Progress 08/15/07 to 08/14/11
Outputs
OUTPUTS: The project entailed two main objectives: (i) to develop an online curriculum in animal breeding and (quantitative) genetics; and (ii) to establish the infrastructure necessary to deliver and sustain this inter-institutional curriculum. Objective one. The most significant output throughout the life of the project was the design, development, implementation and evaluation of eight 1-credit online graduate level courses. These courses were: (1) Quantitative Genetics Applications of Matrix Algebra; (2) CyberSheep: a Genetic Simulation Game; (3) Primer to Quantitative Genetics; (4) Design of Animal Breeding Programs; (5) Heterosis and Crossbreeding Systems; (6) Linear Models in Animal Breeding; (7) Genetic Prediction; and, (8) Marker and Gene-Assisted Selection. Each course was offered 3 to 5 times. A web-based game, CyberSheep, also was developed to offer graduate and undergraduate students opportunities for experiential learning in breeding and genetics. During the reporting period all 8 courses underwent an external instructional design review, which considered the learning strategies employed and student intellectual skills outcomes. In addition, two courses (3; 7) benefited from expert content review by project team members. The content review focused on the comprehensiveness and pace of each lesson. The most significant dissemination activities were associated with soliciting graduate student and faculty member involvement in the curriculum. This was achieved through a listserv of 125 genetics faculty members at 75 colleges and universities, who were contacted prior to each academic semester. A web site (http://bggeo.iddl.vt.edu/) was established to facilitate student enrollment in courses, as well as describe the curriculum overall. Each year, the project objectives, and curriculum development and impacts, were disseminated through presentations to at least one multi-state project meeting and two national or international conferences. During the reporting year, a presentation describing the philosophy of the project was delivered at the 2010 AECT International Convention ('Cyber Change: Learning In Our Connected World') in Anaheim, CA. Objective two. The project engaged a large multi-institutional team. Thus there was a need to establish the infrastructure to coordinate partner institutions in the accreditation, delivery and cost-recovery of the resulting curriculum. As the significant outcome of this activity, the partners choose to align the curriculum with AG*IDEA, a national consortium of land grant universities offering programs and courses in agriculture disciplines. Through AG*IDEA, all courses and curricula will receive full institutional review prior to implementation and meet institutional academic standards. Students will pay a negotiated common price per credit hour to the institution at which they matriculate. Assessment of instructional program quality and student learning outcomes will be coordinated centrally by the Alliance. Using this structure, a separate master-degree level certificate program in animal breeding and genetics will be established within the AG*IDEA portfolio. PARTICIPANTS: The project team involved six faculty members from four partner institutions (Virginia Tech (VT), the lead institution; Colorado State University (CSU); North Carolina State University (NCSU); University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL)). Two of these universities (NSCU; UNL) joined the project in 2010 due to two team members (John Pollak, Cornell University; Janice Rumph, Michigan State University) changing employers. The principal investigators were Ron Lewis and Barbara Lockee. Dr. Lewis, Professor of Animal Genetics in the Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences at VT, managed the project and participated in the development, delivery and review of the online course content. He designed and instructed three courses (1; 2; 4), and team-taught another (3). He also developed the simulation software that underpinned CyberSheep, the experiential learning-tool used within the curriculum. Dr. Lockee, Professor and Associate Director of the School of Education at VT, managed the instructional development and evaluation components of the project. Working with faculty subject matter experts, she defined learning outcomes for courses, and created corresponding assessment instruments to measure those outcomes. She also developed the rubrics for formative and summative student evaluations. Mark Enns, Associate Professor of Animal Science at CSU, participated in the development and review of the online course content. Specifically, Dr. Enns developed two courses (7; 8), and team-taught another (3). The team at NCSU was Joe Cassady and Christian Maltecca, both in the Department of Animal Science. Dr. Cassady, an Associate Professor, and Dr. Maltecca, an Assistant Professor, jointly prepared and taught a course (5), and participated in the course content review. Matt Spangler, Assistant Professor in the Animal Sciences Department at UNL, also participated in the development and review of the online course content. Specifically, Dr. Spangler designed and delivered a course (6). The project was supported through interdisciplinary collaborators. Dr. Miriam Larson, a course developer at VT with expertise in instructional design, reviewed the instructional strategies used in each course. Information Technology support was provided by the Institute for Distance and Distributive Learning at VT. Those activities engaged Peter Macedo, Director of Distance Learning and Summer Sessions, and Jackie Meese, Senior Systems Administrator and Technology Coordinator. Their responsibilities included training in distance learning technologies, development of the curriculum website, and design and support of the web-interface for CyberSheep. The focus of the project was to provide training to masters-degree level students in animal breeding and genetics. As