Reverend Nathan C. Walker, Executive Director
Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute
555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20001
(202) 292-6447 | [email protected] | ReligiousFreedomCenter.org
Developing a Blended Learning Curriculum
FACULTY HANDBOOK
DRAFT: SEPTEMBER 1, 2015
Mission............................................................................................................................................ 1 Guiding framework ......................................................................................................................... 1 A School for Religious Liberty ....................................................................................................... 3 Course Offerings: 2016 ................................................................................................................... 4 Blended Learning ............................................................................................................................ 6 Online Experience ........................................................................................................................... 7 Onsite Symposium in Washington, DC .......................................................................................... 7 Guiding Questions .......................................................................................................................... 8 Academic Calendar: 2016 ............................................................................................................... 9 Learning Styles ............................................................................................................................. 10 Case Studies .................................................................................................................................. 12 Videoconferences .......................................................................................................................... 12 Online Blocks................................................................................................................................ 13 Onsite Sessions ............................................................................................................................. 15 Final Assignments......................................................................................................................... 17 Grading ......................................................................................................................................... 17 Components of a Syllabus ............................................................................................................ 17 Accreditation standards ................................................................................................................. 20 Capstone project for certificate ..................................................................................................... 21 Appendix A. Sample Grade Sheet ................................................................................................ 22 MISSION
The Religious Freedom Center is a nonpartisan national initiative focused on educating the
American public about the religious liberty principles of the First Amendment. Reorganized in
2010 to expand on religious liberty initiatives begun by the First Amendment Center in 1994, the
Religious Freedom Center has sponsored numerous public programs at the Newseum, developed
partnerships with national and international organizations, and convened a broad range of
religious and civil liberties groups. The Religious Freedom Center carries out this mission by
educating thought leaders, promoting civil dialogue, engaging the public, transforming schools,
and publishing religious liberty scholarship.
GUIDING FRAMEWORK
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or
prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the
press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the
Government for a redress of grievances.”
~ The First Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Religious Freedom Center of the Newseum Institute is built on the religious liberty
principles of the First Amendment as articulated in The Williamsburg Charter, a consensus
document signed by 100 national leaders on June 22, 1988, in commemoration of the 200th
anniversary of Virginia’s call for a Bill of Rights. Among the signers were former Presidents
Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, former Chief Justice William Rehnquist, Dr. Elie Wiesel, and
Coretta Scott King. The following excerpt from the charter captures the guiding vision for the
initiative described in this proposal:
“One of America’s continuing needs is to develop, out of our differences, a
common vision for the common good. Today that common vision must embrace a
shared understanding of the place of religion in public life and of the guiding
principles by which people with deep religious differences can contend robustly
but civilly with each other. Central to the notion of the common good, and of
greater importance each day because of the increase of pluralism, is the
recognition that religious liberty is a universal right. Rights are best guarded and
responsibilities best exercised when each person and group guards for all others
those rights they wish guarded for themselves.” ~ The Williamsburg Charter
Properly understood and applied, the First Amendment provides the civic framework within
which Americans are able to navigate deep and continuing differences over religious beliefs and
practices, political initiatives, and constitutional interpretations. As the Williamsburg Charter
affirms, the two religious liberty clauses of the First Amendment address distinct concerns, but
together they serve the same end—religious freedom, or liberty of conscience, for citizens of all
faiths or none.
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• The No Establishment Clause separates Church from State but not religion from
politics or public life. It prevents the confusion of religion and government, which
has been a leading source of repression and coercion throughout history.
• The Free Exercise Clause guarantees the right to reach, hold, exercise, or change
beliefs freely. It allows all citizens who so desire to shape their lives, whether
private or public, based on personal and communal beliefs.
The religious liberty clauses are both a protection of individual liberty and a provision for
ordering the relationship of religion and public life. They allow us to live with our deepest
differences and enable diversity to be a source of national strength.
The Religious Freedom Center asks that the curriculum specialists and instructors use the
Williamsburg Charter as a guiding framework for their courses, with special attention paid to the
“three Rs” of religious freedom:
Rights
• Religious freedom, liberty of conscience, is a precious, fundamental, and
inalienable right for people of all faiths and none.
Responsibilities
• Central to the notion of the common good, and of greater importance each day
because of the increase in religious diversity, is the recognition that religious
freedom is a universal right joined to a universal duty to respect that right for
others.
• Rights are best guarded and responsibilities best exercised when each person and
group guard for all others those rights they wish guarded for themselves.
Respect
• Conflict and debate are vital to democracy. Yet if controversies about religion and
public life are to reflect the highest wisdom of the First Amendment and advance
the best interests of the disputants and the nation, then how we debate, not only
what we debate, is critical.
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A SCHOOL FOR RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
Until 2020, the Religious Freedom Center will be implementing a strategic plan to build a school
for religious liberty, which provides online and onsite educational programs for civic leaders.
The Vision
• Effective civic and religious leadership in the United States requires a thorough
understanding of the First Amendment principles that govern the relationship of religion
and government, define protections for the free exercise of religion, and provide the civic
framework for living among people of all faiths and none.
The Problem
• Unfortunately, many leaders receive little or no civic education about the history and
significance of the religious liberty clauses of the First Amendment. As a result, many
Americans are misled about the constitutional role of religion in public life, confused
about the meaning of church-state separation, and uncertain about the limits of free
exercise of religion.
