Your Name and Title:
Carine Ullom, Director
Office of Academic Technology
Ottawa University
Ottawa, Kansas
School or Organization Names:
Ottawa University (Kansas)
University of Saints Cyril & Methodius (Универзитетот „Св. Кирил и Методиј“ во Скопје)
Co-Presenter Name(s):
- Dr. Rumena Buzarovska, Department of Philology, University of Saints Cyril & Methodius
- Dr. Steven Foulke, Department of History, Ottawa University
- Carine Ullom, Office of Academic Technology, Ottawa University
Area(s) of the World from Which You Will Present:
United States (Kansas) and Skopje, Macedonia
Language in Which You Will Present: English
Target Audience(s):
- College and university faculty of all disciplines (not specifically language courses)
- K-12 teachers of all disciplines (not specifically language courses)
- Education administrators
Short Session Description (one line):
Undergraduate students from Ottawa University (in Kansas, USA) and from Saints Cyril and Methodius University (UKIM) of Skopje, Macedonia participated in a fully online course together for eight weeks in Spring 2013 which included three, required real-time “Cross-Cultural Conversations” using Zoom video meeting software.
Full Session Description (as long as you would like):
Undergraduate students from Ottawa University (in Kansas, USA) and from Saints Cyril and Methodius University (UKIM) of Skopje, Macedonia participated in a joint, fully online course for eight weeks in Spring 2013. The students from Ottawa University were non-traditional students while all of those from UKIM were traditional-aged undergraduates.
English was the language of instruction and the topic was regions of the U.S. and the Balkans. We used shared texts and films (all available online) to explore ethnicity, religion, electoral politics, economic trends, student culture, and perceptions of the future in both countries.
The course consisted of several key elements. Using Blackboard, all students engaged in discussions around the course materials and other current events via an asynchronous discussion board. Perhaps the most transformative portion of the course were the three required real-time “Cross-Cultural Conversations” conducted using Zoom software. Students were organized into groups of three (different groups for each conversation) and were required to meet for a minimum of 30 minutes per session. Finally, students used Google Docs to construct a group Image Gallery consisting of images, descriptions, and commentary related to the course content (see links provided to see their final product).
Each faculty member was responsible for assessing his/her own students' participation and work in the course, as well as for the respective materials for the American or Balkan segments of the course.
Technical support, which was the essential element for this course to succeed, was provided by Carine Ullom from Ottawa University from before the course until after its conclusion. She provided a Blackboard training session for the Macedonian students who had never experienced online learning before, taught both groups of students to use Zoom (the video conferencing software we used), taught Dr. Buzarovska how to use Blackboard as an instructor, and developed the process for and supported the students in their use of Google docs for the Image Gallery.
A post-course survey (see links below) showed that students were overwhelmingly satisfied with their experience.
Websites / URLs Associated with Your Session:
Course Syllabus:
Group project created by the students:
- https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1RREXYVcRFpYUV5kYhvDZBwbYb_12_3yZjs7_6fdH_TE/edit?usp=sharing
Post-course survey of students:
- https://www.surveymonkey.com/sr.aspx?sm=jbvAgrTFGX8YQNBkyOqdlSA8sk5qDsSXQ26BaKL0Z0Y_3d
- PASSWORD REQUIRED TO ACCESS THIS SURVEY: Ottawa
Online articles about the course:
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