Exploring and Building Open [Source] Software for Tech-savvy Educators and OER Publishers

Recently I tweeted about the launch of my online CMPT-363 User Interface Design course this summer, and I thought I would share them here:

My #SFU CMPT-363 User Interface Design online course is once again ready to launch (tomorrow!) with the goal of being a useful and enjoyable learning experience for participants🚀 https://t.co/WdYKpszDXL #52WeeksOfCMPT363

— Hibbitts Design (@hibbittsdesign) May 9, 2022

Recently I tweeted about creating a new Docsify example project to demonstrate how a single Docsify instance can render Markdown content from multiple sources, and I thought I would share them here:

Inspired by @cogdog's idea of a consolidated ReadMe collection, and wanting a new way to demo how flexible https://t.co/Cj7y22iLmY is, I've built an example project of a single Docsify site rendering Markdown content from multiple sources - any hey, no build process needed😎 pic.twitter.com/z5ZSdKPmek

— Hibbitts Design (@hibbittsdesign) April 25, 2022

Recently I tweeted about support of the Docsify Table of Contents Plugin for my Docsify Open Course Starter Kit, and I thought I would share them here:

The February release of https://t.co/Cj7y22iLmY Open Course Starter Kit included an optional Table of Contents for any Docsify page has proved to be a hit with my CMPT-363 students - below is a Docsify site page, standalone page, standalone page + ToC and embedded page with ToC👇🏼 pic.twitter.com/LKznnRSyGO

— Hibbitts Design (@hibbittsdesign) March 11, 2022

Recently I tweeted about plans to use Discord as the primary communication space with my upcoming CMPT 363 classes, and I thought I would share them here:

Sneak peek at my plans to use Discord as the primary communication space with my #SFU Computer Science students this term (online CMPT 363 course this Fall)👇🏼 pic.twitter.com/LcWF1A0Eid

— Hibbitts Design (@hibbittsdesign) August 18, 2021

After a bit of a break this summer I am now preparing for three consecutive terms of CMPT-363 as a Limited Term Lecturer at SFU - aka 52 Weeks of CMPT-363!

While I have been quite happy from a learning perspective with student-generated open book final exams in the previous four offerings of 363, I’ve decided to no longer pursue this approach of assessment as it turned 363 over time into more of a writing course than I (and the students) preferred. To replace the final exam I am adding a weekly visual entry journal entry and an additional individual assignment.

For students not in other Canvas LMS courses a standalone site with Canvas links is available, and for students in other Canvas courses the same course site content is seamlessly embedded into Canvas. This term is the first time I will be using my new Docsify Open Course Starter Kit, which can use GitHub Pages for hosting the site vs. a PHP server as required with my earlier Grav CMS projects.

Figure 1 - Fall 2021 Docsify Standalone Course Site

Figure 2 - SFU CMPT-363 Fall 2021 Open Course Hub within Canvas LMS

Curious about my new Docsify Open Course Starter Kit project? Thanks to the folks at ETUG a 10-minute overview of my new Docsify projects for open courses and publishing is available for viewing.

I am looking forward to re-connecting with my new students in September and over the next year, and in the meantime I will try to enjoy the few last weeks of summer!

Well, that didn’t take long for plans to change… unexpectedly I have been asked to teach CMPT-363 once again spring so I am now heads-down in planning the course while considering what I learned from my students in the second fully online CMPT-363 this past fall at SFU. Some key changes will include trying a student open mic Q & A, a new weekly review quiz tutorial, a new term project, more frequent session mini-breaks, and a somewhat revised approach to the student-generated final exam.

Recently I tweeted about my new student well-being heuristics with a simple example of them at work, and I thought I would share them here:

Student well-being tip: Are you planning for an open book style final exam? Consider adding a Topics page to your course site to help support students locating useful related course content quickly, easily, and with less stress!

Here are some #SFU CMPT-363 examples👇 pic.twitter.com/AYFBTf3uEm

— Hibbitts Design (@hibbittsdesign) December 3, 2020

Wow, it’s been a while since I last posted something here… I’ve been full-steam ahead learning from my students in the first fully online CMPT-363 this summer at SFU.

While not originally planned, I am very excited to teach CMPT 363 User Interface Design once again this fall. I’ve already been working on some structural course changes based on feedback from this summer’s students, and more still to do.

For students not in other Canvas LMS courses a multi-device site with Canvas links is available, and for students in other Canvas courses content is seamlessly embedded into Canvas.

I can’t wait to connect with my new students in September, but in the meantime I will try to sneak in the last bit of summer🙂

I hope that you are safe and keeping connected with those you care about in these emotionally and physically challenging times.

With all SFU courses moving online this summer I decided to apply to teach CMPT 363 User Interface Design several weeks ago, and just this week learned that the additional section of the course would go ahead. For students not in other Canvas LMS courses a multi-device site with Canvas links is available, and for students in other Canvas courses content is seamlessly embedded into Canvas.

I am really looking forward to learning with my students once again!

SFU’s fifth annual DEMOfest is scheduled for Tuesday, November 19th and I hope to share with my fellow educators my first experience with student-generated assessment questions - here’s my draft proposal:

Student-Generated Assessment Questions: The Journey so Far
Six years ago, I decided to stop using final exams in my CMPT-363 User Interface Design course as I was dissatisfied with their correlation to student learning. However, this year I decided to use a final exam once again but with a critical difference - my students would be the ones (hopefully) creating it. I designed a process where students would write a potential final exam question every week, and Canvas would be leveraged to calibrate and assess the quality of questions. In this session, I will share what I’ve learned so far, and what lies ahead.