The Plan
• To address this gap in preparation for civic and religious leadership, the Religious
Freedom Center is currently collaborating with leading postsecondary schools in
developing accredited educational programming designed to teach the principles
of rights, responsibility, and respect that flow from the religious liberty clauses of the
First Amendment. By applying this constitutional framework, thought leaders will be
able to forge a shared understanding of the place of religion in public life and work
together to sustain America’s bold experiment in living with even our deepest
differences. The goal is not to promote a uniformity of belief or to advance any political
ideology or theology. The primary teaching objective is to promote understanding while
being aware that an understanding of one another’s differences does not imply
agreement.
Who Benefits
• Professionals—such as religious leaders, educators, and journalists—are uniquely
positioned to help cultivate an informed and engaged citizenry.
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COURSE OFFERINGS: 2016
The Religious Freedom Center will pilot the following four blended learning courses in 2016.
The following course descriptions are drafts for the course designers to revise.
Semester
Spring 2016
& Fall 2016
Number
Working Title
Course Designer
REL 100
Foundations of Religious Freedom
Nathan C. Walker
Spring 2016
& Fall 2016
REL 200
Religious Freedom and
Contemporary American Public Life
Lauren Herman
Fall 2016
REL 300
Religion and News Media
Debra L. Mason
Fall 2016
REL 400
The Human Right to Freedom of
Religion or Belief
Elizabeth H. Prodromou
REL 100 – Foundations of Religious Freedom
The first course explores the meaning and significance of the religious liberty principles of the
First Amendment from colonial and founding periods to the mid-twentieth century. Using
primary source material, participants study the roots of religious freedom in colonial America,
with special attention to the Puritan Commonwealth in Massachusetts Bay Colony and the
radical experiment of “no establishment” and “free exercise” in Rhode Island. Despite the
commitment to religious freedom on the federal level and in state constitutions, the United States
remained a semi-established Protestant nation in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Protestants played a central role in movements for social reform and the establishment of
educational institutions, including the common schools. At the same time, the nineteenth century
in America was an era of virulent anti-Catholicism and anti-Semitism in the wake of large waves
of immigration. In the twentieth century, growing religious diversity, secularization of society,
and the application of the First Amendment to the states through the Fourteenth Amendment in
the 1940s set the stage for US Supreme Court rulings that have more fully separated church from
state and redefined the free exercise of religion.
REL 200 – Religious Liberty and Contemporary American Public Life
In this blended learning course, Religious Liberty and Contemporary American Public Life,
emerging and established religious leaders will study the evolution of First Amendment religious
freedom principles from the 1940s, through the civil rights era, to today. Participants will address
contemporary issues that concern the constitutional relationship of religion and government
along with current debates over the meaning of the free exercise of religion. Through careful
examination of case law and legal briefs, as well as scholarly analysis, artistic expression, and
individual leaders’ accounts, students will reflect on the roles that religious groups have played
in political life, the role of religion in public schools, clashes between civil rights and religious
claims, religious accommodations in the workplace, government funding and faith-based social
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services, and the recent extension of religious exemptions to closely held corporations.
Participants will consider how the challenges and opportunities of the “new religious America”
can be framed by First Amendment principles to ensure that religious diversity is a source of
strength for the country and not a point of weakness, contention, or division. This course stresses
that religious leadership in the United States requires a careful understanding of how current law
addresses basic questions regarding religious expression and practice in public life—questions
religious leaders and their communities confront nearly daily.
REL 300 – Religion and News Media
Effective religious leaders in a pluralistic democracy must have the knowledge and skills to
accurately represent their religious tradition and the religions of their neighbors to the news
media, as well as through the use of news media. For better or for worse, news media shape the
public’s understanding of religion in twenty-first century America. The course begins with an
exploration of the complex interaction of religion and media in the history of the United States,
with special attention to the civic and legal frameworks provided by the guarantees of free
speech, freedom of the press, and religious freedom under the First Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution. Participants examine the many ways in which media currently interpret the role of
religion in public life, and portray the beliefs and practices of religious individuals and groups.
They also will investigate how religious communities use media technology to proclaim their
beliefs and to represent the beliefs of others to both their adherents and the broader public.
Through case studies, participants investigate issues and controversies involving media and
religion in the public square. Participants explore best practices for creating a religiously literate
society by examining how religious communities educate the public about their own religion and
the beliefs and practices of other coreligionists. Special attention will be given to best practices
for using media to combat negative stereotyping, stigmatization, and discrimination.
REL 400 – The Human Right to Freedom of Religion or Belief
Denial of the human right to freedom of religion or belief is a leading cause of repression,
division, and conflicts across the globe. More than three quarters of the world’s population lives
in countries with high levels of restrictions on religious people; these restrictions result in
increases in social hostilities and violence. This course explores the complex issues related to
freedom of expression, religious practice, and treatment of minority religions in various regions
of the world. Addressing these issues will require informed dialogue on religious freedom as a
universal right; support for international and regional efforts to ensure full respect for the right to
religion or belief; and identification, sharing, and strengthening of good rule of law practices
relating to religion or belief at the national and international levels. Based on historical and
contemporary examples, the international case studies presented in this class will illustrate both
the challenges of the right to freedom of religion or belief and the opportunity that rule of law
strategies provide to help meet those challenges. Students will examine best practices for
ensuring that public policies and laws align fully with international human rights standards. The
course is designed to promote cross-cultural and interfaith understanding, thus contributing to an
ongoing dialogue both between and within nations about the importance of the rule of law for
promoting and protecting the human right to freedom of religion or belief.
