Task+1+Group+3


 * This workshop material is adapted from On the Cutting Edge, a professional development program for current and future geoscience faculty. 

Teaching a course involves making choices about what you will ask your students to do and why. External factors such as context of the course, student demography, and support structure are significant and should influence the choices that you will make as you design your course. Consider the external factors that influence a course and explain why these factors are important to consider before you begin to set realistic goals for the students in your course. **Start by choosing a course or a portion of a course to work on.**  Answer the questions below. In addition to the facts, comment both on the **challenges to designing your course posed by each factor** and on the **opportunities presented by each factor that you could take advantage of in designing your course**. 
 * Part 1.1 What are the course contexts and constraints**
 * Task 1.1a: How will your course work? **

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Prepares students for a common exam-Pre requisite for Year 10Wide Mathematical ability range of students. Students from different backgrounds have different knowledge base and different motivation levels. Classes taught by teachers with variety of teaching experiences and views on methods of teaching plus different facilities.======  Applications for science and upper levels of maths;Helps the understanding the relationships between variables

Prerequisites- Basic algebraic manipulation.  Speed at which students develop understanding of concepts is a challenge reulting in behavioural management when students are bored Some opportunities to e xtend the faster students with modelling and problem solving Time-3 weeks Mixed, all access to data projector, limited access to computers. Challenges: Diversity of facilies  Opportunities:Extended learning tasks for some students

Does your course have a lab and/or on-line component, and do you teach it? Some -Learning Objects/Scootle <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Challenges: Infrastructure (network), Guaranteed access to computers <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Opportunities:Extend more able students, help with behaviour management <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">What are your options for frequency and duration of class/lab meeting times? <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">4 times per week <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Challenges:

Opportunities: <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Answer the questions below. In addition to the facts, comment both on the **challenges to designing your course posed by each factor** and on the **opportunities presented by each factor that you could take advantage of in designing your course**. <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Are your students gifted & talented, middle-of-the-road, or learning support? All three <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Challenges: .Producing teaching which enables lower ability students to learn while keeping gifted students challenged and interested Opportunities:
 * <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Task 1.1b: Who are your students, and what do they need? **<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">

In what way might your students use what they have learned in your course in the future? Related to real life problems <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Challenges:. <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Opportunities: <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">What is the demography of students in your course in terms of age, race, gender, and ethnicity? Same age, approx half male, half female, race/ethnicity not really relevent <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Challenges: <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Opportunities: <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">What percentage of students in your course have high-speed computer access outside the at home? <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> 99% <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Challenges: <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Opportunities: Can access technology resources from home <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Answer the questions below. In addition to the facts, comment both on the **challenges to designing your course posed by each factor** and on the **opportunities presented by each factor that you could take advantage of in designing your course**. <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Are you the default computer troubleshooter, or do students and staff have other support people to turn to if they run into difficulty with a computer problem related to your course? No, The students have access to other support people. <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Challenges: <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Opportunities: <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Does your school have writing, quantitative literacy, or oral communications skills centres that can provide supplemental help/instruction for students? very limited <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> Challenges: <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"> Opportunities: ||
 * <span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';">Task 1.1c: What is the support structure for your course? **<span style="font-size: 12pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;">
 * <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU; mso-no-proof: yes;">[[image:file:///C:/Users/ghughes/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.gif width="8" height="8" caption="http://c1.wikicdn.com/_/2009010800/i/bBL.gif"]] <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-language: EN-AU;"> ||