part of that educational role, two doctoral-level graduate students at VT, one studying animal genetics and the other instructional design, participated in the delivery and evaluation of the curriculum. A further doctoral-level student in animal genetics at CSU also contributed to content development. TARGET AUDIENCES: The target audience was Masters degree-level students in animal breeding and genetics, with the objective to offer a stimulating and relevant curriculum in this discipline. Given the relatively few faculty with expertise in this area at individual institutions, providing comprehensive training at the graduate level is increasingly difficult. Through a multi-institutional approach, teaching modules were developed in particular aspects of genetics by faculty with recognized expertise in the topical area. Besides ensuring the high quality of the program, this strategy leveraged the most efficient and cost-effective use of faculty on a national basis and allowed for a more comprehensive curriculum to be offered widely. As an alternative to traditional campus-based instruction, the instructional delivery system for this program featured the use of asynchronous modules offered online. The resulting web-based program was supplemented by face-to-face workshops and symposia at national conferences. The use of distance learning technologies for instructional delivery of this program offered many advantages. The ability to engage in coursework anytime and anywhere increased access for learners who otherwise may not be able to participate in graduate studies, supporting the Higher Education Challenge program goal to increase the number of graduates with higher degrees in food and agricultural sciences. Through proven instructional methodologies, interactive and motivating online learning modules were developed to achieve specified learning outcomes. By design, such initiatives lead to faculty-sharing and cross-enrollments, thereby reducing duplication of educational resources and decreasing instructional costs. Graduate students from 31 primarily land-grant institutions (including historically black colleges and universities) enrolled in this curriculum. As few as one, to as many as 19 students, from an individual university participated. Of the 123 students that enrolled, 18 completed all eight courses during the timeframe of the project. As noted by one of those students "I enjoyed it, this gave me an opportunity to learn and experience aspects of genetics that have always been of interest to me however I was never in the position or location to get training for genetics in applied animal breeding." Without the innovative teaching methodologies used in this project, that need, and enthusiasm, would never have been met. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.
Impacts
In academia and industry, employers have flagged a dearth of qualified graduates with skills in quantitative aspects of genetics. Through the resources and activities invested in this project, quality graduate-level training in animal breeding and genetics has been provided nationally. During the length of the project, 123 students completed 389 course credit hours. Enrollment in individual courses ranged from 9 to 31 students, substantially more than the norm at individual universities. However, distance-delivery risks a 'psychological distance' between students and instructors. Therefore information on student comfort with the technology and ethos of online learning was collected. Feedback was provided by three quarters of the students enrolled. A vast majority (97%) found the audio-lectures easy to use. An online forum was used to encourage interaction. Among those participating, 90% thought it somewhat or very helpful in reinforcing course materials. Virtual office hours were offered initially. However, few students attended, largely because of scheduling conflicts across time zones or lack of need. Most (85%) preferred the flexibility of asynchronous communications through the forum or email. Summative evaluation was sought from students completing the curriculum. Of those students responding (72%), a majority (85%) rated the overall quality of the program as good or excellent. When asked about their experiences as a distance learner, they stated: "As a distance learner, I got practice on not only lecture contents, but also communication skills. In Cybersheep group activities, I remembered having dozens of Emails going back and forth during rounds of selection. It was a pain at that time because my group had to deal with different time zones. But I realize that in real life, this type of communication is common. And we do not get to practice that in conventional graduate school"; "My overall experience was very positive. The curriculum helped me quickly learn concepts and skills that would have been difficult to learn on my own"; "I think the instructors did a good job and the courses were a success. I definitely think they are an asset"; and, "I am glad I had the experience and am thankful for Dr Lewis and colleagues at Virginia Tech for undertaking this project. It is a great first step towards the type of collaborative learning we need in higher education, since departments in animal science have gotten smaller and had to cut course offerings and programs for Graduate Students." Through this distance-delivery approach, a quality educational experience was provided to a larger number of students. Experiential learning is increasingly central to instructional programs. Cybersheep, a web-based game developed in this project, served such a role in undergraduate courses at four universities, as well as in the graduate distance-delivery curriculum. Feedback from students and faculty members alike document that through CyberSheep students encounter the challenges of 'real-life' animal breeding programs in practice, enhancing their learning and increasing their preparedness for professional positions once completing their coursework.
