Course Reflection

At the completion of this course, I have taken a great deal of ideas away from the book I chose. Nelson's Cultivating Judgement was helpful in offering specific activities and actions to engage students in critical thinking skills. Many of the ideas can be adapted to many areas of study and, to my benefit, this book had college age students as a target population which is my primary audience.

Through discussion and reviewing the ideas of my peers I have gained ideas to include more technology resources in my classroom. It is my goal that I will include one or more of these ideas in each project I assign as I feel that they are beneficial.

The course material revealed a great deal of resources and a variety of perspectives to engage students in learning. I enjoyed the activity that partnered with other educators to benefit from their skill set to enhance the learning in my classroom. I plan to spend more time looking around my school and community for educators who may want to swap as guest speakers or co-teach selected unit plans.

Overall, I enjoyed the freedom this course offered to explore areas of interest specific to my setting. The ability to select a text from a list of choices was of huge benefit to me. I will take many of the ideas and concepts I learned in this course into my classroom.

Instructional Plan- Website Project

Title: Orthopedic Injury Assessment Website Project

Description of instructional plan: Athletic Training students will develop a website over the course of the semester in their injury evaluation and rehabilitation courses. They will use previous knowledge in athletic training as well as their clinical experiences to develop an instructional resource for their portfolios and future reference. Students at this level of the program have been formally accepted into the Athletic Training Education Program and have begun their clinical rotations at area high schools, clinics, colleges and hospitals. Websites will be developed and presented as a final project for the course.

Concepts Addressed/Student Learning Outcomes:

1)      Students will have contact with formal research using all avenues available to them- internet, library, textbook, athletic training and other sports medicine professionals. Effectively and appropriately citing these sources will be a large part of the rubric/grading process.

2)      Students will learn how to effectively work in a group to develop an in-depth project related to their field of study. Students will evaluate the contributions of other group members in their final course evaluations.

3)      Students will use Microsoft Front Page to create a website design and learn how to publish this information to the internet. Professional design and the usability of the website will be evaluated.

4)      Students will learn time/project management as they complete website project over 12 weeks. Students will be held accountable to a final deadline; work that appears hasty will receive deduction of points.

5)      Students will learn how to develop and present information in a professional and credible manner. Professionals in the field of athletic training and sports medicine will be invited to the final presentations and will have the opportunity to provide feedback.

Assessment/Rubrics:

1)      Students will select a topic/injury/condition, of their choice, related to the upper/lower extremity or rehabilitation framework of the course. Topic will be approved by instructor.

2)      Students will begin initial research to determine availability of credible resources and scholarly articles. A literature review will be completed to demonstrate effective progress in this area.

3)      Students will be provided with a tutorial on the use of Microsoft Front Page and its intricacies. Students have access to this program at all on-campus computer labs.

4)      Students will be given a rubric of the project to outline the areas that are expected to be covered and the weight of each component.

5)      Students will be assigned presentation dates near the end of the semester and will provide the instructor with a digital copy of the project.

Use of Technology:

Students will use Microsoft Front Page as well as other resources made available to them in the campus library. Students will be encouraged to seek the help of research assistants and technology assistants as well as that of the instructor throughout the project.

Actions of Learners:

This project relies heavily on the student’s use of time outside of the classroom to research, develop and prepare the website and presentation. The student will be made aware of the time consuming nature of this project early in the semester as well as the expectations for its completion. Basic format will be reviewed in class as well as periodic time for questions/discussion related to website projects. Student selected topics may also be covered in course lectures however the student is expected to research much more in depth information than what is covered in the lecture.

Plans to involve the community:

The community of sports medicine professionals may act as consultants for the website project. They will also be invited to take part in the presentation and evaluation component of these projects. The instructor will include on-campus colleagues in this process to encourage and promote the professional nature and expectations.

