TEDx London: You are Contagious! • Vanessa Van Edwards

This is the best practical advice and most profound insight that I have seen in a long time. Want to get the attention of your learners? Here's how!

Free Animation Support: TED-Ed

Have you ever watched the uber-cool educational videos at TED-Ed? 

They are mesmerizing, and cover a wide array of topics and fields of study. What you might not realize is that the TED-Ed folks are happy to assign YOU your very own extremely talented animator and then the two of you create a video to rival all the others on the platform in terms of professional quality video production and animation skills. Check it out. Wouldn't that be a great way to go viral? 

In the meantime, ANYONE is free to create “lessons”—a way of instructor-annotating, narrating, and visually framing the exceptionally high quality educational videos already in the TED-Ed library free for your use. Your lessons can be linked into your own courses either as core or supplemental content in support of your learning objectives.

For more ideas on how to use the content and services offered at TED-Ed, email helpdesk@uah.edu to request a consultation with an instructional designer. 

Six (easy) alternatives to bullet lists

The only thing worse than presentation slides with a full paragraph (or two!) of text on them is a slide deck full of bulleted lists! But how do we take our visual design of academic content a step further so that it meets the learner halfway? Connie Malamed has six tips for just this purpose!

UDL/ADA TIP: Remember that info-intense graphics like these are not easy to alt-text for learners with low vision who use screenreaders. Be sure to create a text alternative to the graphic and link it nearby, with reference to that link in the alt-text fields of the graphics you embed in lieu of bullet lists. 

If you need help creating interesting graphics for your course or training,  you can create a free Canva education account using your .edu email address to really spice things up! The free education accounts include all premium services and products. 

If you need more in-depth advice or strategies, email the Instructional Design Team (IDT) at helpdesk@uah.edu and we'll set up a time to talk about how we can help!

Random example of information expressed graphically rather than as a bulleted list

“My Mind Began to Wake Up”

“If someone seems like they can't or don't want to learn, look for the physical obstacle and remove it.”

Create an Environment for Listening

This tiny 3-minute read of a post packs NINE practical tips into a few paragraphs... and they're tried and true, guaranteed to bring at least one new voice to the table in your discussions.

For help with engaging your learners, email helpdesk@uah.edu ATTN: Instructional Design Meeting Request and we'll be happy to schedule a consultation with you!

"I'm listening" by Melvin Gaal (Mindsharing.eu) is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0

Radical Eyes for Equity: Moving from “All Students Must” to “Each Student Deserves”

If we think carefully about decoding and direct instruction in phonics and phonemic awareness, teachers will face a wide diversity of students in any class in terms of where they are in their reading development; in short, there simply is no situation where “all students must” serves students well.

Literacy is not simple, and literacy development is not linear, sequential, or systematic.

For example, most people do not accumulate vocabulary in order to be able to read, but develop their vocabulary by reading.

Read more from Radical Eyes for Equity: Moving from “All Students Must” to “Each Student Deserves.”

(Thanks to Stephen Downes for the heads up!)

Hearing our Learners

This video, ‘Ask Me:’ What LGBTQ Students Want Their Professors to Know, from a completely different source nonetheless pairs well with light read How to Become an Empathetic Listener, both great insights into the hearts and minds of our learners.   

Humanizing Your Course

“Humanizing Your Course” has taken learner-centered teaching strategies to a new level. You can read the background and context here, as well as create your own bookmark to the infographic below.

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The Difference Between Emergency Remote Teaching and Online Learning

I am going to cut straight to the chase, leave this here for your enjoyment, and encourage you to utilize your UAH Educause membership and get on those email discussion groups! 

Educause's The Difference Between Emergency Remote Teaching and Online Learning is absolutely required reading for anyone who is delivering courses or training online beyond the pandemic emergency measures we've experienced or may still yet as the pandemic drags on. Those faculty who complete the required QEPO (Quality Education Practices Online) program for course design and development often remark how relevant the elements of learning objectives, course alignment, formative assessment, and other aspects of their course development apply equally well and are just as successful if applied to on-ground or in hybrid models. 

If you'd like to discuss the design of your course regardless of its delivery modality, contact the Instructional Design team by emailing helpdesk@uah.edu SUBJECT: IDTeam with your inquiry. We'd be happy to meet with you one-on-one or design team workshops depending on your needs. 