Publications
- Lockee, B. B., R. M. Lewis, M. S. Ames, G. C. Marquez, R. M. Enns, and E. J. Pollak. 2011. Increasing access through collaboration: a multi-Institutional approach to distance program Development. No. 109 in Proc. Assoc. Education Commun. Technol., Anaheim, CA (Abstr.).
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Progress 08/15/09 to 08/14/10
Outputs
The project entails two main objectives: (i) to design, develop and implement an online curriculum in animal breeding and (quantitative) genetics; and (ii) to establish the infrastructure necessary to deliver and sustain this inter-institutional curriculum. Most planned accomplishments for the year were achieved on schedule. All eight courses in the curriculum were offered. A common format for syllabi was adopted by instructors, resulting in greater uniformity in structure of courses. Student evaluations were collected for each course and, overall, remained quite positive. Students raised concerns about the punctuality of posting of materials for one course, and delayed instructor feedback. Those issues were redressed by the project team. Based on reviews by content experts, the course 'Design of Animal Breeding Programs' was revised prior to its re-offering. Two additional courses underwent peer review: 'A Primer to Quantitative Genetics' and 'Genetic Prediction'. The outcome of those reviews will be used to amend their content prior to their next implementation. Due to changes in personnel (instructors), the peer review of two courses was delayed: 'Heterosis and Crossbreeding Systems' and 'Linear Models in Animal Breeding'. Two new institutions were engaged in the project (North Carolina State University; University of Nebraska) with responsibility for further development and instruction of those courses. Once offered, the two courses will undergo peer review. A one-year no-cost extension was sought to accommodate the participation of these new institutions. A second focus of the project was to develop the infrastructure for sustaining the curriculum subsequent to USDA-NIFA funding. Efforts to align the curriculum with an existing distance learning consortia, Ag*IDEA, continued with engagement by the Dean's office in the College of Agriculture and Life Science at Virginia Tech in the process. Challenges, however, remain in developing an acceptable tuition model across institutions that fits within the Ag*IDEA model, and in the timeframe for course review and approval generally within the Ag*IDEA consortium. Work to resolve these issues continues. PRODUCTS: Eight 1-credit online courses in breeding and quantitative genetics have been developed and delivered to master- and doctoral-level students enrolled in genetics graduate programs nationally. Student achievement of defined learning objectives is being verified by comparing performance on assessment exercises to entry-level knowledge captured by pre-tests. Student engagement in the courses is being assessed through anonymous on-line surveys. In many cases, students receive academic credit for their completion of courses at their home institutions. A website (http://bggeo.iddl.vt.edu) has been developed and is being used for dissemination of information about the curriculum, and for student registration. It will also provide a focal point for further advertising of the program. A web-based game, CyberSheep, has been developed and implemented to offer students opportunities for experiential learning in breeding and genetics. CyberSheep requires active engagement by students. By design, it conveys information about complex, often ill-structured problems in animal genetics in a manner that encourages deeper learning as well as improved skills in the application of knowledge. CyberSheep is played in teams. Student learning is assessed by the teams' success in their decision-making, measured by the genetic and economic gains they achieve in their flock, and by their ability to work collectively as a team. OUTCOMES: A new distance-delivery curriculum in breeding and (quantitative) genetics will be developed to offer quality graduate-level training nationally in this discipline. Courses will be offered online. Beyond being both instructionally and technologically effective, this format will encourage participation of students from a wider set of colleges and universities, as well as non-traditional students. Furthermore, it allows content experts from different institutions to combine their strengths to offer a vibrant curriculum to a much wider set of students. Using on-line games as an instructional approach is increasingly recognized as an effective mechanism for experiential learning. CyberSheep, a web-based game, will be developed to assist students in gaining expertise to address real-world challenges in animal breeding programs. As a team exercise, it will also facilitate students developing interpersonal skills requisite for successful teamwork. Its internet-based format will allow its incorporating as a virtual lab into graduate and undergraduate courses in breeding and genetics across the country. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: During the year information about project activities were disseminated through presentations and written materials at an international conference, several national meetings, a web-conference and the project website. The distance-delivery curriculum was featured at three national events: the NCERA 199 ('Implementation and Strategies for National Beef Cattle Genetic Evaluation') committee meeting at the University of Missouri; the Petersen Symposium ('Challenges and Opportunities in Animal Science Graduate Education') at the University of Minnesota; and, the NACTA/SERD ('Collaborate, Communicate, Celebrate') annual conference at Penn State University. The presentations focused on the philosophy of distance-delivery as an approach for graduate training, the structure and content of the curriculum, and ambitions and challenges for its continuation. Two papers were presented at the 9th World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production in Leipzig, Germany. The first presentation considered general issues regarding training graduates in quantitative genetics, and the value of distance-delivery as a tool for doing so. The second presentation considered online opportunities for experiential learning, focusing on the online game CyberSheep. Beyond its formal presentation, CyberSheep was demonstrated in a computer software session. An open web-conference for faculty members interested in gaining greater insights into the distance-delivery curriculum was held. Topics discussed included the content of current courses, ideas for additional courses, opportunities for forming additional partnerships, and infrastructural issues with regards to continuing and expanding the curriculum. A project website (http://bggeo.iddl.vt.edu) has been established to disseminate general information about the project and courses offered, and for student registration. FUTURE INITIATIVES: An alternative approach for specialized training in breeding and genetics is through short courses. Several such courses are offered at select Universities, some regularly. Discussions for integrating these short courses into a broader distance-delivery curriculum have been initiated, along with opportunities to expand participants to include international students.
Impacts
In both academia and industry, employers have flagged a dearth of qualified graduates with skills in quantitative aspects of genetics. Through this distance-education curriculum, quality graduate-level training in quantitative genetics is now accessible nationally. Thus far, 104 students from 28 universities have completed 299 course credit hours. Based on an initial survey, such instruction would otherwise be unavailable to many of these students. Shortages in trained professionals in quantitative genetics are expected to be redressed as a result of students completing this coursework. Experiential learning is increasingly central to instructional programs. Cybersheep, a web-based game developed in this project, is serving such a role in undergraduate courses at four universities, as well as in the graduate distance-delivery curriculum. Feedback from students and faculty members alike document that through CyberSheep students are encountering the challenges of 'real-life' animal breeding programs in practice, enhancing their learning and increasing their preparedness for professional positions once completing their coursework. Opportunities for expanding that impact are being explored.
Publications
- Bullock, K. D., R. M. Lewis, R. L. Weaber, B. B. Lockee, D. R. Strohbehn, D. J. Garrick, and E. J. Pollak. 2010. Distance education: a short-term solution to training graduates and producers by a shrinking population of quantitative geneticists. Pages 916-919 in Proc. 9th World Cong. Genet. Appl. Livest. Prod., Leipzig, Germany (CD-ROM).
- Lewis, R. M., B. B. Lockee, L. Krishnamurthy, J. A. Meese, and D. A. Boynton. 2010. Experiential learning on-line: CyberSheep. Pages 930-933 in Proc. 9th World Cong. Genet. Appl. Livest. Prod., Leipzig, Germany (CD-ROM).
- Lewis, R. M., B. B. Lockee, M. S. Ames, G. C. Marquez, R. M. Enns, J. M. Rumph, and E. J. Pollak. 2010. Animal Breeding and Quantitative Genetics On-line: a solution to a dilemma in graduate education. Proc. North Amer. College Teacher Agric., The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel, June 22-25, Penn State.