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BLENDED LEARNING
Coursera currently offers a free online course on the subject of blended learning. The course was
designed by the leaders of the New Teacher Center in partnership with the Silicon Schools and
the Clayton Christensen Institute (CCI). They use CCI’s definition of blended learning:
“Blended learning is a formal education program in which a student learns: (1) at least in part
through online learning, with some element of student control over time, place, path, and/or
pace; (2) at least in part in a supervised brick-and-mortar location away from home; (3) and the
modalities along each student’s learning path within a course or subject are connected to provide
an integrated learning experience.”
There are various models for blended-learning programs. The Religious Freedom Center will be
using the Enriched Virtual Model defined as “a course in which students participate in required
face-to-face learning sessions with their teacher of record and then are free to complete their
remaining coursework remotely from the face-to-face teacher. Online learning is the backbone of
student learning when the students are located remotely. The same person generally serves as
both the online and face-to-face teacher. In Enriched Virtual Models, students seldom meet face
to face with their teachers every weekday. This model differs from a fully online course because
face-to-face learning sessions are more than optional office hours or social events; they are
required.”
The instructors in this Coursera class have identified four characteristics of high-quality
blended learning:
1. Personalized: The course caters to each student’s needs.
2. Mastery-Based: Students proceed only after they have mastered a core concept.
3. High Expectations: Students must have clearly defined and rigorous standards.
4. Student Ownership: Students are empowered with the skills, information, and
tools they need to manage their own learning.
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ONLINE EXPERIENCE
The blended learning courses (online/onsite) will be offered for graduate students enrolled in
accredited degree programs from a variety of academic disciplines. These students are often
professionals who are either interested in structured independent learning or whose associations
require annual continuing education credits. There are three primary goals for these the online
components of this blended learning experience:
1. to educate leaders in various sectors of society;
2. to expose leaders to the legal principles needed to effectively self-govern a
religiously diverse citizenry; and
3. to equip civic and religious leaders to successfully mediate the legal complexities
that arise from the intersection of religion and public life.
Instructors of the online and onsite programs will train students in the civic principles needed to
engage in a variety of religious liberty and public policy issues. The intended outcome is for
civic leaders to be better prepared to educate their communities about church-state separation
and free exercise of religion under the First Amendment.
The blended learning courses utilize state-of-the-art technology to help students cultivate a
sophisticated understanding of different religious traditions while also facilitating rich dialogue
among the theologically diverse participants.
ONSITE SYMPOSIUM IN WASHINGTON, DC
The onsite intensives will allow the online participants to attend a three-day conference at the
Newseum in Washington, D.C. during the fall reading week (October) or the spring break
(March)—see Academic Calendar (Page 10).
During the onsite conference, the center will connect participants with nationally recognized
religious leaders, high-ranking officials in the three branches of government, and leading
religious liberty advocates and scholars. These prominent leaders will discuss before a live
audience a specific topic of contemporary significance (e.g., government-sponsored prayer, forprofit corporations’ free exercise of religion, same-sex marriage, and celebration of religious
holidays in public schools).
These educational events will be a part of the one-time public programs to be held at the
Newseum. The events will be streamed and stored online for the public to view at its leisure and
may be used as supplemental material by instructors of the courses. There are three primary
goals for the onsite intensives:
1. to expose course participants to a diversity of people and ideas;
2. to supplement the content knowledge students developed in the online courses
with a series of in-person, project-based educational experiences; and
3. to provide participants the opportunity to network with their peers and with
nationally recognized leaders.
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GUIDING QUESTIONS
The curriculum specialists will develop subject-specific questions for each course; however, the
courses will collectively engage students in core questions involving religious liberty and
religion in public life, such as:
1. What limits and safeguards does the First Amendment place on the relationship
between government and religion?
2. What are the protections and limits of free exercise of religion, or liberty of
conscience, for people of all faiths and none?
3. How does the First Amendment provide a civic framework for civil dialogue
among religions and between religious and secular worldviews?
4. How and when should religious voices be raised in the political process,
especially when questions of morality and justice are at issue in public policy
debates?
5. Does the First Amendment inspire a civic duty for citizens to guard the rights of
others, including those with whom they deeply disagree; if so, what does that duty
entail?
