Weaknesses
Any new learning design, where the student must adjust and move away from what is known into unexplored territory often comes with a degree of resistance from the student. Given that most of the assignments and assessment tools incorporate methods that are not often utilized during instructor lead courses, there is an expected level of difficulty as the students learn to adapt at the beginning of the course.
The jigsaw project relies on group work which has its own inherent complications, one of which is that not all students excel with group learning and another would be that without a strong structure built into the project itself, there is the potential for once student to do most or very little of the project. Assigned roles and categories is essential for the success of this project and also self-accountability.
With all of the activities and assessment tools, a final weakness that must be considered is that student skill level with the assorted pieces of technology that are used throughout the course itself and the assignments. Not all students have a strong comfort level with computers and variable software, nor do they all have the funds to purchase specific types of software (such as MS office), the instructor must keep this in mind and survey early on in the course to determine if there will be any potential difficulties so that they can be addressed and remedied as early soon as possible.
The jigsaw project relies on group work which has its own inherent complications, one of which is that not all students excel with group learning and another would be that without a strong structure built into the project itself, there is the potential for once student to do most or very little of the project. Assigned roles and categories is essential for the success of this project and also self-accountability.
With all of the activities and assessment tools, a final weakness that must be considered is that student skill level with the assorted pieces of technology that are used throughout the course itself and the assignments. Not all students have a strong comfort level with computers and variable software, nor do they all have the funds to purchase specific types of software (such as MS office), the instructor must keep this in mind and survey early on in the course to determine if there will be any potential difficulties so that they can be addressed and remedied as early soon as possible.