CC205 World Mythology as Web-based course
Ball State University
Abstract:
"Those who tell the stories control the culture." Humanities are underrepresented among the on-line offerings for students of Indiana pursuing degrees in higher education. CC205 simultaneously addresses this need and that of Global awareness, which has been recognized as a mission objective for higher education in the state. World Mythology is our most successful course in the Global Studies requirement area of the University Core Curriculum for nearly a decade, judging by enrollments and evaluations. Through the use of Web-based lectures, self-tests, essay compositions, bulletin board discussions and explorations students will gain a profound understanding of how the central stories of various cultures shape their actions in the world . We are requesting $12,000 from IPSE/IHETS to cover the development of the full credit course.
1.
- 2. Need to be addressed and learners to be served.
CC205 World Mythology currently exists as one of the choices students
may make to fulfill their Global Studies requirement in the University
Core Curriculum at Ball State University. The course offers a comprehensive
overview of how traditional stories carry the value codes of a culture
from generation to generation; it simultaneously introduces students
to methodologies from Classics, Religious Studies, Anthropology, Art
History, and Psychology.
I have taught an evening section of the class nearly every semester for the past ten
years and inevitably non-traditional students enroll who travel from as far as Indianapolis and Fort Wayne to take the class. (General enrollment in my section is about eighty; the course enrolls between 275-325 each semester.) These students and students with similar needs are the target audience. The asynchronous delivery of the course will allow such individuals flexibility in progress through the course. The course should also function to fulfill the Humanities and Non-Western course requirements in other universities' core curricula. Currently there is no such course offered through IHETS.
3.
Rationale for choice of course and the technologies.
The course is part of the required University Core Curriculum at
Ball State University. It consistently attracts a large student audience
from those interested in gaining a 'global perspective.' Furthermore,
the course is a demonstrated success in outcomes and evaluations. In
a Web-based format it would be unique in providing an opportunity to
distant students for fulfilling their Global Studies area requirement.
For all of these reasons it is an excellent choice for development.
Over the past decade I have employed a variety of Information Technology tools in the on-campus instruction of CC205. My work with the Perseus Project and the VROMA Project, both Web-based projects of national scope, has been integrated with students' work in CC205. I have also made extensive use of Web assignments and in-class digital presentation tools for the past three years. All of these activities have been assessed, and the results demonstrate a clear match between the subject matter of the course and information technology as an instructional tool.
In addition to the normal 'web-pages' expected for an on-line course, students will have PowerPoint presentations tied to further readings and self-tests, online quizzes connected to their text readings, bulletin board and chatroom assignments, and online writing assignments tied to web resources. E-mail will provide the primary mode of regular communications between students and instructor, and a chatroom format would be used for any synchronous communication deemed helpful.
4.
Institutional capacity and commitment to the course development project.
I have in the past been able to develop
a number of my skills in the use of information technology through small
internal grants. My work with the course has also received funding through
internal grants for the purpose of developing undergraduate research
skills. The course has functioned for two academic years as part of
the Freshman Connections Project, funded by the Lilly Foundation. World
Mythology remains one of the very few Humanities course selections in
the Global Studies area of the University Core Curriculum. Indeed,the
course is our most heavily enrolled course. The response to the use
of information technologies in the course on campus strongly indicates
that the on-line, asynchronous version will attract a significant student
population.
The University has demonstrated in many ways its commitment to the development of the course as a web-based course, most recently by a multimedia grant and a creative teaching grant for the expansion of the use of information technology in CC205.
The university continues to make available an array of electronic tools which I use on a frequent basis: email, WebFileManager (toolkit for maintenance of WebPages, bulletin boards, newsgroups), Inquisit (toolkit for administering tests, quizzes, surveys and assessments) and Electronic Gradebook (timely feedback on student progress). In addition, I have worked well and productively with personnel from Teleplex (David Marini, Dan Lutz), University Computing Services (Iolanta Czerwinski), and and the Center for Teaching With Technology (Gary Pavlechko) and anticipate continued full cooperation for this project.
