Jessica Gemella, Chair and Instructor for the Horticulture Program at VIU, aims to enhance her students’ experience this coming semester by expanding the walls of her digital classroom far beyond Nanaimo, BC.

Jessica plans to provide her students with several virtual tours embedded within her regular case-study assignments. She came across this idea while recently taking an online Cannabis Production course herself. This instructional strategy maximizes the potential of digital teaching and learning and is easily transferable across the trades disciplines.

So, let’s take a tour with Jessica!

Image by angie3888 from Pixabay

” This week was virtual facilities tours. It was presented as a case study assignment, which I thought was a great idea and an adaptable approach for many of the trades.

The Case Study Assignment:

Students are given the following assignment:

After watching the videos, select one facility from the videos to analyze for this discussion. Then, write a discussion post that is 1–2 paragraphs in length that states the facility you are analyzing and answers the following questions.

  • What are two strengths and two weaknesses of the facility?
  • What type of facility are they considered?
  • If any elements of SUPA are provided in the facilities, how are they implemented?
  • What technology do they use to enhance their facilities ease of operation?

Share your answers to these questions in the Discussion forum in the Discussions tool. Please make an original post before Friday to give others enough time to reply. Make sure to read and provide feedback on the responses posted by other students, sharing ideas, suggestions, and information on the different facilities. Please note that this is a graded discussion.

If you have questions for Jessica, please contact her at jessica.gemella@viu.ca