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Progress 08/15/08 to 08/14/09
Outputs
The aims established for the current reporting period were accomplished. The project entails two main objectives: (i) to design, develop and implement an online curriculum in animal breeding and genetics; and (ii) to establish the infrastructure necessary to deliver and sustain this inter-institutional curriculum. Five new 1-credit online courses were designed, developed and pilot tested: 'A Primer to Quantitative Genetics', 'Heterosis and Crossbreeding Systems', 'Linear Models in Animal Breeding', 'Genetic Prediction' and 'Marker and Gene Assisted Selection.' These courses were developed by personnel at Virginia Tech, and at Colorado State, Michigan State and Cornell Universities. The three courses developed the previous year - 'An Introduction to Matrix Algebra', 'Cybersheep: a Genetic Simulation Game' and 'Design of Animal Breeding Programs' - were also taught. The Matrix Algebra and CyberSheep courses had been reviewed by four experts and revised accordingly. Expert review of the Design course was initiated. Student evaluation data was collected and overall positive. Concerns were primarily structural: the scheduling and number of lectures and assessments exercises, and the timeframe for instructor feedback. With new courses being taught, mostly by different instructors, the comments in part reflected different teaching styles. In response to the student evaluations, the content developers devised a more uniform structure for all courses. Another mechanism for student interaction was introduced: virtual office hours based on Centra web conferencing software. Although well received, relatively few students chose to participate in office hours. They felt e-mail correspondence and the asynchronous discussion board sufficient. A second focus was the infrastructure for sustaining the curriculum subsequent to USDA-CSREES funding. With limited student numbers at individual institutions, the curriculum is only viable if an affordable and transparent mechanism exists for enrollment across Universities. Virginia Tech's Office of Distance Learning began investigation of options for consortia affiliation. These included the Commonwealth Graduate Engineering Program, the Natural Resources Distance Learning Consortia, the American Distance Education Consortium, the Great Plains IDEA (a national consortium of land grant universities offering online agricultural coursework), the Ag*IDEA (an affiliate of the Great Plains IDEA), and a Virginia Tech created and sponsored consortium. Of these options the AG*IDEA was perceived to be the current best option. The areas of challenge include developing an acceptable tuition model across institutions that fits within the Ag*IDEA model, and 'acceptance' of courses developed and taught by faculty members from outside Universities. Work to resolve these issues will continue. Regular communications among the project team remained a priority. Weekly meetings were held among VT personnel and a quarterly teleconference was held among all project personnel. The content development team also met over two days in conjunction with the Beef Improvement Federation Convention held in Sacramento, CA, in April 2009. PRODUCTS: In the current year, five additional courses were developed and pilot-tested. These were: 'A Primer to Quantitative Genetics' (fall 2008), 'Heterosis and Crossbreeding Systems' (fall 2008), 'Linear Models in Animal Breeding' (fall 2008), 'Genetic Prediction' (spring 2009) and 'Marker and Gene Assisted Selection' (spring 2009). The Cybersheep simulation program (http://cybersheep.iddl.vt.edu/Login.aspx) was updated. Modifications included: implementation of an integrative student forum with changes to the display of tables on the CyberSheep game site; addition of a Reference Sire election page and a corresponding system to send email notifications regarding the elections; and, other interface modifications that improved the program from an end user perspective. The Animal Breeding and Genetics Online dedicated webpage (http://bggeo.iddl.vt.edu) was maintained and updated. As an additional functionality, the site provided students with an opportunity to register directly for the courses offered. Once students submitted their registration details online, staff at Virginia Tech enrolled them into their requested courses given that prerequisites had been completed. The students were subsequently sent an email confirming their registration. OUTCOMES: Based on the precept of the ADDIE Instructional Design Model, a distance-delivered graduate program will be established that will improve student skills and knowledge in specialized areas in animal breeding and genetics. Eight 1-credit courses, including an interactive, team-based simulation, will be developed and implemented. The objectives for each course will be established by subject matter and instructional design experts (Design). Audio-presentations will then developed by the instructors using Adobe Presenter (Development), and delivered using the Blackboard course management system (Implement). Student interaction will be facilitated though e-mail correspondence, a