Serf®

Server-side Educational
Records Facilitator
What Is Serf?

Invented in 1997, Serf is a self-

paced multimedia learning
environment that enables students to
navigate a syllabus, access
instructional resources, communicate,
and submit assignments over the
Web.
Instructors create courses without
having to know HTML.
Logging
On
Viewing the Course
Student Control Panel
Instructor Options
Editing a Serf Syllabus
Textual Content (adds text to the current cluster)
Class title (starts a new class cluster)
Generic title (starts a new generic cluster)
Preamble title (starts a new preamble cluster)
Multimedia graphic (adds content with a graphic icon and link)
Multimedia movie (adds content with a movie icon and link)
Multimedia sound (adds content with a sound icon and link)
Multimedia Web site (adds content with a Web site icon and link)
Observational assignment
Web portfolio assignment

Kinds of
Web query assignment
Submit file assignment
True/false question
Multiple choice question
Fill-in-the-blank question
Image map question
Syllabus Events
Short answer question
Slider question (Likert scale)
Examination (launches a test)
Strand (launches a tutorial module)
Diagnostic (launches a self-assessment)
Survey (administers a questionnaire)
Control panel (creates a customized control panel)
Menu bar (replaces or augments the current Serf menu bar)
Banner (replaces or augments the current banner)
Trailer (replaces or augments the current trailer)
Creating an Event
Editor Viewer
Navigating via
the Index
Editing the Calendar
Setting the Date
Jumpstarting
the Calendar
Editing the Style
Rostering Students
Using the
Gradebook
Assigning
Grades
Discussion Forums
Controlling Forum
Access
Reading Forum
Topics
Writing In a
Forum
 Serf 2.0
Summer 1998

Version 2 added to Serf a testing system

that can administer and grade objective
test questions in a traditional exam style, or
present competency-based tests according
to Bloom’s mastery learning model.
Kinds of Test
Questions
True/False
Multiple Choice
Fill-in-the-Blank
Image Map
Short Answer
Slider (Likert Scale)
Editing a
Question
Editing a
Pool
Editing a
Module

Practice vs Graded
Weight of Module
Criterion
Repeats
Reviews
Deadlines
Time frames
Editing a
Section
Relative weight
Question pool
Random or sequential
Length
Competency
Origin
Hide or see scores
Time limit
Allow skipping questions
Allow changing answers
Branching on condition
 Serf 3.0
Summer 1999

Version 3 added support for surveys,

diagnostic assessments, and tutorials.
Creating a
Diagnosis
Making a
Diagnostic
 Teaching in the Zone

Helping All Students by Giving

What They Need, When They Need It
Identifying the Zone

Vygotsky defined the zone of

proximal development as the
difference between the difficulty
level of a problem a student can cope
with independently and the level that
can be accomplished with help from
others.
Systems like Serf identify the zone
and provide the help from others.
Throwing the Zone Away

In traditional teaching, we throw the

zone away.
Students take tests, the results of
which often are never handed back.
Students hand in term papers at the
end of a course with no chance to
rewrite them.
We are throwing the zone away.
Teaching in the Zone

Constructivist teaching via the Web

brings the student into the zone.
The instructor becomes a coach who
helps the student achieve goals.
Time shifting makes the process
efficient and manageable for student
and teacher alike.
A Hypothesis

The effectiveness of an online

learning system is directly related to
the degree in which it facilitates
teaching in the zone.
Methods I use to do this include:
Giving the student another try
Just-in-time discussion
Customized scaffolding
Gallery of other students’ work
Problem-based Learning

The problem with problem-based

learning is assessment.
How do you assess what each student
has contributed in a cooperative
learning environment?
Systems like Serf solve this problem
by logging what each student
contributes.