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ACADEMIC CALENDAR: 2016
Draft: May 30, 2015
Educational Sessions
Spring 2016
Fall 2016
1. Videoconference 1
Monday, February 8
Monday, September 5
2. Online Block 1
February 8–14
September 5–11
3. Online Block 2
February 15–21
September 12–18
4. Online Block 3
February 22–28
September 19–25
5. Videoconference 2
Monday, February 29
Monday, September 26
6. Online Block 4
February 29–March 6
September 26–October 2
7. Online Block 5
March 7–13
October 3–9
8. Online Block 6
March 14–20
October 10–16
9. Onsite DC Session A
10. Onsite DC Session B
11. Onsite DC Session C
12. Onsite DC Session D
13. Onsite DC Session E
14. Onsite DC Session F
15. Onsite DC Session G
March 21 – Mon. afternoon
March 21 – Mon. evening
March 22 – Tue. morning
March 22 – Tue. afternoon
March 22 – Tue. evening
March 23 – Wed. morning
March 23 – Wed. afternoon
October 17 – Mon. afternoon
October 17 – Mon. evening
October 18 – Tue. morning
October 18 – Tue. afternoon
October 18 – Tue. evening
October 19 – Wed. morning
October 19 – Wed. afternoon
16. Online Block Off / 7
Spring break
October 24–30
17. Online Block 7 / 8
April 4–10
October 31–November 6
18. Online Block 8 / 9
April 11–17
November 7–13
19. Videoconference 3
Monday, April 26
Monday, November 14
20. Online Block 9 / 10
April 18–24
November 14–20
21. Online Block 10 / Off
April 25–May 1
22. Online Block 11
May 2–8
November 28–December 4
23. Final Project
May 9–15
December 5–11
24. Videoconference 4
Monday, May 16
Monday, December 12
Fall Break
All synchronized sessions are preliminarily scheduled to take place in Zoom videoconference
rooms on Mondays from 4:00–6:00 p.m. Pacific, 5:00–7:00 p.m. Mountain, 6:00–8:00 p.m.
Central, and 7:00–9:00 p.m. Eastern. At the start of each course, the instructor will poll the
participants about the feasibility of these times and make the necessary date/time changes.
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LEARNING STYLES
These blended learning programs are
designed to enhance the intellectual
development of adult learners by catering
to multiple learning styles. Dr. David A.
Kolb is a social psychologist and
renowned educational theorist who
developed the Learning Style Inventory
(LSI) and founded Experience Based
Learning Systems, Inc.
Kolb demonstrated that people learn by
either having concrete experiences or
through abstract conceptualization. Said
another way, some people learn more
effectively by doing and others by
thinking. Kolb goes on to explain that
people handle these experiences
differently, either by actively
experimenting or through reflective
observation. Some students learn by
being involved in the experience, whereas others like to reflect on what they observe.
When taking Kolb’s LSI, students discover their unique combination of four learning styles.
• They may have a diverging style, where sensitive and intuitive learners focus on
examining things from various perspectives. They prefer to work in teams of
learners.
• Learners with the dominant assimilating style prefer a concise, logical method
for learning about ideas, giving preference to readings and lectures and taking
time to analyze theories.
• People with the converging learning style are task-oriented learners who develop
concrete ways to apply ideas and theory. They prefer tasks that require them to
simulate practical applications of ideas.
• Learners with the accommodating learning style learn best by doing and rely
more on intuition rather than logic. They tend to focus on setting goals, taking
action to achieve objectives, and prefer to work in teams.
It is important to note that all these skills are teachable and that a well-rounded leader is one who
is able to apply these various styles in appropriate contexts.
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Revised Learning Style Inventory: Nine Styles
Recently, David Kolb expanded these four categories into the following nine learning styles:
The Initiating style: initiating
action to handle experiences
and situations.
The Experiencing style:
finding meaning from deep
involvement in experience.
The Imagining style: imagining
possibilities by observing and
reflecting on experiences.
The Acting style: a strong
motivation for goal directed
action that integrates people and
tasks.
The Balancing style: adapting
by weighing the pros and cons
of acting versus reflecting and
experiencing versus thinking.
The Reflecting style:
connecting experience and
ideas through sustained
reflection.
The Deciding style: using
theories and models to decide
on problem solutions and
courses of action.
The Thinking style: disciplined
involvement in abstract
reasoning and logical reasoning.
The Analyzing style:
integrating ideas into concise
models and systems through
reflection.
Reflective Observation
Active Experimentation
Concrete Experiences
Abstract Conceptualization
Learning Flexibility
The Religious Freedom Center encourages all Curriculum Specialists and Instructors to first
identify their own learning styles and then to actively design educational experiences that
encourage adult learners to cultivate multiple learning styles. As a result, the online and onsite
experiences will then be able to effectively help participants cultivate what Kolb calls learning
flexibility—the ability to move around the learning table in different situations. Kolb developed
the following learning goal plan to help people develop learning flexibility.
Initiating
What actions should I take
now? How do I start? Where
are the opportunities?
Experiencing
Am I experiencing the issue in
the present? What is my
intuition telling me? What are
the others feelings about this?
Where is my attention now?
Imagining
What are the possibilities?
What is my vision? How do I
feel about this situation? What
do others think? What do I
imagine will happen?
Acting
How can I implement this plan?
How much time do I have?
What resources do I need?
What are the next steps? Who
can help me in moving this
forward?
Balancing
Is there a blind spot? Have I
considered all the possibilities,
and weighted all the options?
Do I need to change my
approach?
Reflecting
What is another way of looking
at this? What are my
assumptions? What information
is most meaningful? What else
do I need to consider?
Deciding
What is my goal? What is the
cost/benefit analysis? How can
I solve this problem? What is
my decision? What is working
or not working? What is the
bottom line?
Thinking
Am I being objective? What do
the data tell me? Am I accurate?
And thoughtful? Have I put my
feelings aside? Is this a logical
approach?