Instructional Plan

Instructional Plan

Professional Educator
Molly Huston/Frank Shipley (approval pending)
Head Athletic Trainer/Associate Athletic Trainer
Northern Kentucky University Sports Medicine

Both Molly and Frank have many years of experience in the profession of sports medicine. Molly has had a great deal of administrative duties in this field as well as practical, hands-on experience. Frank brings a variety of experiences from areas outside of the Northern Kentucky area. The greatest thing they have to offer to my students is the experiences they have had as they were once students in this area of concentration and have completed their education and entered the profession.

I plan to have Molly address administrative topics related to sports medicine such as appropriate interview techniques, specific to the profession of sports medicine. I plan to have students develop a professional portfolio to present to the class and complete mock interviews with other athletic trainers using Skype. Both Molly and Frank as well as myself have strong professional relationships with area athletic trainers that would be willing to assist in this learning project. Skype is quickly becoming a resource during interview processes as a means of meeting face to face and saving on travel costs. This practice is enriching the ability of companies/universities/organizations to make effective hires.

Frank would address the process of inventory and creating bids to sports medicine supply companies to stock the needs of a functional athletic training room for a school year. The students would have to create a system of inventory and create a bid, given a specific situation and budget they may encounter in their professional careers. Using Internet resources to contact supply companies and create organizational documents using Excel will help them to be successful in this project. Furthermore, contacting professionals in the sports medicine (possibly even sales representatives) profession using Twitter or Yahoo Groups to interview them about their experiences with inventory and bid processes will be another way to engage students in the use of technology.

Standards that will be addressed in this instructional plan include:

Kentucky-

PL-HS-1.1.3

Students will identify and explain changes in roles, responsibilities and skills needed to effectively work in groups throughout life (e.g., setting realistic goals, time and task management, planning, decision- making process, perseverance).

PL-HS-4.1.3

Students will describe academic and non-academic benefits (e.g., communication skills, computer/technical skills, mathematical skills, scientific observation and inquiry skills, teamwork skills, work experience, professional references, insight into tasks and work environments) acquired from a range of education and training options (e.g., college, apprenticeships, internships, on-the-job training military) and interpret ways education and training can impact life-long earning potential and future career opportunities.

PL-HS-4.1.6

Students will identify and describe supporting documentation that would be needed for the career portfolio/Individual Learning Plan (ILP):

·         business letters (application, recommendation, follow-up)

·         assessment data (e.g., interest, learning styles, aptitudes and abilities)

·         résumé

·         certifications/awards

·         samples of work (e.g., videos, artwork, portfolio entries)

·         records of work experiences

transcripts

PL-HS-4.3.3

Students will explain and apply skills that are used to seek, obtain, and change jobs/careers and postsecondary opportunities:

·       conducting a job search

·       writing letters

·       networking

·       completing an application

·       securing a letter of reference

·       preparing a résumé

·       applying interview techniques (e.g., learn about employer/job, questions to ask, materials to take, answers to questions you may be asked, verbal and nonverbal communication)

·       using proper procedures when changing jobs (e.g., give advance notice, write a letter of resignation)

To assess what my students have learned we will participate actively in group discussion regarding the two areas addressed in the instructional plan. Students will have an opportunity to assess other groups/students projects and make recommendations for improving their professional portfolio or inventory/bid plan. Long-term the success of students as they enter the profession will be linked to their experiences in the classroom with this actively engaging learning plan.

Service Learning Plan

Title of Project: Injury Prevention/Awareness for the Physically Active

Grade Level:  Collegiate Students

Number of Students Participating: 10-15 students

Contributed by:

            Teacher: Jessica Rhodes, ATC

            School:  Northern Kentucky University            

            District or County: Campbell County

Overview/Description of Project: Students in the health/wellness/athletic training disciplines will develop educational presentations covering topics that affect the physically active population to promote health and safety. Students will then present/demonstrate these topics to the general population to increase awareness of a disease/condition, prevention of injury or provide resources for more learning. Student presentations will take place at meetings of area athletic training students for peer review as well as an outreach project in university rec centers and student unions.

Goals: To teach physically active youth, teens and adults health and wellness related topics and research covered in the courses and coursework of the collegiate health professional to promote health, wellness and safety.

