Call for Proposals
Submission Deadline: 5:00PM, Thursday, September 1, 2016

“Drawing from best practices in online and face-to-face methods, blended learning is on the rise at universities and colleges. The affordances of blended learning are now well understood, and its flexibility, ease of access, and the integration of sophisticated multimedia and technologies are high among the list of appeals” (NMC 2016 Horizon Report - Higher Ed edition, p. 18).

This is a call for proposal to participate in the 2016 Institute for Blended Learning. This professional development program is for faculty to extend the potential of engaging student learning through purposefully designing online components for a course with active teaching strategies (Baum, 2013; Gonzalez, 2014; Milic, Trajkovic, Bukumiric, etc. 2016). In collaboration with experienced JMU faculty members and other JMU academic units, CIT will provide immersive hands-on training, services, and support for blended course design, development, and teaching.

The Institute consists of two phases. Phase I runs at 8:30-11:30am, on Wednesdays between September 28 and November 9, 2016, with Oct. 19 asynchronously online. This phase provides interactive workshops, informational presentations, and time for practice with technologies. We will explore the different aspects of blended learning and the design phase of a blended course. As a participant, you are expected to attend and complete every session in Phase I, including face-to-face, synchronous, and asynchronous online sessions or activities. You will have access to technologies, resources, and support for practice during this phase. At the conclusion of Phase I, a participant is expected to complete all institute activities and generate the following deliverables:

• Plan/syllabus of blended class
• Plan of the continuity of student-content, student-student, student-instructor interaction in and out of classrooms
• A course component that is delivered online and serves active teaching strategies

At the conclusion of Phase I of the Institute, participants will be able to:

• Identify representative features of a blended course.
• Compose a blended class plan or syllabus reflecting consistent face- to-face and online learning activities.
• Practice technological skills for developing and implementing a blended course.
• Select technologies for developing the online part of a blended course.
• Identify services and resources provided by CIT, libraries, and other JMU units that can be incorporated in blended teaching and learning.
• Identify information and resources that students need in face-to-face and online learning activities.
• Discuss copyright and fair use aspects of teaching and learning with digital technologies and online environments.
• Plan the development and implementation of a course that blends online components into face-to-face classroom activities.

Submission Procedure:

• Complete and submit the 2016 CIT Institute for Blended Learning application form online athttp://jmu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dbYpKAN06n1YHVH.
 (This link will lead you to a preview of the application questions.)​ Deadline: 5pm, Thursday, September 1.
• Print the completed application by downloading the PDF of your responses, as illustrated with this linked screenshot.  
• Bring the printed application and a copy of the "Statement of Support" to i) your academic unit head or program director and ii) Dean for their signatures. If you are proposing to develop a General Education course, you will also need the signature of the Associate Vice Provost, University Programs. (The Support Form can be accessed here.)
• Submit the "Statement of Support" with appropriate signatures to CIT by September 9 at 5 p.m.

        Accepted applicants will be notified soon after the review finishes.

Optionally, if you decide to teach a blended course after Phase I, you may participate in Phase II. Please consult with the CIT Senior Instructional Designers about your blended course development and teaching at Phase II.

Upon the completion of each phase, faculty will receive a professional development stipend for their participation, with contingency upon the satisfactory fulfillment of institute expectations.

If you have any questions about the CIT Blended Learning Institute, please contact:

Juhong Christie Liu, Ph.D., Senior Instructional Designer
Center for Instructional Technology, MSC 4602, Rose Library liujc@jmu.edu, 568-2381

For questions related to CIT Institute General Information, please contact:

Andrea Adams
Director of Faculty Development & eLearning Programs
Center for Instructional Technology
adamsah@jmu.edu
568.6568