One of the most valuable aspects of this online course has been the opportunity to not only learn from the content but also from each other. Learning in a digital space requires more than just logging in; it requires active engagement, thoughtful sharing, and mutual support. As I reflect on my journey through this course, I recognize that my growth has been shaped by others, just as I’ve had the chance to contribute to their learning in meaningful ways.

Image form wikihow.com/Learn-from-Others

Throughout the course, I’ve made it a priority to engage in ways that foster collective learning. From participating in live discussions and breakout room sessions to offering feedback and encouragement in forum posts, I have aimed to create a collaborative environment where ideas can be exchanged openly and respectfully. Even when I have taken a quieter approach, especially in our Discord group, I have stayed actively involved by reading, reflecting, and affirming the insights shared by classmates. Here is a slide presentation on my learning contribution. 

Nevertheless, below are some of the posts that have contributed to the learning of other colleagues during this course.

• Update on my learning project – Comments
• Remixing education an approach to teaching and learning in digital age
• Perception note on open educational resources
• Social media and online extortion: The role of Digital citizenship
• Week 4 update on my SmartPLS application
• Participatory culture through social media: Impact on Education

And here I am in the last post for this course. It has indeed been an awesome learning experience with everyone. Below is my summary of learning, and I must acknowledge that I used the text-to-speech feature on ElevenLabs AI for the voice narration in my video.

Social media activism involves the use of digital platforms to promote social causes, amplify marginalized voices, mobilize support, shift national conversations on legal and social issues, and engage in collective action. It has emerged as a significant tool for raising awareness, driving legal and social reform, and fostering community engagement, particularly in movements like #MeToo and various local initiatives. According to Greijdanus et al. (2020), online social media activism also involves how people use platforms to document experiences, build communities, and mobilize for offline protests. It can be meaningful and worthwhile, as evidence suggests a positive relationship between online and offline activism, enhancing collective action and visibility.

Social media activism – voice of Frisco

The question of whether online activism is meaningful and worthwhile actually got me thinking about a lot of issues that we face around the world. How do people across the globe get to know or hear about social issues like the #FeesMustFall movement in South Africa, the #Black Lives Matter movement in the United States, the #EndSARS movement in Nigeria, and many others happening around the world? Gone are those days where progressive movements are done in isolation or restricted to just a country. According to Hutchinson (2023), the “presence of social media and the Web 2.0 platforms like Twitter and Facebook have provided activists with tools that previously only traditional media platforms had access to,” thus making it possible for people to share and even live stream their activism activities.

Social media activism – Anthony McCosker

Reflecting on the question of whether online social media activism can be meaningful and worthwhile would depend on several factors. For instance, a post by the University of Sussex indicates that while social media might be a useful platform for social justice, evidence suggests that these platforms are not accessible to a large number of people around the world. More importantly is the acknowledgement that such platforms can be weaponized for political use. Nevertheless, I think online social activism can be worthwhile because it creates opportunity for empowerment and identity formation. There are some people who find it difficult to share personal narratives or even express their identities. However, such platforms give them the opportunity to do so due to the collective consciousness of awareness being raised among people of the same identity or characteristics. This could possibly foster a sense of community and shared experience for such people. I have also witnessed a situation where online activism involved the sharing of an online bill in relation to a community issue. This successfully led to the mobilization of people within the affected community coming together for community engagement rallies on the respective issue. The online information that was shared through the bill actually informed and enhanced how the community members exercised their civic rights, engagement, and responsibilities.

Engaging in productive conversations about social justice online might be possible, even though it presents unique challenges and opportunities. I think there could sometimes be an issue of potential miscommunication through manipulation of posts causing a kind of passive interaction and backlash when using these digital spaces as indicated by the University of Sussex.

The responsibilities of educators in modelling active citizenship online will basically involve shaping students understanding of the digital space and their engagement within it. Since technology has dramatically changed how things are done around the world, it is important that educators take the responsibility of developing students digital citizenship skills, which can help promote a culture of engagement and collaboration in online spaces. This will involve guiding students in understanding online ethics, self-identity, and responsible online behavior (Kim & Choi, 2018). According to the authors, the S.A.F.E. model identifies how key components such as Self-identity, Activity, fluency, and ethics, which educators can use to structure their teaching. I think educators can also create an active learning environment where students are equipped to navigate the complexities of online interactions as they meaningfully engage in discussions around civic issues and responsibilities.

-Woohoo…. Designing a course module is not as easy as it looks. But anyways, I am grateful for this class and the additional learning experience I have gathered. When we were asked to design a course profile, my mind wandered away a bit on what I could possibly design to fit the present context I find myself in. After much deliberation, I decided to choose something I realized might be adaptable to health education.

