Projects

The core class activities and assignments are as follows:

1. Short design journal reflection or technical prep assignments: Short assignments in the form of a design journal entry or technical preparation will be completed each week. Design journal reflections will be completed in a semi-public journal and typically will be shared in class with peers. In addition, the design journal will serve as a landing page for all mini and final projects.
2. Unit mini-projects: In each of the three parts of the course, students will participate in a mini-project that immerses them in core elements of education technology design and development specific to that unit. Each mini-project will be scaffolded into multiple phases based on an accelerated version of the design-based research approach:
   1. Identification of practical problem
   2. Proposed innovative solution
   3. Iterative cycles of internal rapid testing
   4. Final reflection
   These phases will prompt students to engage in discussion about core skills and concepts that relate their mini-project to the readings. Students will present a final deliverable for each mini-project, as detailed in the syllabus. Deliverables will generally include some prototype learning experience along with a synthesis of initial testing data and reflective writing about how the prototype enacts sound learning and instructional principles. Mini-projects may be completed individually or in teams of two.
3. Final project: In the fourth part of the course, students will work on a final project, individually or in teams of two, to identify an extension of one of the mini-projects that provides an innovative solution to a student-identified problem of practice in education. Alternatively, students have the option to design a new project that reflects learning and readings from one or more of the course units. Students will conduct interviews with a potential user/stakeholder which will inform subsequent iterations of project. Students will playtest their final projects and will make refinements to their project based on data from the playtest. In the last session, students will give a formal presentation of their final projects. The final project will consist of three "deliverables":
   1. Final project prototype
   2. Slide deck and final presentation
   3. Accompanying written product
4. Class participation: You need to be an active participant in class—listening carefully, participating actively in small group conversations, contributing proportionally to the full seminar discussion, bringing your assignments with you to class, etc.—you know the drill. You need to attend every class. The teaching team will grant very occasional waivers for good reasons (e.g. attending conferences) and can excuse absences upon recommendations from MIT Student Support Services. We will not grant waivers for doing work for other classes.