[Welcome back, fellow Chargers! Have a great academic year!]

 

WEBINAR: Digital learning as a tool for social justice

Educause’s upcoming webinar “Digital Learning as a Tool for Social Justice” promises deeper insights into the complex ways that digital tools empower and engage learners. 

Research shows that student performance in gateway courses is a direct predictor of retention and student success. However, Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and other minoritized student groups have historically been underserved in these courses, resulting in higher (drop/fail/withdraw) rates and lower retention rates for these students. Digital learning can be a catalyst for improving course outcomes for historically minoritized students, but instructors also need awareness and tools to address the affective, interpersonal, and situational challenges that Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and other minoritized student groups experience. In this session, (the presenter) will share strategies for faculty and institutional leaders for digital learning transformation at scale that centers on equity and racial justice. (Educause)

The webinar is free for UAH employees and those of other Educause member institutions, and an affordable $79 for freelancers. Educause webinars are among the best in the field for adding unique perspectives and insights to issues we grapple with on an ongoing basis. See you there!

HyFlex course design: Is it right for you?

The podcast HyFlex Course Design Model with Brian Beatty is a peek into the Hybrid-Flexible (HyFlex) course design model which supports four basic principles: learner choice, equivalency, reusability, and accessibility.

At SFSU, Dr. Beatty pioneered the development and evaluation of the HyFlex course design model for blended learning environments, implementing a “student-directed-hybrid” approach to better support student learning. In today’s episode, Brian and I will discuss the values and principles of the HyFlex course design model, along with its history and implementation in several contexts. Is the HyFlex model right for you? Brian will help us process the questions one needs to answer in order to determine if this is the right model for you and provide you with the resources to get started.

Beatty's book Hybrid-Flexible Course Design: Implementing Student-Directed Hybrid Classes is free and open access. If you’d like to discuss course design strategies, you can make an appointment with an instructional designer by emailing helpdesk@uah.edu for scheduling.  

Update on (and ongoing validation for) Digital Badges as microcredentials

From Stephen Downes' newsletter to your screen, I present you Digital Badges Turn 10—So What? It's a thorough but quick overview on the merits of digital badging both for academic programs as well as team development within a professional working environment. Who doesn't love flair?

On a perspective with more gravitas, badges can also be seen as important step toward creating a job economy based on skills rather than more visible demographics that tend to cloud our views when making hiring decisions. 

And like a mythical sword in the stone, digital badges have just been waiting for the right hands to let them do their magic. Those of us in gatekeeping positions need to do only slightly more than stay out of the way and let badges get to work making the world a better place, where opportunities are more often matched to people based on the needs of all stakeholders, and in ways that are blind to factors such as race, gender, and last name. 

"University Libraries Digital Badge Program" by 
pennstatenews is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Unclamp that webcam! But keep the tape.

With the last year behind us, we've all had to become computer savvy quite quickly and as with everyone else, I'm forever learning new ways to use the hardware and software to my greatest advantage and with the most security in mind.

Here's a great rationale for why even Bill Gates knows it's a good idea to keep your webcam covered and your wifi disabled when not using those specific features. 

But some folks mistakenly think that a paper clamp or even a clamp designed especially for monitors or laptops would be even safer (less likely to fall off).

However, this is one of those times when going low tech is the safest option all-around! Clamps and mounts that rely on ANY amount of pressure to stay fixed can damage the edge of the monitor or laptop display, especially over time. It's not apparent until it's too late. Stick with the soft touch of a bent business card you can slide back and forth, or a post-it. Washi tape works great too, if you'd like a designer feel with no residue!

If you need tips for staying safe online, email Email the team for assistance and advice. 

"VPN & Internet Security on Your Computer for Online Privacy" by 
mikemacmarketing is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Rethinking Assessment: Food for Thought

 

Ultimate Guide to Google Jamboard (FREE TOOL integrated into Google Drive)

 Jamboard is a fantastic free Google-based teaching tool that includes a collaborative, interactive whiteboard that can be shared and edited by learners. Check out this ultimate guide! ETL will be hosting a Jamboard Sandbox Series MET&L Workshop this summer. Keep an eye out!