I created a course in Medical Terminology and subsequently designed two modules. Medical Terminology is the basis for efficient communication in the healthcare sector. Understanding medical terminology is particularly crucial for anyone interested in the medical field, either as a medical professional, administrative staff, or other health-related careers. In designing my course prototype and profile as required in this class (EC&I 834), I decided to create an online medical terminology course with the aim of providing an interesting, accessible, and flexible learning approach to diverse learners who might be interested in the course. A summary of my course prototype is presented in this blog post, highlighting important design decisions, difficulties, and potential future directions. Nevertheless, I have included my course profile, as it provides a clearer picture of the course format, target population, and every other piece of information needed.

Course Design and Rationale

When designing the course prototype, a lot of things had to be considered so as to enhance the teaching and learning process. Based on the discussion we had in class, I understood the fact that our prototype should contain a look and feel of how we want the course to be. I thought in my mind at first that I wasn’t ready for this…you know, thinking of interactivity, assessment, and compatibility of whatever you are using or doing with the LMS you intend using. Alas!!! I managed, even though the prototype wasn’t perfect.

Elearning development/prototypes in elearning course development (Bacha Chatia)

The course follows a fully online, asynchronous format, allowing students to learn at their own pace. This decision was driven by the need to accommodate students from different time zones, work schedules, and life commitments. The course is hosted on a Google Classroom and incorporates interactive multimedia resources such as video lectures, self-paced quizzes, and discussion forums. To ensure accessibility, I integrated visual aids and animations to illustrate complex terms as well as flashcards and interactive games to reinforce learning in an engaging way. I feel this approach will enhance students motivation and also foster a sense of accomplishment as students master key concepts as documented in my course overview.

Developing the course prototype presented some challenges. The first one was ensuring accessibility for learners with low bandwidth or limited access to devices, which requires optimizing resources for mobile compatibility and providing downloadable materials. I think I was finally able to address this by providing presentation slides that students can easily download for offline use. Another challenge I think I encountered was supporting EAL students, which required the inclusion of more visual and auditory learning aids, as well as ensuring complex medical terms were broken down into digestible explanations. I really can not tell if I have done justice to this. However, I believe turning the subtitle button and captions of the video on, as well as reducing the speed of the video as students listen or watch, will go a long way in helping EAL students. Based on the feedback from the initial review of my prototype, I have tried to balance students’ self-paced learning with engagement. I have tried to integrate peer discussion prompts as a way to keep students accountable for their learning outside the scheduled live sessions. Here is a link to the course LMS, and below is a walkthrough on what it looks like.

As mentioned earlier, the development of this course prototype might not be perfect. However, I am glad with the process and lessons learned as I look forward to exploring more ways of designing courses with particular features that support equity and inclusivity in the learning process.

We live in a world where media have become highly significant, and its importance in education cannot be overstated. As teachers, it becomes very important for us to maximize all forms of technology to make learning interesting, fun, and active. According to the American Society for the Positive Care of Children (American SPCC), digital media not only encourages creative expression but also plays a vital role in building children’s social competencies. Through online platforms, they learn to collaborate, share perspectives, and offer helpful critiques, which promotes empathy and teamwork. Over the past few years, I’ve explored tools like Animoto, Clipchamp, Canva, and Screencastify, among others, for documenting/delivering educational content.

In this post, I will be exploring another commonly used tool by students, which is the CapCut media. CapCut is a video editing tool that can be used on desktops (Windows), mobile, or online browsers. While primarily known for film editing, CapCut offers a user-friendly platform for creating digital animations suitable for online education. This app appears to be commonly used by younger people, and it simplifies video editing with its intuitive features, making it accessible to new app users without prior experience.

CapCut has the option of opening a previous project or starting a new project. The web version has several features, including magic tools like text-to-speech, a voice changer, video aspect ratio for resizing, AI video maker, script to video, clips to video, smart vlog, custom voice, video translator, teleprompter, voice recording option, background removal, text to image, avatars, and one-click video creation.

• It has a term of policy that users need to consent to before using the app.
• The user interface is friendly and accessible with intuitive designs that allow users to navigate the app easily. The app also has several templates that can be modified for personal use.
• One can drag and drop videos and images concurrently and even set timelines to control the duration of how the logo or video appears.You can also create watermarks using the CapCut app.
• The app also has several video, body, and photo effects that can be applied, ranging from transitions, adjustments, animations, and filters to help enhance the visual quality of the video.
• In terms of the aspect ratio, one can crop and resize videos or images to fit YouTube, TikTok, or Instagram. One also has the option to create with a custom canvas size depending on the device used.
• In the adjustment, one can control the resolution, brightness, contrast, saturation, or even playback speed of the video. It also has the preview and export button
• It also has auto-captioning, which automatically generates subtitles either from video, spoken language, or using AI.
• Another feature that caught my attention is the audio integration, which allows users to add music and sound effects either by recording, AI-generated music, text-to-audio, or even extracting music from another platform to enhance the storytelling aspect of videos.

