Welcome to class! You might be wondering, "So what qualifies this guy to teach me about Superheroes?" That's a valid question, so thanks for asking. The first 3 years of my career I spent teaching history and pe at the high school level, and I also coached girls basketball and cross country. Alright, alright... I'm sure you're thinking that doesn't really qualify me to teach about superheroes, and you're right. I actually went back to school to become a Master of Educational Technology, so now I get to add the post-nominal letters "MET" at the end of my name (although pretty much no one knows what those letters stand for).

I now have 2 years of instructional design experience under my belt. I currently work as an instructional designer for Utah State University in the Center for Innovative Design and Instruction, and most of USU's online learning content is delivered using Canvas. By manipulating basic coding we are designing courses in creative ways to improve the quality of courses, and making the course development processes more efficient. These innovations have also lent me some professional credibility through articles on popular websites like eLearning Industry. So in a way, you could say that designing awesome courses is my superpower ;)

I will do my best to be a support to you by providing useful feedback, answers to questions and good examples. I am usually easy to get in contact with. Don't be afraid to contact me via email, phone or text. I usually respond in no more than 24 hours during the week and 48 hours on the weekend.

Let's get started!

~Travis

Travis N. Thurston, MET
travis.thurston@usu.edu

Center for Innovative Design and Instruction

Now, please follow the steps below to continue your orientation to this course.

Step 1: Read the syllabus & Canvas quickstart Guide

The course syllabus will provide you with the course schedule, course objectives, explanations of assignments and assessments, grading policies, and instructor contact information. Please read it carefully. You should have a deep familiarity with the schedule and process of the course.

Additionally, if you're not familiar with Canvas you will want to review the Canvas Student Quickstart Guide.

Step 2: Purchase your textbooks

"Superheroes in the Modern World" by Travis Thurston

Step 3: Library information and student support

Visit the library website to learn what services are provided for online students.

Step 4: Read the technical requirements page

The Technical Requirements page identifies the browsers, operating systems, and plugins that work best with Canvas. If you are new to Canvas quickly review the Canvas Student Orientation materials.

Step 5: Read about academic integrity and netiquette

[Section deleted. Insert your organizational policies here.]

Next Steps: Begin course content