JOOMLA 1.0 Basic Writing Software Designer: Saadia Oulamine For Professor Jen Jenson EDU 5345 OL2 Summer 2009

WHY JOOMLA As an English teacher,you must have read quite a few illogical sentences from your students. quite a few incoherent sentences from your students. quite a few unparallel sentences from your students.

WHY JOOMLA To rectify these faux pas, you: Tried Lecture. Had the students practice a great deal at home using their workbook. Had them work with a tutor in the College’s tutoring center. Students still don’t seem to get it!

JOOMLA 1.0 is your students’ answer to better sentences and better paragraph writing!

JOOMLA 1.0 An Overview 1 Joomla software offers : Over 20 Interactive lessons on sentence structure, mechanics and the writing process. A combination of the three schools of thought in its instructional design approach: behaviorism, cognitive and constructivism. A set of pre-learning activities to help your students create a connection with the concepts discussed, get motivated and get cognitively prepared for the new information On going practices and assessment between sections and at the completion of each lesson. Opportunities for reflection through journal writing at the completion of each skill set.

JOOMLA 1.0 An Overview 2 Joomla software offers : The chance to collaborate and communicate with peers, online tutors and you, the instructor, via , discussion boards, video- conferencing and instant messaging. Opportunities for strong learners participation through continual self-assessment, identifying and editing of flawed sentences. Multi-modal approach of presentation. Audio and video streaming capabilities.

What You Would Need Joomla 1.0 CD.ROM A computer with either a Mac or Windows Platform Internet Access Microphone Web camera

Sample Lesson Understanding Conjunctions Objectives of the Lesson At the completion of the lesson, students will: Be able to successfully distinguish between coordinating, correlative, and subordinating conjunctions. Be able to successfully identify errors in the usage of conjunctions on a sentence and paragraph level. Be able to correct the erroneous sentences using appropriate conjunctions. Be able to substitute one conjunction for the other: for example, change sentences from coordination to subordination and vice versa. Be able to punctuate sentences correctly, at the sentence and paragraph level.

Methodology Used Part I Students will begin with a set of pre-learning activities to get them connected and motivated including a self- assessment, which asks the learners to assess their prior knowledge and their level of competency.The learner has the option to take the exit exam if he or she shows high competency level and can move on to other lessons.

Methodology Used Part II Content and examples include high interest topics, such as current local and international affairs, entertainment, sport etc. Immediate feedback is offered that guides students to find the correct answers. The option to collaborate with peers or with an online tutor while doing the practice exercises via synchronous and asynchronous interactions. The ability for students to interact with their instructor via , web-conferencing and asynchronous discussion.

JOOMLA 1.0 Addressing Diversity 1 Joomla Software is Gender neutral Culturally Inclusive 1.Activities and games are devoid of violence and competition. 2. Option to work in collaboration or independently on exercises Through synchronous and asynchronous interaction, students who value collective achievement will find their comfort zone. Those who value independence and individuality have the option to work independently as well.

JOOMLA 1.0 Addressing Diversity 2 Joomla Software caters to Different learning styles Socioeconomic differences Licenses can be purchased by the institution and installed in computer labs for students to us for free. For students who would like to buy the software on their own, they can at a discounted price. It uses a multi-modal approach in the presentation of concepts: Textually, verbally, visually and experientially.

JOOMLA 1.0 Promoting Higher Order Thinking and Creativity Students will be able to reflect on what they already know through the pre- learning activities the lesson starts with. Students will be able to apply what they know to new knowledge and synthesize what they have newly learned through their journal writing and discussions with peers.

Joomla 1.0 Assessment Beside the on-going assessment of students to determine whether the objectives of each lesson is met, students will be required to complete an evaluation form at the end of each lesson.(Refer to Appendix A for an example)

Preparing this presentation for Adult Learners Since I understand that adult learners like yourself bring with you a wealth of experiences and prior knowledge, I made sure in this presentation to: Start by telling you why I believe Joomla 1.0 will be the fix for the sentence errors your students make quite often in writing. This is meant to help you see the relevance of and feel a connection with the presentation. I refrained from using too much animation to avoid giving the presentation a juvenile look.

Presenting Joomla 1.0 to a younger audience To present this project to younger audience: I would add more animated graphics. I would show examples of the different synchronous an asynchronous interaction that takes place among peers and the online tutors. I would include sample interactive games the software includes. I would delete the first two slides and share a before- and-after example of student writings to demonstrate how a mastery of sentence structure and mechanics makes a difference in the coherence of paragraphs.

Thank you for watching this presentation. To try the software, please go to for a test drive of the software, or call for a demo disk Saadia Oulamine