discussion board and virtual office hours. Anonymous student feedback will be solicited through an online survey (Evaluation). The focus of the project will be on demonstrated student performance in meeting targeted learning objectives, positive student attitudes regarding the distance-delivered coursework, and seamless distance delivery of the newly created programming. Beyond being both instructionally and technologically effective, this format will encourage participation of students from a wider set of colleges and universities, as well as non-traditional students. The necessary organizational infrastructure for a sustainable, inter-institutional distance education program in animal breeding and genetics will be developed. Project partners will collaborate to establish the processes and procedures for students to take advantage of the online programming developed. Sustainability will be a key feature of such discussions, drawing from the current, successful revenue-sharing model in place at Virginia Tech and in other distance-delivery consortiums. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: During the second year of the project, a presentation, a workshop, and a poster were delivered to disseminate project activities. The first presentation was given at the Association for Educational Communications and Technology annual meeting held in Orlando, Florida, in November 2008. It was entitled 'CyberSheep: Employing Games and Simulations for the Enhancement of Online Learning'. The audience was 10 education technology specialists. In February, 2009, a poster entitled 'An Inter-Institutional Approach to Graduate Distance Learning' was presented at the Conference on Higher Education Pedagogy held at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg. The event attracted approximately 100 participants. The joint annual meeting of the American Dairy Science Association, Canadian Society of Animal Science, and the American Society of Animal Science was held in Montreal, Canada in July 2009. As part of the meeting, the Breeding and Genetics Section held a workshop session devoted to the online curriculum. Approximately 50 individuals attended. It began with an invited keynote presentation by Dr. Dorian Garrick (Jay Lush Endowed Chair in Animal Breeding and Genetics, Iowa State University) entitled 'Recent developments in genetic evaluation tools.' This was followed by a formal project overview entitled 'Solving a dilemma in graduate education: Animal Breeding and Genetics Online', which led into the workshop. In the workshop, formal feedback was sought from participants on program delivery, course offerings, and expanding partnerships in the course development and delivery. FUTURE INITIATIVES: An attractive option to expand the impact of the Animal Breeding and Genetics Online program is to include international participants. Through the association of Cornell University with this project, an opportunity to partner with a proposed center of teaching excellence in Nigeria exists. The Nigeria government is exploring creating this center for the training of Nigerian animal and plant breeders in partnership with Cornell University. Representatives on the joint Cornell/Nigeria team that assessed the feasibility of such a center thought that a distance education program, such as the current curriculum with courses already developed, tested and in place for routine delivery, would advance the development of the center.
Impacts
Through this project, advanced graduate-level coursework in animal breeding and genetics is being made accessible nationally through a collaborative, distance-education curriculum. This curriculum provides a high quality, customized program to fulfill academic and industry needs for individuals with these professional skills. Through 8 online courses, 66 students have received advanced training in animal breeding and genetics. Furthermore, 23 Universities have benefitted from having their students participate in this coursework. In the current reporting year, between 9 and 22 students successfully completed the individual courses offered. Those counts are between 3 and 7-fold that of graduate student numbers in this discipline at a majority of individual Universities. An enhanced version of Cybersheep, a web-based genetic simulation game, was launched. The evaluations of students, and their faculty advisors, indicated that this virtual game provided an important educational experience that would otherwise not be possible within a typical university degree. Students learned to collaborate with team members, and with outside teams, to make mutually beneficial selection and mating decisions, and saw the results of their decision-making within a short timeframe. Such experience with the processes encountered in 'real-life' animal breeding programs not only enhances student learning but increases their preparedness for professional positions once completing their coursework.
Publications
- Lewis, R. M., B. B. Lockee, M. S. Ames, G. C. Marquez, R. M. Enns, J. M. Rumph, T. W. Wilkinson, and E. J. Pollak. 2009. Solving a dilemma in graduate education: Animal Breeding and Genetics Online. J. Anim. Sci. 87(E-suppl. 2):623 (Abstr.).