Analyzing
Can I create a scenario about
what will happen? What
strategies do I need? What is
my plan? Is my reasoning
conceptually sound?
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CASE STUDIES
A case-study approach to adult education is one of the many pedagogical techniques that
curriculum specialists and instructors can use to cultivate a participant’s intellectual
development. A case-study method exposes participants to various political and legal challenges
brought forward by a variety of religious and nonreligious actors. A case study is not simply a
legal case but also a series of real-life conflicts that were resolved by community leaders who
effectively applied religious liberty principles. This pedagogy is designed for participants to
reflect upon the state of current law, discuss the impact of interfaith engagement, and examine
the role religious communities play in shaping public policy. These case studies may be
discussed in the videoconferences, examined online, and tested during the onsite sessions.
VIDEOCONFERENCES
Given the diversity of those enrolled in the blended learning course, the primary objective of the
videoconference seminars is for participants to learn about one another and one another’s
viewpoints. Instructors are encouraged to help students treat one another’s direct experience as a
primary source text.
Up to 20 students may be enrolled in a single course. It is recommended that instructors use the
Socratic Seminar or fishbowl method to mediate these videoconferences. This means the
instructor may invite a small group of four to five students into a conversation for a set period
while the larger group observes the encounter and then switch groups until everyone has been
given adequate time to participate.
In terms of Howard Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences, the verbal-linguistic, logical,
and interpersonal intelligences are the primary skills instructors are seeking to cultivate during
the videoconferences.
In terms of David Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory (LSI), the videoconferences are designed to
help students have concrete experiences (CE) and to engage in active experimentation (AC)
and Reflective Observation. These experiences will primarily help students cultivate the
following leadership attributes: Accommodating (initiating and taking risks, being adaptable),
Converging (defining and solving problems, making decisions), and Diverging (understanding
people, brainstorming, being open-minded).
Instructors are invited to teach students the step-up-step-back method, in which those who have
not spoken proactively introduce their perspective and those who have spoken more than twice
can leave room for their colleagues to speak.
Instructors are also encouraged to set ground rules for the videoconferences, such as turning off
e-mail and silencing phones. For examples, see Northwestern University’s Videoconferencing
Tips for Success and LifeSize’s list of Best Practices and its list of “11 Dos and Don’ts.”
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ONLINE BLOCKS
The Religious Freedom Center is currently piloting the e-classes on Haiku Learning, a learning
management system. Competitors include Blackboard, Moodle, Sakai, Canvass, Instructure,
Jenzabar, Angel Learning, and so on. Watch a one-minute introductory video about Haiku.
Additional features are shown in this four-minute video.
The purpose of Haiku is to provide adult learners with some element of student control over the
time, place, path, and/or pace of their learning experience.
The primary skills that instructors are seeking to cultivate during the asynchronized online
classes are linguistic (reading and writing), logic skills, and intrapersonal intelligences.
In terms of David Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory (LSI), the online blocks are designed to help
students engage in abstract conceptualization (AC) and reflective observation (RO) and
active experiments (AE). These online blocks will help students develop the following
leadership styles: Assimilating (planning, creating models, being patient, developing theories),
Diverging (being imaginative, recognizing problems, being open-minded), and Converging
(reasoning, being logical, defining/solving problems, and making decisions).
To help create human-centered experiences, the Instructors are encouraged to be present on
the portal at regular times. Similar to traditional notices about “open office hours,” these times
should be published in the syllabus. This will allow students to connect with instructors via
Haiku’s video-chat features.
To achieve these goals, it is encouraged that the Digital Manager of the Virtual Campus, in
collaboration with the Instructors, builds online classes with a variety of multimedia tools.
Examples include, but are not limited to the following:
• • • • • • Badges
Discussion forums
ePortfolios
Flashcards
Games
Images
• • • • • • Infographics
Maps
Newsfeeds
PDFs
Progress reports
Polls (for onsite events:
Poll Everywhere)
• • • • • Quizlet
Slideshows
Videos
Whiteboard
WikiProjects
Haiku apps like SCORM comes with advanced tools such as sequencing so that you can create
content that changes based on student action To learn about this and other apps, visit the Haiku
Learning How-To (Teachers) Step 3: Engage with students > Activities.
EdSurge has created a product map of various apps for e-classrooms and a listing of the various
MOOCs (massively open online courses) and other online courses.
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Identify Existing Multimedia
The Curriculum Specialists, in their roles as content creators for the foundational syllabi, are
encouraged to recommend engaging material for the Digital Manager and Instructor to integrate
into the e-classroom.
For instance, the Curriculum Specialist will design the syllabus around various primary and
secondary source texts and cluster the content into broad units that are broken down into
narrow lessons. This content may come from printed or e-books that the students might be
required or are recommended to purchase, or it may come from PDF files that students can
download from the Haiku classroom.
To help make the experience as interactive as possible, the Curriculum Specialist may
recommend that students watch an existing video clip from one of the primary author’s speeches
or interviews. These supplementary materials may also include photography or clips from a
television news program. The foundational syllabi should include links to existing multimedia to
help the students reinforce their reading comprehension.
After confirming the copyright use of the existing material, the Digital Manager and Instructor
will aggregate the media into the Haiku Learning platform.
