Assignments




 * __Assignments for the semester include the following__:**


 * Assignment #1 ** - One of two options:
 * Essay - Silver, B. J. (2003) // . Forces of labor: Workers' movements and globalization since 1870. // Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
 * EdStats exploration - Perraton, H. (2000). //Open and distance learning in the developing world//. London: Routledge.

I chose the essay, which might not have been the best option. I was very disappointed in my grade (83%), but understand the comments made by Professor Huelsmann. Feedback provided: "I think you wrote more about the affordances of ICTs for teaching rather than the impact of ICT on the working conditions of teachers." However, the Silver article was very interesting and informative. Some of the key points made that I reflected on:
 * "Teachers are strategically located in a //social division of labor//" (p. 117)
 * "Teachers generally have more marketplace bargaining power than either automobile or textile workers" (p. 117)
 * "To date, the education industry has remained relatively impervious to technology fixes" (p. 117) - unlike textile or automobile industries
 * "The education industry is also particularly impervious to spatial fixes" (p. 118)
 * "Thus, the imperviousness of the education industry to spatial and technological fixes (in particular, geographical relocation and automation) may be at the roof of a great deal of teacher bargaining power" (p. 118)



This one had me scared, but I actually found it very fun and interesting (at this point I don't know my results, so I might come back and edit this page later!). My love for solving problems came in handy - as this was a multi-step process. Earlier in the module we were given a mock exercise that described the scenario of our project and various ingredients required for the project, with the final project being a cost analysis of an undergraduate distance education course. Items of input included the development, variety of materials, maintenance, assignments, student support, income, etc. We worked with fixed and variable rates, annualization, depreciation, aggregate units costs, total fixed costs, average costs, income, profit, and break even point. Fascinating assignment that was aided by recordings walking us through the ingredient spreadsheet, modeling costs, and how to graph the costs and income and average costs. Assignment #2 was a similar model to the mock assignment.
 * Assignment #2 ** - Given relevant figures and scenarios - we are to create a cost analysis for a distance education model. (Seemed relatively easy in the mock exercise - we'll see!)




 * April update - hey, guess what - I got a 98% - A++++++++! **


 * Assignment #3 ** - As a group we are to design a scenario of DE and present a costing scenario, including a text file, spreadsheet, and PPT.

A fun assignment, if you can ever get a team aligned! Chris, Shiree, and I started as a team; Shiree had to withdraw. Carol and Ruddhi joined us, after one of their teammates withdrew. So - we rallied and did the best we could. Ruddhi's husband is deployed, so she works and has family responsibilities. Chris, poor thing, is located in Japan and was tragically relocated for part of our semester because of the earthquake (S)! Carol and I work full-time, and with family responsibilities as well, tried to rally the troops. I was lucky that the last semester of our course, our softball tournaments were cancelled because of heavy rain and unplayable fields.

Our collaborative group assignment produced a costing scenario for an Electronic Marketing course and the University of Maryland, College Park, Robert H. School of Business. The assignment will not be posted, as there are only contributing authors. However, it was a great learning experience! I would plug in numbers thinking that because I raised an instructor's fee it would create a bigger profit margin; not the case. All costing factors contribute to the cost-efficiency of a course. After many attempts on the spreadsheet, lesson learned!

In addition, we are required to keep a reflective learning journal and participate in the ongoing, online conferences.