Kay L. McLennan, Ph.D., Professor of Practice

   Dr. McLennan's Current & Upcoming Teaching Schedule at Tulane's School of Continuing Studies

• Fall 2008 & Spring 2009 -- Introductory Economics for Nonmajors  [CSEC 100, section 10 (Online) -- To learn more, click here to watch the video clip entitled, "Why Study Economics?"]

• Fall 2008 & Spring 2009 -- Introduction to Marketing Principles [BSMK 320, section 10 (Online) -- To learn more, click here to watch the video clip entitled, "Why Study Marketing?" ]

• Summer 2009 -- Business Ethics [BSMT 338, section 10 (Online) -- To learn more, click here to watch the video clip entitled, "Why Study Business Ethics?"

Dr. McLennan's Teaching Philosophy

Many years ago I came to believe that thoughtfully constructed online courses have the potential to provide greater learning outcomes than traditional face-to-face instruction.  In turn, I elected to put all of the courses I teach online.  Yet, at the same time that I have developed numerous courses for online delivery, I find that it is necessary to almost continually update and expand each course site as I learn more and more about the most effective means for maximizing e-learning outcomes.

In terms of an overall teaching goal:  I strive to make my courses worthwhile.  In particular, I want my courses to contribute to the academic goals of my students as well as provide the specific learning outcomes necessary for my students’ further academic progress.  Also, I want my students to experience the joy of learning as they become active learners and construct learning communities with each other in each of my online course sites.  That is, learning is known to be enhanced by experiential opportunities and students, particularly adult students, learn from each other as well as from the instructor.

Looking specifically at the nontraditional, continuing education students I teach, I engineer my course sites to maximize the learning attributes of adult learners.  Traditional students (or students aged 18 to 24 that went straight from high school to college) have limited experiences, readily accept an instructor’s decrees when it comes to the how, what, when, and where of learning, and acquire knowledge for future use.  In contrast, adult learners that are older and working have extensive experiences (and like to share these experiences with others), like to define the how, what, when, and where of learning, and acquire information for problem solving in the present.  My online courses are designed to meet the unique needs of adult learners.

		Student web pages, ice breaker forums, special interest forums, essay assignments, and the discussion accompanying the essay postings all provide opportunities for adult learners to share their accumulated experiences as well as learn from each other (or build learning communities);
		The presentation of lecture materials in several forms—video clips, text files, and PowerPoint slides—provides adult learners with the control to decide the “how” of learning;
		Providing some choice in essay topic selection allows adult learners to define the “what” of learning;
		Including expansive auxiliary content in each course site further allows adult learners to define the “what” of learning;
		The asynchronous nature of web-based instruction allows adult learns to define the “when” and “where” of learning;
		Tool sections--like selective e-mail functions, ‘check my grade,’ discussion boards, external links, a faculty office forum, a library forum, cafeteria forum, virtual classroom spaces, etc.--further allow adult learners to define the “how, what, when, and where” of learning; and
		Group work mimics work settings and problem solving that can be applied to current work environments.

Finally, when it comes to measuring my success in achieving the above teaching goals, I hope to motivate my students to push and/or stretch themselves to achieve more and to come away from my course(s) with a sense of internal academic motivators (or personal satisfaction from a job well done) versus external academic motivators (or grades).  In turn, course evaluation comments like “I worked harder in this course than I did in my other courses but enjoyed this course more” are the type I hope to receive since they demonstrate the level of engagement necessary for active learning. 

Instructor Contact Information

After registering for one of Dr. McLennan's courses, please send an e-mail to kmclenna@tulane.edu to learn how to get started in the course.

Additional Course Information

The hyperlinks located both above and below provide access to the following.

		Course Syllabi" details the required textbooks, course polices and lesson plans for each course.
		Before Registering" includes a list of the distance education particulars to consider prior to finalizing your plans to take this on-line course.
		Computer Needs" details the minimum computer needs for online instruction.
		Getting Started" includes step-by-step guidance on accessing the Blackboard course site and the help desk telephone number for log-in problems.
		Using Blackboard" identifies student resources and the various parts of the course site.
		Typical Course" includes information on the course format as well as sample video clips.
		Student Advice" includes student views on how to success in an online learning environment.
		About the Instructor" includes information on the educational and work background of the instructor.

Last modified: May 26, 2008