It is my priority to serve a diverse population of students regarding their background, culture, personality, learning preferences, and learning context in general, by making every effort to give them learning options and alternative solutions to complete assignments. Striving to provide them with the a great deal of flexibility regarding the mode, time, and location associated with their learning will not only improve their performance, but also their overall learning satisfaction. Pedagogical literature refers to this flexibility as the "anytime, anywhere" access and is usually discussed in connection with mobile learning. What this flexibility means in my course is that students have access to course content in a variety of formats using a variey of media. Text files are offered as MS Word docx, doc, PDF, and RTF files. Several reading assignments, instructions, and instructor feedback on student papers are made available via text, audio, and video so that students can decide on the medium and format based on their circumstances, preferences, and technical equipment. In their book Multimedia-Based Intructional Design, Lee and Owens suggest that the best learning occurs through a multisensory approach, so an optimum course design "engages as many of the sense as possible" (117). One aspect of the theoretical foundation my online courses are based on is the multimedia hypothesis, which translates into concept of format and medium choice. As an example, I have chosen a reading assignment with three media options with three representative file formats. Although students have more file format options, the linked text opens in Adobe Acrobat, audio file opens in iTunes, and the video file opens in Windows Media Player. I have obtained all necessary permission from the copyright owners to make these files available on the web. Students are enthusiastic about having a veriety of media available and like using them in combination. For example, commuter students appreciate an opportunity to download their reading assignments on their iPods or MP3s and listen to them while driving. Students with family obligations like to multitask and cook dinner while "watching TV" with their reading assignment playing. Another example of incorporating innovative multimedia into online teaching successfully is what I call the Video Syllabus. This is basically a website with as many navigation bar links and video clips as there are subsections in the text-based syllabus.

In addition to the multimedia options discussed above, I also use Tegrity, a multimedia platform which combines video with other media formats, such as websites, MS Office documents, etc. Tegrity video recordings fulfill three main course objectives: 1. to give students quick updates on assignments and other course content; 2. to give students instructions; and 3. to give students individual feedback on their papers. While students welcome my instructional videos in general, receiving video feedback on their papers seems to be a most favored aspect of the course. What's appealing to students is the personal touch that the intructor's video conveys combined with an advanced technology solution which allows students to see not only the instructor but also their paper as the instructor is making comments on it with a digital pen. I am including two screen shots (Tegrity 1 and Tegrity 2) of the feedback, but not the actual video recordings themselves to make sure that I am not violating FERPA regulations. Under Principle 3, I have included a recording not associated with a student's work to show how Tegrity works. Although giving video feedback is time- and energy-consuming for the instructor, students' enthusiasm and positive feedback makes it a rewarding experience.

Although I use a geat number of multimedia files for my courses, making sure that my media files are ADA compliant is a top priority for me. I provide video files with closed captioning or make the transcript available or for students with disabilities. On the website, I use the alt tag for images. I would also like to metion it here that I create visuals, such as diagrams, to convey information about certain aspects of the course in addition to text-based information.

Besides media and format choices, students have a great deal of freedom designing their own assignments. Not only are they able to choose the topic of their essays, they are also able to make a decision about which paper they are going to revise for their final digital portfolio which also comes with three options: website, wiki, or blog. Their portfolio "cover letter" can be a text, audio, or video file.