Identifying Need for New Multimedia
The Curriculum Specialists are not required to create from scratch new multimedia; however,
these specialists are encouraged to identify the need to do so. For instance, the specialist may
create a list of terms and definitions that the digital manager can turn into e-flashcards or
recommend questions to include in a Haiku discussion forum or a participant poll or create a
handout that the Newseum graphics team may turn into an infograpic. (All the course material
will be consistent with the Newseum branding style guide.)
Specialists may also recommend that the Religious Freedom Center invite leading scholars to
conduct an audio, video, or in-person interview or an onsite workshop or keynote presentation.
The Religious Freedom Center may invite the Newseum broadcast and marketing teams to
produce the material to be featured in the online classes. The Center can offer licensing
agreements that allow the scholars to reuse this media in their own venues as well.
Take for instance Jeremiah Dickey’s TED-Ed Original lesson, “A Brief History of Religion in
Art.” He audio recorded a brief lecture and recommended a series of still images for a film editor
to incorporate into a five-minute video. The video was uploaded to YouTube and embedded in
the TED-Ed WATCH page. Dickey then created a series of multiple-choice questions that
engaged his audience on the THINK page. He provided additional resources in the DIG
DEEPER page. He then posed one additional question on the DISCUSS page that helped
learners engage with one another.
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The Curriculum Specialists are not expected to create these videos, but they can help identify
the type of content that would further enhance their syllabi.
The ultimate purpose of these individual efforts is to collectively build a Digital Library for
Religious Liberty that will benefit generations of students.
ONSITE SESSIONS
The onsite sessions for the blended learning classes will take place at the Newseum campus in
Washington, DC. The Newseum sits on America’s Main Street between the White House and the
U.S. Capitol and is adjacent to the Smithsonian museums on the National Mall.
The Newseum is a 250,000-square-foot museum of news that offers visitors an experience that
blends five centuries of news history with up-to-the-second technology and hands-on exhibits.
The Newseum includes a 90-foot high atrium, seven levels of displays, 15 theaters, a dozen
major galleries, many smaller exhibits, two broadcast studios, and an expanded interactive
newsroom. Over 800,000 visitors came to the Newseum in 2014.
The three-day educational conference will start at noon on a Monday and end at 3:00 pm on a
Wednesday. The conference will include five daytime sessions and two evening events.
Mon.
12:00 – 1:00 pm
Luncheon and orientation
Welcoming
2:00 – 4:00 pm
Session A – Small Groups
Teambuilding
4:00 – 7:00 pm
Break / Dinner on your own
Rejuvenating
7:00 – 8:30 pm
Session B - Public Event
Inspiring
8:30 – 10:00 pm
Reception
Networking
9:00 – 12:00 pm
Session C – Field Trip
Experiencing
Luncheon
Socializing
2:00 – 4:00 pm
Session D – Meeting Experts
Engaging
4:00 – 7:00 pm
Break / Dinner on your own
Rejuvenating
7:00 – 8:30 pm
Session E – Public Event
Inspiring
8:30 – 10:00 pm
Reception
Networking
9:00 – 12:00 pm
Session F – Small Groups
Processing
Luncheon
Socializing
1:00 – 2:30 pm
Session G – Next Steps
Planning
2:30 – 3:00 pm
Farewell
Thanking
Wed.
Tue.
12:00 – 2:00 pm
12:00 – 1:00 pm
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Five Daytime Sessions
The program will include five daytime sessions (Sessions A, C, D, F, and G). The purpose of
these intensives is to pedagogically achieve something the students would not have been
otherwise been able to do online or at their home institution. For instance, during Session C –
Fieldtrip (Tuesday morning), the Curriculum Specialists may recommend that the students visit
one of the many treasures that are near the Newseum, such as the U.S. Capitol, U.S. Supreme
Court, Library of Congress, a Smithsonian museum, or the White House.
During Session D – Meeting Experts (Tuesday afternoon), the Curriculum Specialists may
recommend that the Religious Freedom Center invite experts to meet the students at the
Newseum for a discussion of a particular subject. For example, they may recommend that the
students meet with researchers at the Pew Research Center’s division of Religion and Public
Life; or attorneys from the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty or the American Civil Liberties
Union; or foreign policy experts from the State Department or at the United States
Commission on International Religious Freedom; or reporters from the Religion News
Service or the Washington Post. The Newseum will film these sessions and edit the material
into compelling videos to be used in the online courses and digital library for religious liberty.
Two Public Events
The two public events on Monday and Tuesday evening are designed to expose the students and
the public at large to an international or national leader. For instance, the Religious Freedom
Center recently welcomed Madeleine Albright to discuss the future of religion and diplomacy.
The Religious Freedom Center is currently considering inviting the following headliners to
participate in these evening programs over the next few years:
• • • • • Sandra Day O’Connor
Anthony Kennedy
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Dalai Lama of Tibet
Desmond Tutu
• David Saperstein
• Heiner Bielefeld, UN
special rapporteur on
freedom of religion or
belief
• • • • • Christiane Amanpour
Bill Moyers
John Meacham
Martha Nussbaum
Doug Laycock
These headliners will be coupled with keynote presentations from leaders in the field of religious
liberty. The Curriculum Specialists are invited to serve as the 2016 keynote presenters and
participate on a public panel with the headliner to discuss a topic of great significance.
