Name:

KRIS MESLER Unit of Instruction Title: THE UNITED KINGDOM

* This unit has been created for a middle school World Studies class at my last school, since I am not currently teaching. PLEASE NOTE: Our private school is partnered with Hewlett-Packard. Through HP and parents of students who work for HP, we have been able to upgrade our computer system several times over the years. Classrooms are also now equipped with SMARTboards, and there are laptops available for classroom sessions.*

If a particular question is not relevant, please list the question and then N/A (not relevant) next to it.

Study table 16.1 -Key Learner Profile Characteristics to Consider. Write down the learner characteristics that you are considering and why they are relevant.

The students are 12-14 year olds, both boys and girls, in the Boise, Idaho area. The class has some minority students, but the majority of students are Caucasian and speak English. This age group is cognitively moving from concrete to abstract thinking, so visuals will include graphics, text, and some audio to reach learners. There is a mix of rural and urban students with mixed prior knowledge of the subject.

Study table 16.2 -Basic questions about the learning environment. Answer each question in the table as it pertains to your unit of instruction.

The visuals will be used as part of a class presentation, or self-study in conjunction with the World Studies textbook. Students will be in a classroom of 25 (max) that is equipped with computers and Internet. A SMARTboard in the class will be used in conjunction with discussion of the visuals. The room will have the majority of lights on during class, so visuals will have a darker background with contrasting text and graphics. Class periods are 50 minutes long. The instructor will introduce the topic each day and then students will work as individuals or pairs to read the textbook and view the visual(s) for the day. The instructor will then moderate discussion of the information and discoveries.

Study table 16.3 -Questions to ask about the delivery media. Answer each question in the table as it pertains to your unit of instruction. List ALL delivery media that will be used.

The SMARTboard is located at the front of the classroom. There is also a textbook assigned to each student. The visuals will meet the 800 x 600dpi per page or will have a scroll down at 800dpi wide. Resolution will be set for web design (around 72dpi). To make colors easier to distinguish, 256 are used. Computer connectivity is DSL. A Plug-in like Flash Player, Media Player or Real Player is needed to view animation or hear an audio file.

Study table 16.4 -Questions to ask about E-learning platforms. Answer each question in the table as it pertains to your unit of instruction.

The monitor displays are set to 1024 x 768. The color depth is 32-bit true color and connectivity is DSL on a LAN. The computers use Windows Media Player. The firewall on each computer is from Norton. YouTube access has been enabled for classroom use.

What issues of color, and file formats will you be dealing with? Please detail the exact formats that you will use for each medium. You may use table 16.5 -Color Depth explanation, table 16.6 -Digital File Formats and their uses, table 16.7 -Raster or Bitmapped file formats, table 16.8 -Vector-based file formats, and any other resources you have to answer this question.

Our new monitors are 32-bit color. The visuals in this unit are created from .png files (some with .jpg or .gif imports) in Fireworks CS4, saved as .gif files, then uploaded through Dreamweaver as an .htm web page to the my BSU web site. Sound files are .mp4 format. The web pages and audio will work easily with our plug-ins.