5/
6. Instructional design and delivery plan/Design serving identified
needs
The course will continue to be structured as fifteen self-contained
units, each on a specific cultural topic, with certain theories and
themes providing continuity. These units will be redesigned for web
delivery, incorporating asynchronous features and structures to replace
the classroom experience. For each unit, students will engage in contrastive
readings of western and non-western cultures, to make explicit their
own culture's embedded values and to recognize similarities and differences
with those of other cultures. They will test their mastery of the assigned
reading through on-line self-quizzes. Then they will access on-line
lectures, with extended readings, analyses and self-tests with corrective
feedback. Finally they will progress to the unit's assignments. These
assignments will range from close readings of traditional tales in a
given culture, and their didactic influence on that culture, to comparative
readings on a given theme spread across several cultures, with progressive
distinction of the shared and unique elements within that set. Their
creative or analytical efforts here will be submitted through email,
bulletin boards and, when required, a chat room format. If problems
or questions arise, the students will have direct access to the instructor
through email.
The Units of study, as defined by the master syllabus for the course, are:
I. Introduction: Definitions of myths and their influence
II. Creation Myths: Types and theories (introduction to methods from anthropology and
history of religions)
III. Creation Myths: Themes and theories (introduction to methods from Classics,
sociology and psychology)
IV. Images of Divinity: divine roles, functions and powers within cultures
V. Images of Humanity: class and gender distinctions, roles and development
VI. Images of Worship: relationships of human and divine, forms of worship
VII. Family issues: types, functions, and roles (nuclear/extended, domestic/social)
VIII. Family institutions: marriage, childbearing, parenting, elder-leadership
IX. Self-discovery: formation of individual within culture; biography patterns
X. Growth: Formation of inner person; journey myth patterns
XI. Intimacy: forms of love: familial, romantic, platonic, erotic
XII. Authority: formation of attitudes toward order/flexibility, obedience/revision in the
structures of the culture
XIII. Alterity: dealing with 'differences', facing 'the other', defining the 'enemy'
XIV. Images of Nature: cosmography, environmentalism, "Mother Earth", neo-paganism
XV. Images of Death: origins, rituals and expectations concerning death and its aftermath.
A typical unit of study would entail four stages. Using 'Family Institutions' as an example, the structure of the Unit would be:
A.
Preparation: student completes assigned reading on primary sources,
that is in required texts containing myths
and some cultural background. This is done by check the interactive
on-line schedule of activities for each Unit.
[The function of this stage is to present the concrete examples of the
abstract issues to be discussed.]
B. StoryTime: student reads on line one Hindu sacred tale (Rama-Sita) and one Welsh myth (Pwyll-Rhiannon), each presented within its cultural context (by a PowerPoint lecture with links to further sources). These tales are selected to demonstrate the differing concerns of the cultures. Students are given a 'prompt' at the end of this stage ("What is the primary concern of each of the tales/") and required to respond by bulletin board entry.
[The function of this stage is to focus on specific examples of cultural difference and to engage the student in active response.]
C. Lecture: through a PowerPoint presentation the key concepts of the Unit are presented in a reviewable format. In this Unit the issues of arranged marriage, matriarchal/patriarchal cultural customs, marital fidelity as an ideal, sacramental/social endorsement of a marriage are considered. Further contrastive examples (from Classical Greek and Navajo cultures) are included, as are links to other on-line sources.
An on-line (through INQSIT) self-quiz immediately follows this lecture, requiring completion at a 90% or better level.
[The function of this stage is threefold: 1. to introduce methods for the analysis of the topic; 2. to demonstrate cultural similarities and differences over fundamental social institutions; 3. to engage the student actively in competent control of the conceptual material.]
D. Mastery: at this point the student is expected to demonstrate control over the material in two ways: 1. an extension of the study through a basic on-line research assignment; 2. an essay showing clear understanding of the material in the Unit. Two of the 'research' assignments will be communicated to the instructor in a chatroom discussion (with the student determining which two of the units).
Four essays will be required, in each case providing a Creative Writing or Analytical choice; each must demonstrate control over the material. (For example, the student might be asked to research and relate the practice of 'sati' or 'bride-burning' in India to the sacred tale of Rama-Sita.)
The student may also have the option of working with a small group of currently enrolled students; such group activity would entail both chatroom (synchronous) and bulletin board (asynchronous) work. In addition, "extra credit" assignments, much like the on-line basic research assignments, would be available for those who developed a strong interest in a particular unit.