In terms of David Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory (LSI), these diverse onsite sessions are
designed to help students engage in concrete experiences (CE), active experimentation (AC),
and reflective observation (RO). These face-to-face experiences will help students develop the
following leadership styles: Accommodating (being adaptable, taking risks, leading), Diverging
(understanding people, being open minded, brainstorming), and Converging (defining and
solving problems and making decisions).
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FINAL ASSIGNMENTS
Faculty are encouraged to design a final assignment (project, paper, etc.) that helps the students
demonstrate their mastery of the subject matter.
GRADING
In a sense, the faculty of the Religious Freedom Center is serving as the adjunct teaching core to
a geographically and disciplinary diverse set of institutions of higher education. Each partner
school will have their own unique grading criteria—some institutions issue letter grades, while
others use written assessments and reject the use of grades all together. It is anticipated that some
partner institutions may request that students enroll for a pass/fail grade.
Until the partnership agreements are finalized, the Curriculum Specialists are encouraged to
create simple, an easily transferable grading distribution scale based on percentages. This
way, the partner institutions can translate those numbers into their grading scheme (e.g., some
schools grant an A+ or a “distinction” to a student earned a score of 99% or higher, whereas
other schools do not issue A+s; and some schools give an A– to students that earned a score of
90%, and others consider that to be a B+). These percentages will allow the partner schools the
autonomy to issue the final grade and course credits. See Appendix A for a sample grading
distribution scale.
Curriculum Specialists may find it helpful to apply the Standards-Based Grading (SBG) method.
Developers at ActiveGrade and Round Table Companies say, “All too often, we forget the
purpose of grading. We give a grade to show a student what he did in the past but forget to do
connect that to what he can do going forward.” SBG is a method that helps instructors focus on
(1) learning goals; (2) assessments; and (3) feedback.
COMPONENTS OF A SYLLABUS
When designing the foundational syllabi, the Curriculum Specialists are encouraged to take into
consideration these various goals—from the online to the onsite experiences to the learning
styles and assessment process.
The primary role of the Curriculum Specialist is to serve as the content expert for their subject
area. Meaning, what source material, theories, controversies, and questions do you think every
student should examine? What are the big ideas in this area and where are there disciplinary
and ideological divides? How can the assignments help the students find their own voice in
relationship to the leading thinkers in the field? These foundational syllabi will ultimately lay the
conceptual foundation for a living curriculum that will be sculpted by the faculty at our partner
institutions and by the online instructors and students who will be field-testing the pilot courses.
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Given this information, the Curriculum Specialists are encouraged to include the following
components in their foundational syllabi.
1. Course Description – Write a brief blurb to be used in the course catalogue.
2. Purpose Statement – List an overview statement to include in the front of the syllabus
that instructs the students as to the mission of the course.
3. Learning Objectives – Include two or three pedagogical outcomes that will be achieved
when a student successfully completes the course. These objectives should be measurable
and teachable and should not be prerequisite competencies for enrolling in the course.
4. Required Material – Include a list of essential readings (textbooks or course readers) or
educational tools (software, subscriptions) that the students must use to successfully
complete the course. When choosing material, please take into consideration the
affordability of books. If you decide to compile a reader of journal articles, the Religious
Freedom Center will seek copyright approval to print and mail course packets to the
students.
5. Recommended Material – List educational resources that may be important to the
subject but not necessary to examine during the course. Curriculum Specialists are
encouraged to make this list as robust as possible. As the content generators for this
foundational course, the Digital Manager, Instructors and Students will find value in
reviewing the taxonomy of resources. This may aid them in seeing the broad landscape of
resources while giving them a roadmap for how to dive deeper into a subject.
6. Assignments – Propose a series of graduate-level assignments that will help students
demonstrate what they have learned and assignments that will help instructors effectively
assess the quality of that learning. Please pay attention to the various learning styles and
the various educational mediums—the online portal, the videoconferences, the onsite
sessions, and the final project. The assignments should assess what the student learned as
a result of these experiences, not assess the expertise the student may have or have not
brought to the class. The goal is to measure whether the curriculum and the instructor
were successful at creating a meaningful educational experience; the assignments are not
designed to assess whether the student had the prerequisite knowledge or skills necessary
to complete the course.
7. Grading Distribution – Please develop a simple way for student to see how each
assignment can result in a 100% grade. Example: 10% participation in videoconferences;
20% engagement with the online portal; 20% participation in onsite sessions; 20% for the
midterm assignment; and 30% for the final project. To make it easy for the instructor to
tally the grade, show how the points add up to a 100. See Appendix A.
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The Religious Freedom Center, in collaboration with the partner schools will develop the
following syllabi sections. The Curriculum Specialists are welcome to make recommendations
for these sections, as well.
8. Learning badges for possibly awards ceremony (“dispelling stereotype” award; the
“citizen of the world” award; the “religious literacy” award; the “intellectual
breakthrough” award; the “resiliency” award).
9. Process for submitting assignments (i.e., email the instructor or upload to Haiku)
10. Best practices for use of sources and citations
11. Formatting guidelines
12. Educational support services, such as writing centers and academic advisement.
13. Penalties for late submissions
14. Videoconferencing tips
15. Netiquette guidelines
16. Onsite use of technology
17. Study guide (i.e., suggestions for working online, studying habits, reading and writing)
18. Academic integrity policy
19. Originality of Work
20. Accommodations for religious observances
21. Accommodations for disabilities
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ACCREDITATION STANDARDS
Students who successfully complete the blended learning courses will receive academic credit
toward their graduate degree programs from our partner schools that are accredited by the
Association of Theological Schools (ATS).
