Individualizing faculty development on effective use of LMS using TPACK model

The most significant investment educational institutions invest in to support teaching and learning is the Learning Management System (LMS). Expenditures on LMS’s include vendor licensing, initial installation, training system administrators, administrator salaries, migration costs (from other systems, resource costs stemming from technicians, size of the migration, and time), faculty development sessions (orientation for new users, continuing development as features added or changed), instructional designer salaries, and so on. Yet, for all the investment dollars institutions make, the use of LMS features is inconsistent among faculty. To explore this claim and seek an approach to a solution, this session presents a training approach to the effective use of LMS using the TPACK Model*.

Source: http://tpack.org/

Figure 1. Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) MODEL

The need is to train faculty not only on how to use the LMS tool but also to integrate it with their pedagogy and subject matter. This training approach uses the 3 pieces of the TPACK model (Technology, Pedagogy, and Content) to perform workshops, develop instructional materials, and software applications. Training of each feature of LMS with respect to technology (how to use it), pedagogy (why to use it?), and content (what to use it for?) is considered. The session will present several examples of how the presenter did so in their profession as an Instructional Designer and Faculty Developer and also discuss its success and effect on faculty improvement on the use of LMS and the growth in their pedagogical knowledge. 

This presentation is intended for Design Thinkers, Instructional Support Staff, Faculty, Training Professionals, and Educational Technologists. During this presentation, I plan to engage my audience by doing a question & answer session, providing a link to a repository of training materials (brief sample of training materials: https://tinyurl.com/tpacklms), and providing samples of LMS course shells created by faculty to analyze and criticize. Data on institutional impact at the institutions implemented will also be shared. At the end of this presentation, participants will be asked to reflect on how they will implement this approach at their institutions. This presentation is unique and valuable since it employs a novel and innovative approach using the TPACK model to help faculty train on the usage of LMS effectively, a strategy that has not yet been tried. It is valuable to faculty and training designers in the field of education. With the help of this presentation, participants will be able to think of an LMS from a pedagogical point of view and be more creative on how to use it when teaching their subject matter. Personally, I seek to help Higher Education Institutions with faculty development efforts.

See Explanation of TPACK Model fitting for faculty/teacher development

 

*Sources (Also See List of all References): 

Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. J. (2006). Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge:  A new framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record 108 (6), 1017-1054.

TPACK.ORG. (2020). TPACK Explained Retrieved June 1, 2020, from http://tpack.org/

 

Learning Outcomes for the participants:

Apply the TPACK model for LMS training at their own institutions

Use samples of LMS training materials that implement the TPACK model

Analyze samples of LMS course shells from faculty to check for usage and effectiveness

Outline of this Education Session:

Question & Answer Session/Discussion- Are faculty at your institutions making effective use of LMS? How do you train your faculty on how to use LMS? Is your training effective?   -----   (10 minutes)

Introduction/Learning Outcomes/TPACK Model/Past experiences with this training technique that worked----- (5 minutes)

Present samples of training material and share data on institutional impact- Link to a repository with demos, slides, workshop models, faculty professional development timelines, and LMS Screenshots that present the training approach using the TPACK model. Data on institutional impact at the institutions implemented will also be shared (this will include both qualitative and quantitative data).  

See a brief sample here: https://tinyurl.com/tpacklms 

------(10 minutes)

Application Activities- Analyze and evaluate samples of LMS course shells prepared by faculty (think-pair-share will be conducted for this activity). For example, look at a sample 'Module' or a 'Page' and check for how the particular LMS feature is designed and developed effectively in terms of the following:

1. effective use of the LMS feature from the technology point of view

2. application of sound pedagogical principles

3. merging of the subject matter

-----(15 minutes)

Audience Reflection- Discussion on how this approach can be implemented in their institutions -----(5 minutes)

 

 

References:

List of References