Sharks in Blue Oceans – How NSU Freshmen are Becoming Civic-Minded Professionals

Introduction: UNIV1000 – First Year Seminar (FYS) is a course that was introduced to NSU students in Fall 2016. The purpose of the course is to introduce first-year students to opportunities and experiences that are unique to the university and also help them to make a successful transition to college life. Students learn about and engage in various campus resources including social events, academic success programs, and opportunities for personal and cultural enrichment. Purpose: Given this year’s conference theme of Active Learning: Theory, Practice, and Evidence, I will describe my first experience designing and teaching FYS in a blended learning environment with a focus on the academic theme of civic engagement education and becoming a civic-minded professional. Sarin and Kayla will describe their experience as students in this course. Description of Innovation: Using actual examples and artifacts from the course, we will describe the classroom activities, group, and individual assignments that addressed the needs of our campus and the community. We will share how a culminating digital online portfolio assignment, Sharks in Blue Oceans, was used to help students reflect on their personal and professional identities and how they can be active citizens and make a difference in the world. Outcomes: This is a design case. Design cases focus on design knowledge, which is distinct from knowledge produced by traditional research (Boling, 2010). Design cases are based on precedent and sharing design decisions. We will share the design successes and failures (i.e., what worked, what didn't work, and how the design of the course could be improved) as these are critical components to the improvement of design work. Discussion: In the research and practice of design, the sharing of knowledge-in-practice through design representations (e.g., artifacts), experiences, and a detailed discussion of the design decision-making process is critical (Boling, 2010). These design cases help other novice and expert designers, researchers, and teachers gain a better understanding of the unique aspects of the design and the decisions that occurred along the way. Key words: active learning; blended learning; civic engagement; civic-minded professionals; design case; first year seminar; instructional design; public sphere pedagogy Reference: Boling, E. (2010). The need for design cases: Disseminating design knowledge. International Journal of Designs for Learning, (1),1, 1-8. Available at: https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/ijdl/article/view/919/978