- Lockee, B. B., R. M. Lewis, and M. S. Ames. 2008. CyberSheep: employing games and simulations for the enhancement of online learning. No. 37-I1 in Proc. Assoc. Education Commun. Technol., Orlando, Florida (Abstr.).
- Lewis, R. M., B. B. Lockee, M. S. Ames, and G. C. Marquez Betz. 2009. Solving an educational dilemma through collaboration: an inter-institutional approach to graduate distance learning. Conf. Higher Education Pedagogy, Blacksburg, Virginia (Abstr.).
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Progress 08/15/07 to 08/14/08
Outputs
All aims established for the reporting period for this initiative were accomplished. The project entails two main objectives: (i) to design, develop and implement an online curriculum in animal breeding and genetics; and (ii) to establish the infrastructure necessary to deliver and sustain this inter-institutional curriculum. For this reporting period, the focus was on objective one, specifically the development and pilot testing of three 1-credit online courses: "An Introduction to Matrix Algebra", "Cybersheep: a Genetic Simulation Game", and "Design of Animal Breeding Programs". These courses were developed by personnel at Virginia Tech (VT), and offered using the Blackboard course management system. All three courses incorporated audio-presentations developed by the instructor using Adobe Presenter. In addition, the Cybersheep course involved development of a web-based, interactive genetic simulation in which inter-institutional teams participated in a game-based learning environment. Student evaluation data was collected throughout the implementation of each new course. Feedback was universally positive with students finding the content of courses well-suited to the discipline, and the methodology for delivery effectively designed. Students also found that opportunities to interact with the instructor and with one another either met or exceeded their expectations. Students noted some concerns. For the Matrix Algebra course, students sought additional application exercises to further relate mathematical concepts to applications in animal breeding and genetic. For Cybersheep, the primary concern related to across-university communications. Students would have preferred to be teamed with classmates at their own institutions to alleviate logistical challenges associated with decision-making in the game. However, such an approach would contradict the intentional across-institutional design of the curriculum. The Design course proved most challenging to the students enrolled. This reflected substantial variability in their foundational knowledge; it had been anticipated that such background would have been gained during their undergraduate training. Therefore, project personnel agreed to develop an additional course - "A Primer to Quantitative Genetics" - to address core concepts to better prepare students for the graduate-level coursework offered within this curriculum. Beyond student evaluation data, the content of the Matrix Algebra and CyberSheep courses was reviewed by two scholars at collaborating institutions (Colorado State and Montana State Universities), and by two external experts at independent Universities. That information was and will be used to revise the content of these courses. The inter-institutional nature of this project required regular communication and collaborative planning among project personnel at the participating institutions. Weekly meetings were held among VT personnel in support of the course development and pilot testing processes. Quarterly meetings were held among all project personnel across universities via videoconferencing in order to coordinate planning and progress project objectives. PRODUCTS: To date, the project has produced three completed and pilot-tested courses: "An Introduction to Matrix Algebra" (fall 2007), "Cybersheep: a Genetic Simulation Game" (spring 2008), and "Design of Animal Breeding Programs" (spring 2008). As part of the Cybersheep course, a web-based (http://cybersheep.iddl.vt.edu/Login.aspx) interactive simulation was developed and tested. Currently, three courses are in development for offering in fall semester 2008. They are "A Primer to Quantitative Genetics" for students just entering the curriculum, and "Heterosis and Crossbreeding Systems" and "Linear Models in Animal Breeding" for students beginning their second year of the curriculum. A web portal for the curriculum was also developed (http://www.iddl.vt.edu/domains/bggeo/). The portal includes information delineated in the proposal, including access to course descriptions, a registration mechanism, and information about the Higher Education Challenge Grant Program generally. The portal also features descriptions of key personnel for each project partner. OUTCOMES: Through the use of an established instructional design model, a distance-delivered graduate program will be developed that will improve student skills and knowledge in specialized areas in animal breeding and genetics. Project members will collaborate as an instructional design team, drawing from the skills and expertise of each participant to create the targeted series of web-based courses. The focus will be on demonstrated student performance in meeting targeted learning objectives, positive student attitudes regarding the distance-delivered coursework, and seamless distance delivery