In the post How to Use CapCut in the Classroom, the author asserts that the utilization of CapCut as a tool to engage students within the educational setting can significantly enhance creativity and collaboration while simultaneously advancing digital literacy. Furthermore, the implementation of CapCut also renders the learning experience more captivating, thereby facilitating the effective comprehension of the instructional materials presented by educators. While CapCut is a free access tool, it is important to note that some advance features on the app might require a subscription. 

“Feedback is the compass for greatness; it tells you what to avoid, what to learn, and where to excel.”  – Henrik Ceder, Netigate

Creating my first module using the Google platform was a good experience for me. Even though I am familiar with Google Classroom, I have never used it as an LMS where I need to inculcate a lot of materials and design. The feedback received really showed that I did put a lot of effort into what I’ve done, and I still need to improve on my module design. Based on the feedback, I will be modifying my prototype and course shell in the following areas.

1. User Experience and Enhancement

One of the feedbacks received is the need to provide direct links to specific sections of textbooks and activities to streamline content access. This idea is actually welcomed; however, my intention for integrating the whole textbook was because learners will be using the same textbook as their reading source for the whole course. Nevertheless, I recognize the importance of making content navigation as seamless as possible. I will update the course materials by embedding direct links to specific textbook sections and relevant activities, ensuring that students can access the required content without unnecessary searching. This will enhance efficiency and minimize potential learning barriers.

During the review process, I revisited the course shell and realized a problem with the Padlet I integrated. Even though this was later identified by the reviewers, I already corrected the settings to enhance user experience in posting responses.

Another concern raised was the issue of the navigation challenge and pinning the initial course message in the Google Classroom “Stream” page to ensure easy access. One major problem is that “pinning is not a feature in Google Classroom. However, one thing I think I will try doing is to ensure that important messages or posts are moved to the top of the “stream page.” This will give access to visitors to easily read instructions that would help them navigate to the “classwork” tab.

There was also an issue around the lack of clear labeling for accessing and timing of synchronous sessions that need to be addressed. I acknowledge that this was an oversight because instructions and information regarding this were given in the video presentation before integrating it under the welcome section. However, I will create a separate label to indicate clear information about the synchronous session. This section will also include explicit information on the modality state and estimated weekly time commitment (as indicated in the profile and course shell)

2. Content Organization

The feedback also focused on resource clarity and learning outcomes. Though I had indicated the learning outcomes in the beginning of the presentation slide. Based on the feedback received, I guess the learning outcomes should have a visible section in the course shell so that it can be easily seen by everybody and provide clearer expectations for students. A big misunderstanding was also the fact that the module is covered within a week, and all subtopics addressed in the module were already integrated into the presentation “Notes and resources” section. Even though this appeared as a mismatched title to the reviews, I will have to include a clear instruction on what has been embedded in this section so as not to create confusion for students.

It was also indicated that the course profile does not explicitly detail policies or strategies for addressing attendance concerns. Even though the importance of attendance in the module was implied in the scheduled Zoom meetings and live quizzes. Hence, I will outline attendance policies and also provide options for students who may miss synchronous sessions, such as recorded lectures or alternative assignments in the course profile.

3. Engagement and Interaction

I integrated a discussion board into my course module. However, it is suggested that an introductory post from me (the instructor) could help initiate discussions and promote engagement. This will be taken into consideration in my next module, since it is considered a way of modeling interactive behavior to encourage student engagement in forums.

In the quiz design, one of the reviewers suggested the use of the H5P module for fill-in-the-blank exercises to enhance interactivity and engagement. I used H5P in some aspects of the quiz, and I also used a feedback mechanism through the Google quiz. I also thought to include a traditional set of questions in the module so that students could reflect and provide answers. This was done intentionally so that in case students had to do the quiz in the live class, it would give me the opportunity to discuss the answers with them. The suggestions will be considered when designing my second module. I will also be including feedback for wrong and correct answers with explanations in the Google quiz as suggested by one of the reviewers. This would help students understand their mistakes and learn from them.

4. Inclusivity and accessibility

Concerns around providing additional language support for EAL students, as well as low bandwidth and student access to devices, were raised. To address these concerns, I already included links to free open resources that are downloadable for students’ use. I also included presentation slides and videos that students can download with limited internet resources and use offline. I will also be providing additional language support resources to enhance understanding of the course, particularly for EAL learners.