunk

The Blue Book of Punctuation and Grammar by Jane Straus

Future changes

May be able to revise the Lessons to match better the Forums and Assignments.

If you have better instructions for this class or any suggestions for improvements, email me!

For future starts

Weaknesses to ENGL 110 Design/or what needs to be done

·         I don’t think the Credo lessons match the content of the assignments

·         I don’t think Credo talks about ‘what is a position paper’

·         Credo does not cover the different kinds of informative speech topics

·         Doesn’t cover the difference between the Week 5 and Week 7 assignment

·         Credo needs more details on what is a counterargument and rebuttal paragraph

·         Weekly Lessons needs to match forums and assignments more

·         The class still feels like a patchwork of different designers trying to bandaid an incomplete class together

·         Credo quizzes still need to be made Pass/Fail

·         Make grammar worksheets

·         Add grammar questions to prepare students for quizzes to the forum student replies topics or is it already too much?

·         Add Credo quiz  questions to student replies forum description or is it already too much?