[The function of this stage is to train the student in research use of the Web, to expand the student's control of the material, to improve the students communication skills, and to provide opportunities for both individualized and group learning experiences.]
At any stage throughout the Unit, the student is free to contact the instructor for clarification or amplification.
7. Course evaluation plan
The
course will undergo both formative and summative evaluation.
First, prior to being offered as a full course on the Internet, a sequence of units will be assessed by on- campus students. These results will be compared with the past ten years of course evaluations for CC205 and will be used for modifying the course as it is developed. (Assessment instruments have been developed with the Office of Academic Assessment and Teleplex, attempting to assess both cognitive and affective gains. These instruments have been employed during the 1998-99 year for the on-campus course to establish baseline results.)
Second, prior to being offered as a full course the units would be evaluated by outside content and information technology experts (e.g. Greg Nagy, full Professor of Classics at Harvard University; Barbette Spaeth, full professor of Classics and Faculty Development Director at Tulane University) as well as by local colleagues.
Third, as a full-course, students will evaluate both the individual units and the overall learning experience on cognitive, affective and structural (delivery) indices
8.
Quality and/or transferability plans and/or strategies
Quality enhancement: a number of the features of the Web-based CC205
can be implemented in the on-campus version to increase active learning
for the students. These elements certainly include the electronic lectures
and various self-testing instruments as well as the electronic communications
tools (email, bulletin board, chatroom). The quality of these features
will be reviewed by the peer review process outlined above.
The Classics section of the Modern Languages and Classics department has two other very popular University Core Curriculum courses (CC101 Vocabulary Development and CC105 Classical World) which could easily adopt elements from this web-based model of CC205 World Mythology. Similar courses at other Universities within the state could use the course as a model for on-line development
Finally, the assessments outlined above will be disseminated through presentations and publication. (The project director has a long, successful record of reporting assessment results within the field at national meetings of Lilly Conference, Calico, Classical Association of MidWest and South, American Classical League, Association for General and Liberal Studies, etc. with over a dozen presentations in the past three years.)
9.
How course fits in with other efforts in the state
The course may fulfill either a Humanities or Global Studies and
diversity/multicultural requirement in any degree program in the state.
It currently does so as part of Ball State University's effort to diversify
the curriculum and bring a global perspective to students' learning.
10.
Marketing plan
The School of Continuing Education and Public Service, through which
I have several times taught Classics courses at a hospital, in prison,
and at military bases, has long been successful in marketing our courses.
They have also shown a very strong and encouraging commitment to the
current project. The course would be marketed by the School through
its catalog, brochures and with an imbedded link at the School's Web-site.
11.
Project schedule
(Please refer to section 5/6 on Instructional Design for specifics
concerning the Units.)
Spring 2000: preliminary selection of web resources, sound and graphics,
software delivery;
Summer 2000: development of 5 pilot units of study (CyberLectures, self-testing,
assignments);
Fall 2000: continued development of units and student/peer evaluation
of pilot units;
Spring 2001: completion of all units, further testing and assessment
of developed pilots;
Summer 2001: offering and assessment of course.
Fall 2000 through Fall 2001: dissemination of assessment results.
12.
Key course personnel
Director: William Magrath, Professor of Classics
Teleplex and UCS personnel, assistance with technical support and some
development
Marketing: James Danglade, School of Continuing Education and Public
Service
Appendix:
one page summary of my teaching and information technologies expertise
Teaching experience:
Ph.D. Stanford University, Classics (with specialization in mythology)
I have taught at the University of Pittsburgh (1970-77), Vassar College (1981-82) and Ball State University (1977-present) and am a Full Professor in the department of Modern Languages and Classics. I have taught almost all of our offerings over the years and regularly teach in the Honors College required Humanities sequence of 3 courses. In addition I have taught CC205, World Mythology, nearly every semester over the past decade. My student evaluations run from good to outstanding.
I have been mastering and implementing information technology tools in these classes for the past 15 years. I have also been a member of national teams (funded by NEH and other sources) such as Perseus Project and VRoma, which have developed on-line humanities materials, for nearly a decade. I have also received a number of internal grants at Ball State University for the implementation of multimedia and information technology in several of our courses.