Alternative Assessments in Digital Learning in Higher Education

Creative Commons Instructional Content

Check out these slide decks (videos-to-be) about the Creative Commons, copyright laws, and how it all works together to expand the Open Educational Resource (OER) community. Join the UAH Creative Commons group (registration is free!) and help us jumpstart the OER movement in Huntsville as well as contribute to Alabama’s ongoing statewide OER initiative!

The videos will be along soon! Feel free to use, share, adapt, and remix as you wish if you are teaching the same concepts to a specific audience of learners!

• From Copyright to Creative Commons

• Copyright Law: The Basics

• Anatomy of a Creative Commons License

• Using CC Licenses and CC-Licensed Work

• Creative Commons for Libraries and Academics

Silver Linings: Could the Pandemic have improved online learning?

EDUCAUSE: Research Shows Captioning Improves Outcomes for ALL Learners!

It makes complete sense that having captions available would help all learners, not just those with documented disabilities. Many people with no discernible disability nor cognitive challenges benefit greatly when seeing and hearing the same information simultaneously, especially when proper nouns and technical terms may be confusing to hear or spell.

Here's some strong Educause-style data to back up this claim. We also know anecdotally that people across generations and ability spectrums use captions routinely by choice, and learners are apt to play our instructional videos at both slower AND faster speeds than the speed in which they are recorded. Captions help those learners—indeed, ALL learners— with key ideas and details that may elude them otherwise. 

For help captioning your videos, email helpdesk@uah.edu for guidance. 

"When asked why captions are helpful, respondents overall expressed strong agreement that captions help students focus, retain information, and overcome poor audio."

 

It's true! It's true!

 But the Reddit platform is where it's at! 

WHY Active Learning Works

Why Active Learning Works came to me via Stephen Downes who himself forwarded it from Mike Taylor. I love the networks we form in our quest for new knowledge!

From Stephen (great embedded links!):

I think it is well known that "active learning — where learners engage in debate, problem-solving, role-playing, product creation and so on — is much more effective than presenting and explaining content." But why is it better? Stephen Kosslyn explains. First, "what we remember often is a byproduct of simply paying attention and thinking." Working with something focuses our attention. Second, "learning is enhanced by paying attention to feedback," and active learning produces plenty of feedback. Third, providing more ways to experience (visual, textual, etc) provides more ways to remember. Fourth, active learning helps us group and organize what we learn. And fifth, active learning creates a frame and context for learning. Via Mike Taylor.

Best 4 Design Tips Ever

 This bite-sized lesson packs a powerful four tips into one tiny video for anyone who wants to get started on building better learning materials!

Educause: Asynchronous Video Discussion Tips and Best Practices

Educause* has eleven great tips for hosting asynchronous video discussion threads. Check out Asynchronous Video Conversations: 11 Tips and Best Practices for the full scoop. 

*Educause is a “the largest (nonprofit) community of technology, academic, 

industry, and campus leaders advancing higher education through the use of IT.”

All UAH faculty can create a free Educause account since UAH is a member institution. Check out the various sections and communities, resource portals and published research in emerging best practice in OIT and online and e-learning in higher education.

Join our MET&L Workshop Weekly Series: UDL & ADA in Course Design

 Join us Wednesdays at 2:00 pm for Mastering Enhanced Teaching and Learning (MET&L) Workshop Series. This week, we'll cover UDL and ADA in Course Design.

Missed the meeting? Here's the presentation!

UDL/ADA / MET&L Workshop by Tess Olten

Happy Snow Day!

 

FREE tool for beautiful course content: Canva for Education

Many have heard of the amazing web-based tool called Canva, which enables anyone who can point and click to design breathtaking graphics in any format, including print. Every social media template is there (over 60,000 templates, they boast!) and literally millions of (also free) photos, illustrations, video clips, music tracks, and fonts. 

All free for educators! Just sign up using your institutional email address for quick verification and you're up and running! 

Here's an example of what can be created. This is my first project with Canva for Education and I haven't even tried animation or video yet! I'll be screencasting this presentation into a video upon completion of the project build. As you can see, the project can be shared on the Web or in Canvas courses so that students can self navigate even if accompanied with a video with your mini-lecture adding depth and context to your learners. Why not offer both? I'll be sure to caption my video and provide a transcript with relevant links enabled.

