Recognizing that the lecture based format of my courses is leaving the Spring semester students a little flat, it may be time to consider some alternative approaches to using class time. One possible solution it take a more constructivist approach to arriving at the material. For example, begin class by taking a survey of common questions/issues/problems in writing resumes. Assemble a Question list and produce answers via google-search and web clipping from various resources around the internet. Students will build an interlinked FAQ for each topic. Ideally, the interface would involve easy web-clipping and linking as well as a interface for ranking the quality of potential answers.
The larger scope of such an approach would involve developing a common course interface for posting information whether it is web-clip, worksheet response, or final documents. Perhaps a common interface with sorting by tags and types? Ideally, the ability to create virtual organizations and/or representations: for example, before, during, and after snapshots of a single individual’s resumes though the revision process; or, sort by type of resume (chrono, skills, combo) or by major (accounting, finance, etc.). The next question would be what set of tools to use? A common interface like a blog with a shared posting bookmarklet or loose federation of content sites (itunesU, youtube, delicious, etc., etc.).
Other factors include what kind of main portal or interface should be created. A web page feeding streams? A CMS site? Total decentralization? What about the potential necessity for mixing private and public streams?