In Educational Standard, the ATS Commission on Accrediting defines distance education as “a
mode of education in which a course is offered without students and instructors being in the
same location. Instruction may be synchronous or asynchronous and employs the use of
technology. Distance education courses may consist of exclusively online or other
technologically assisted instruction or a blend of intensive classroom and online instruction. In
all cases, distance education courses shall ensure regular and substantive interaction of faculty
with students.”
Standard ES.4.2.3 emphasizes that “distance education programs shall seek to enhance personal
and spiritual formation, be sensitive to individual learning styles, and recognize diversity
within the community of learners. Courses shall require regular and substantive interaction
between teachers and learners and among learners to ensure a community of learning.”
Training and Technical Support
The Digital Manager, in partnership with the Instructors, will offer students “training and oneon-one technical support” to prepare them for the distance education program, as required by the
ATS accreditation standard ES.4.2.10.
Standard Es.4.2.11 requires that the technological support services “include both (1) staff with a
sufficiently high level of technical skills to ensure student facility in handling software and the
technological aspects of course offerings and (2) the systemic evaluation and upgrading of
technological resources and services consistent with the learning goals of theological
scholarship.”
Standard ES4.2.12 requires that “the program shall also ensure that the educational objectives are
not hindered by time delays in support services or the lack of capable personnel to ensure the
several bridging functions between technology and theological education, between theological
curriculum and delivery systems, between teachers and learners, and between the distance
education program and the goals of the overall curriculum for the courses and degree program
being offered.”
Advisory and Administrative Support
The Education Coordinators will provide distance education students with “advisory and
administrative support,” as required in ATS standard ES.4.2.18. This includes “program and
vocational counseling, financial aid, academic records, and placement. The policies and
procedures governing financial assistance shall be published and administered equitably.”
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Recruitment and Admissions
Standard ES.4.2.16 requires that “in recruitment efforts, services, and publications, institutions
shall accurately represent their distance education programs, including but not limited to a
description of the technology used and the technological ability, skill, and access needed to
participate in the program satisfactorily.
CAPSTONE PROJECT FOR CERTIFICATE
Students enrolled in the certificate program are required to complete four blended learning
courses and one independent study directed by a faculty member. In this individual course,
students will design, implement, and evaluate a community-based capstone project in which
they demonstrate their ability to apply First Amendment principles to religious freedom issues of
significance in their own communities.
The following definition of a capstone project was adapted from the Glossary of Education
Reform. A capstone project is a multifaceted assignment that serves as a culminating academic
and intellectual experience for this particular certificate program. A capstone projects may take a
wide variety of forms but mostly are long-term investigative projects that culminate in a final
product, presentation, or performance. For example, students may be asked to select a topic,
profession, or social problem based on the broad theme of religion and public life. They are
required to conduct research on the subject, maintain a portfolio of findings or results, create a
final product demonstrating student learning acquisition or conclusions (a paper, short film, or
multimedia presentation, or worship service for example), and give an oral presentation on the
project to a panel of faculty, community leaders, and community members who collectively
evaluate the project’s quality.
Capstone projects are generally designed to encourage students to think critically, solve
challenging problems, and develop skills such as oral communication, public speaking, research
skills, media literacy, teamwork, planning, self-sufficiency, or goal setting—skills that will help
prepare students to effectively serve as civil leaders in a pluralist democracy.
In most cases, the projects are also interdisciplinary, in the sense that they require students to
apply skills or investigate issues across a wide array of subject areas or domains of knowledge.
Capstone projects also tend to encourage students to connect their projects to community issues
or problems and to integrate outside-of-school learning experiences, including activities such as
community meetings, interviews, site observations, or media engagement.
The desired outcome is for course participants to use the capstone project in their communities to
demonstrate how, as the Williamsburg Charter notes, “religious freedom is a universal right
joined to a universal duty to respect that right for others.”
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APPENDIX A. SAMPLE GRADE SHEET
Student:
Instructor:
Course:
Term:
REL300 Sec 3
Fall 2016
Attendance and Participation
Classes 1–10
Classes 13–19; 22, 27, 28
10/10 points
9/10 points
Total
19 of 20
Game Show Score Board
#1 – #5
#6 – #10
10/10
10/10
Total
20 of 20
Socratic Seminars
Seminar 1
Seminar 2
Seminar 3
10/10 points
10/10 points
10/10 points
Total
30 of 30
Worldview Memos
Memo 1
Memo 2
Memo 3
10.0/10 points
10.0/10 points
10.0/10 points
Total
30.0 of 30
Award Ceremony
The "This Ain't No Country Club" Award
Total points: 99.0
Final Grade: A
Congratulations on the successful completion of the Religions of the World course. You have
proven yourself to be an engaged and insightful colleague. It has been an honor learning with
and from you this semester. Although this campus can look like a country club, with its fine
dining and recreational activities, you are clearly using this campus as a training ground for your
intellectual and professional development. Congratulations, you have earned the most prized
learning badge: The “This Ain’t No Country Club” Award!
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