View this presentation in full screen mode here. (Swipe left to advance, swipe right to go back!)

From Copyright to Creative Commons by Tess Olten

Inclusive Design and Design Justice: Strategies to Shape Our Classes and Communities

From Educause* article: Inclusive Design and Design Justice: Strategies to Shape Our Classes and Communities:

Inclusive design is "design that considers the full range of human diversity with respect to ability, language, culture, gender, age, and other forms of human difference."4 It goes beyond accessibility, though accessibility is considered within inclusive design. Inclusive design celebrates difference and focuses on designs that allow for diversity to thrive. In higher education, this means asking ourselves, "Who has been served, supported, or allowed to thrive by our educational designs and who has not?" And, "How might we design for inclusion of more students?"

*UAH is an Educause member institution. You can sign up for free access to Educause content using your UAH-affiliated email address. Check out their mailing lists and learning communities!

Zoom Christmas

By our own revered Dr. Robert Frederick and friends:

Have a Zoom, Zoom-Zoom-Zoom Christmas!

TED ED: Another source for content!

Have you heard about TED-Ed? It's full of content specifically for educators. In addition to having a whole library of high-quality (and keyword searchable!) video content for use in your classes, there are resources there to help you create your own and even get matched with a professional animator to illustrate your video! Check out this one that explains fevers!

Look your best on webcam!

(Queued to skip the self-promotion)

LXD: Learning Experience Design

Turns out that LXD (Learning Experience Design) is a lot like UDL (Universal Design for Learning), from first glance at Connie Malamed's timely (re)introduction of the term. 

Staying Home Doesn't Mean Going It Alone

A timely piece from Pearson, Staying Home Doesn't Mean Going It Alone highlights the need for human connection and ways that we can use technology to bring our learners closer to us rather than letting it create further distance, especially in these times of mandatory isolation and constant uncertainty.

School of the Future

Although the film addresses a lot of educational issues from the K-12 perspective, it's a good watch for anyone invested in education today. These children are the ones we will be teaching in a few years (and our current students were these children a few years ago). Will we be ready for them?

From PBS' Nova series page:

In a new age of information, rapid innovation, and globalization, how can we prepare our children to compete? Once the envy of the world, American schools are now in trouble. Test scores show our kids lag far behind their peers from other industrialized countries, and as the divide between rich and poor grows wider, the goal of getting all kids ready for college and the workforce gets harder by the day. How can the latest research help us fix education in America? Can the science of learning—including new insights from neuroscientists, psychologists, and educators—reveal how kids’ brains work and tell us which techniques are most likely to engage and inspire growing minds? What role should technology play in the classroom? Teachers, students, parents, and scientists take center stage as NOVA explores a new vision for the “School of the Future.”

"We're not trying to reduce educator time, we're trying to improve the value of their time." 

The full documentary is available on PBS' Nova Series.

Eric Whitacre's Virtual Choir 6: Sing Gently

Please watch this (in full screen and with great sound!) and be reminded that technology's greatest power is to unite and heal us, rather than divide and isolate us. Let us know how we can help you achieve your goals using technology!

We need your vote!

Did you know that you can suggest and upvote features for Canvas? The new Direct Share feature that allows you to send elements built in Canvas directly to friends or colleagues is great, but only works on individual item basis. You can't share a whole module! 

But the Canvas Community has already started a suggestion to include modules, and you can help make it a reality by upvoting it! You need a Canvas Community login to upvote, but what better time to create one than now?

The Canvas Community is welcoming, knowledgeable community of educators just like you who support and teach each other! Join us! (And please, UPVOTE for DIRECT SHARING MODULES!)

5 Myths About Remote Teaching in the Covid-19 Crisis

This crisis has also brought academics together. New communities of teachers have been built online, virtually overnight, for peer mentoring and resource sharing. Important conversations about how teaching has changed, and how it should change, are happening right now. It’s not an end; it’s a beginning.

Lee Skallerup Bessette, Nancy Chick, and Jennifer C. Friberg

READ: 5 Myths About Remote Teaching in the Covid-19 Crisis 

Supporting Students During Uncertainty

Wesch: Supporting Students During Uncertainty from ACUE on Vimeo.

