SONJA BURROWS, PhD | Portfolio
School in Germany| A Middlebury CV Starr School Abroad
Project Description: This is a digital learning space for students preparing to study abroad in one of three locations in Germany: Mainz, Potsdam, and Berlin. The site provides an abundance of information created by the school’s director especially for students getting ready to participate in the program of study in Germany. A main focus of this project is to train the director and staff of the School in Germany to create and maintain their digital space on an ongoing basis so as to be able to iterate smoothly through the development process.
Design: This space is built with a full-installation of WordPress and designed in partnership with staff and leadership at Middlebury’s School in Germany. Design highlights include custom-created interactive maps, cultural exercises, information about German cuisine, cultural norms and expectations, a list of recommended books, music and media, as well as coverage and publicity of events such as alumni gatherings.
Additional Features: A particular highlight of this collaboration is the training delivered to staff of the School in Germany so as to enable them to construct and alter their digital space through the creation of this website. Because online learning spaces do not exist in a static state, but rather change and iterate over time, this collaboration aimed to provide training necessary for the domain owners to design and redesign the learning site as needed into the future. This orientation space continues to evolve as a reflection of the evolving goals and desired outcomes of the staff creating it. The result of this partnership is the growing agency of stakeholders to shape and alter the space as needed going forward.
Sonja Burrows served as lead Instructional Designer on this project as part of her work with Middlebury’s Office of Digital Learning and Inquiry. Please send a message to request more information.
