Examples of Well Designed University Spanish Courses

Question

Hello, I'm an instructional designer from Villanova University in Pennsylvania, USA. We are in the early stages of implementing Brightspace for our higher education university campus. We're migrating from Blackboard (Original) Learn 9.1. I'm working with an early adopter instructor who teaches in our Spanish Department. She is seeking some sample courses to get ideas for an effective pedagogical course design for this discipline. I was wondering if there are any sample courses in the D2L Brightspace Community that I can refer her to.  We are on the original content experience therefore it would be useful to see sample courses running this version.

Thank you.

Richard.W.228 · Answer

Thanks Miguel. I would like to hear from other community members who would be willing to share sample courses from a Spanish Department. If anyone is willing to share, please contact me.

Best,

Rich

Miguel.S.245 · Answer

Hello Richard,

Thank you for reaching out! It's exciting to hear that you're in the early stages of implementing Brightspace at Villanova University.

Regarding sample courses, the D2L Brightspace Community is a great resource for finding inspiration and ideas for pedagogical course design. While there may not be discipline-specific sample courses readily available in the community itself, you can explore various resources and templates that are shared by other institutions or users. Here are a few options you can explore:

* Learning Center in the Brightspace Community: The D2L Learning Center offers training courses and sample materials that can give instructors insight into how to structure a course. You can find examples that provide general guidance on effective course design and use of the original content experience (OCE) within Brightspace.
* Instructor Webinar Series: D2L regularly offers webinars and instructional materials for different disciplines. These often include examples of course layouts and pedagogical strategies, which could be useful for your Spanish Department instructor.
* Collaborative Forums: The Brightspace Community forums have numerous posts from educators and instructional designers who share their best practices, course design ideas, and templates. You could post a request for sample courses specifically for language learning or browse discussions around effective course design.
* D2L Templates: If you're looking for a starting point, D2L offers course templates that can help instructors set up their courses efficiently. These templates can be modified to fit the needs of the Spanish Department and tailored to align with the teaching strategies being used.
* Reach Out to the Community: You can also create a new post in the Brightspace Community asking other higher ed institutions to share their sample courses in the language department. There are many instructional designers and educators who are often willing to share their experiences and resources.

Lastly, you can always explore the Brightspace YouTube channel or contact your D2L Customer Success Manager (CSM) to inquire about any available resources or to connect you with other institutions that have relevant sample courses.

I hope this helps! Please let me know if you need further guidance.

Miguel