of the newly created programming. A limited sequence of supplemental face-to-face instructional units will also be developed and delivered at a regularly attended professional meeting each year, enhancing student motivation and providing opportunities for interaction with participating faculty. Beyond being both instructionally and technologically effective, this format will encourage participation of students from a wider set of colleges and universities, as well as non-traditional students. Thus far, three of eight planned courses, including an interactive, team-based simulation, have been developed and implemented, and a face-to-face instructional unit at a professional meeting held. The necessary organizational infrastructure for a sustainable, inter-institutional distance education program in animal breeding and genetics will be developed. Project partners from each of the three participating universities will collaborate to establish the processes and procedures for students to take advantage of the online programming developed. Formal agreements will be negotiated related to the sharing of revenue generated by the future implementation of the distance-delivered modules upon completion of this project. Sustainability will be a key feature of such arrangements, drawing from the current, successful revenue-sharing model in place at Virginia Tech. DISSEMINATION ACTIVITIES: During the first year of the project, two presentations, a workshop, and a poster were delivered to disseminate project activities. The first presentation was given at the NECRA-199 annual meeting held at Montana State University in October, 2007. The presentation was entitled "Breeding and Genetics: Graduate Education Online". The audience was 25 research and extension specialists in animal breeding and genetics. Three other dissemination events took place at the joint annual meeting of the American Dairy Science Association and the American Society of Animal Science in Indianapolis in July 2008. The presentation, "Graduate Education Utilizing Distance Learning", was an invited talk for a symposium entitled "Breeding and Genetics: Training of Future Animal Breeder". The workshop, "Animal Breeding and Genetics Graduate Distance Learning Workshop", was attended by a combination of 18 current and prospective students in the curriculum. The focus of the presentation was to overview the project and the distance education strategies employed in the design and implementation of the coursework. Student feedback regarding these strategies was collected as part of the ongoing formative evaluation efforts. The poster was part of a display sponsored by the National Beef Cattle Consortium, and described project goals and activities. Other dissemination activities included three news releases from different units at Virginia Tech (Department of Animal and Poultry Sciences; School of Education; Institute for Distance and Distributed Learning), e-mail updates sent to a listserv of 130 genetics faculty members at domestic universities and colleges, and the development and launch of a project web site. FUTURE INITIATIVES: Through the development of the infrastructure necessary to deliver and sustain the inter-institutional curriculum being established in this project, the eight graduate-level courses that will be designed and tested will continue to be available at a national level beyond the funding period. Other activities being planned include expanding institutional collaborations nationally and internationally to facilitate the development of additional online courses, and to enlarge student enrollment through even greater interaction with faculty at interested universities and colleges, and with industry.
Impacts
Advanced graduate-level coursework in animal breeding and genetics will be accessible nationally through a collaborative, distance-education curriculum. This curriculum will provide a high quality, customized program to fulfill academic and industry needs for individuals with these professional skills. In its first year, through three online courses, 41 students, 12 of which enrolled in all three courses, received advanced training in animal breeding and genetics; without this curriculum, such coursework would not have been available to these students. Additionally, 16 universities benefitted from having their students participate in this coursework. Initial deployment of Cybersheep, a web-based genetic simulation game, was completed. Comments from students, faculty, and expert reviewers alike indicated a significant value in providing students with an authentic learning environment that would not be possible within a typical university degree let alone academic semester. Students learned to collaborate with team members, and with outside teams, to make mutually beneficial selection and mating decisions, and saw the results of their decision-making within a short timeframe. Such experience with the processes encountered in "real-life" animal breeding programs not only enhances student learning but increases their preparedness for professional positions once completing their coursework.
Publications
- Lewis, R. M., B. B. Lockee, M. S. Ames, R. M. Enns, J. M. Rumph, T. W. Wilkinson, and E. J. Pollak. 2008. Graduate education utilizing distance learning. J. Anim. Sci. 86(E-suppl. 2):166 (Abstr.)
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