Core Content Areas:

Health, wellness, safety, first aid/CPR

PARC MODEL STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE

STEP 1: PREPARATION

Selection of health related topic

Research and presentation development

Approval of course instructor and peer editing

Demonstrations in class for peer group

STEP 2: ACTION

Present materials to physically active population utilizing university rec centers and student unions.
Students will be encouraged to seek other venues to share their information such as professional conferences and meetings.

STEP 3: REFLECTION  ( Reflection is not sequential; rather it is encouraged throughout the lesson)

Solicit feedback rating helpfulness, indicate if information was applicable, etc. from audience

Have students reflect on each others presentations/demonstrations and provide feedback

STEP 4:  CELEBRATION/DEMONSTRATION

Look into further opportunities to provide educational topics to the physically active population.

Continue learning and growing as healthcare professionals to make a positive impact on society.

Tapping Resources Outside of the Classroom

The resource I posted on the class wiki is an interactive anatomy and physiology resource to help reinforce concepts taught related to anatomy. In a field where anatomy is a primary focus and is the base for all further learning it is important students grasp these concepts rather firmly. Creating this strong foundation will help them to be successful as information becomes more complex. This resource provides interactive models for learning muscular anatomy (such as the origin, insertion and action of a muscle) and provides animation. Each section also has a review and quiz function that will assist in retention. Slides can be printed for further review. I plan to use this resource as a place to refer students for individual review and learning. It is also my belief that being exposed to information in a variety of methods (hands-on, visual, read, written) increases comprehension and retention, therefore I would encourage students to utilize this resource along with several others.

The video I included is from YouTube, a student has given Lady Gaga's Poker Face a 'facelift' and used it to put cranial nerves into song. Using song to memorize cranial nerves along with the mnemonic given may be helpful to a variety of different learners. Recently, as concussion and evaluation have received so much attention in the sports medicine and general sports communities learning these basic concepts will become more and more important to sports medicine professionals. Finding effective ways to teach this information will only help to increase awareness in a growing body of knowledge.
Video:

Engaging Learners

I currently work with students here at NKU in the Athletic Training Education Program as they complete their clinical assignments to our varsity sports. I have included a picture above with one of our students during his clinical rotation with women's softball. This is a unique instructional setting as most of what I do is completely hands-on. To actively engage these students, I have provided three examples. The first example is asking these students to perform clinical skills appropriate to their class level. For example, asking a level one student to perform wound care on an athlete- both appropriate to his or her skill level as well as promoting interaction with the athlete. Following this interaction a discussion is encouraged to evaluate how the skill was performed and critique the interaction. Secondly, in the world of sports medicine there can be a lot of downtime while covering a practice or treatment hours where the attention of both the student and the teacher is not directly focused on an athlete or patient. This time can be utilized to discuss various topics related to sports medicine or athletic training. While it is fun to engage in more lighthearted conversation, not much learning would take place. Therefore, students are often quizzed on recently discussed topics or skills they have learned in their coursework. When a student has difficulty recalling this information they are asked to look up the correct answer later that day and report back to the clinical instructor to be accountable for the information. This activity proves to be beneficial to both the student and the instructor as it provides opportunity for discussion, feedback and critical thinking. Finally, it is not possible to provide each student with hands-on experience for every situation they might encounter in their professional careers. At times the students will be provided with hypothetical situations to process and in some cases perform the clinical skills that would be appropriate in that situation. These interactions are great for targeting the weaknesses of a student as the situation provided to the student is at the discretion of the instructor and can change rapidly as it evolves. Additionally, I often have multiple students of varying levels. To utilize this, the senior student is used as a mentor to the sophomore or junior level student and is a valuable teaching/learning exchange. Finally, the text I have chosen for this course is Cultivating Judgement: A Sourcebook for Teaching Critical Thinking Across the Curriculum written by John Nelson. This book includes a variety of resources to promote critical thinking. It will prove an interesting exercise to adapt these activities for use in the clinical setting I currently operate in as well as the classroom setting in the future.