Summer QEPO Support Schedule

Starting last week and until the middle of August, we'll be hosting group QEPO support sessions on Zoom weekly. To avoid Zoombombing, we'll NOT post the details here but you can get them by emailing helpdesk@uah.edu with "Summer QEPO Schedule" in the subject line from a UAH email address, and we'll send them to you with the option of your receiving a calendar invite blocking your calendar and weekly reminders to boot! Be sure to let us know if you'd like that calendar invitation & reminder in your email!

Welcoming Your Students Online

Michael Wesch: Welcoming Your Students Online from ACUE on Vimeo.

Got the jitters over academic continuity?

[UPDATE: ETL Instructional Continuity Guide] added to this post 3/19/20

Among fears about weather emergencies and virus pandemics, many faculty are concerned about how to maintain academic continuity (ongoing teaching and learning) through a crisis. If you haven't already got your academic continuity plan worked out, you should know that ETL has you covered!

Tools that support academic continuity (and what you need to know about each) may include:

• Zoom (web conferencing, face-to-face supporting up to 100 connections)
  There is a handy guide to getting started with Zoom that's best to breeze through NOW as it can't be used effectively unless set up in advance. Note that you must have created the account and logged in at least once through SSO (Single Sign On) before it can be upgraded to a PRO account in advance, which you can do by emailing helpdesk@uah.edu. Don't forget to RECORD and POST your Zoom sessions in Canvas for any who were not able to attend at the time they are held.
• Screencast-o-Matic (also requires advance orientation and account set up)
  If you haven't already joined the nearly 150 faculty and staff using Screencast-o-Matic, feel free to sign up for our next orientation on Friday, April 17th. They occur the first Friday of each month throughout Fall and Spring semesters, and are offered nearly weekly throughout the summer.
• Canvas (Learning Management System or LMS; great news—you're already set up there and can access through SSO or Single Sign-On!)
  If you're not already using the Canvas LMS, there's no time like now to get started! 

Stay tuned for more information in coming days! Check out each technology and their getting started guides on the ETL resources webpage!

Assessment in 2025: Here are 5 Key Features (free download!)

Straight from Stephen's Web OLWeekly:

This report (a very brisk 28 page PDF that feels a lot shorter) outlines five major principles of future assessment (quoted):

• Authentic—Assessments designed to prepare students for what they do next, using technology they will use in their careers

• Accessible—Assessments designed with an accessibility-first principle

• Appropriately automated—A balance found of automated and human marking to deliver maximum benefit to students

• Continuous—Assessment data used to explore opportunities for continuous assessment to improve the learning experience

• Secure—Authoring detection and biometric authentication adopted for identification and remote proctoring.

The sections themselves contain some brief discussion of each of the five items and links to companies or projects working on that particular topic. The report sometimes reads as a fairly progressive look at assessment, but the last section (which deals with plagiarism and 'contract cheating') brings us back to earth.

ATTN: ONLINERS Respondus Monitor Student Support goes 24/7

From an email from Respondus:

"Last July we introduced live chat support for our Respondus Monitor application. The service was in 'beta' as we ramped up staff and evaluated usage levels. We are removing the 'beta' moniker from the 24/7 student live chat service and formally announcing there will be no additional cost to use it. Institutions with a Respondus Monitor license  ... will have access to it. A few additional details are included below.  

How do students initiate a live chat with Respondus Support?
Most technical issues are encountered during the pre-exam 'Startup Sequence' of Respondus Monitor – which is where the webcam/microphone check occurs. There is already a powerful 'It’s not working' feature in Respondus Monitor that helps students find the right solution. But if students are unable to solve the issue by the last step, a 'Chat now' prompt appears. The live chat functionality can also be accessed through the 'Help Center' in Respondus Monitor.   

Which Respondus products have support available via live chat?
At the current time, 24/7 live chat support is available to students using Respondus Monitor, which is the online proctoring service available for LockDown Browser.   

Is live chat covered by the Terms of Use for Respondus Monitor?
Yes, the current Terms of Use (which is accepted each time a student uses Respondus Monitor) covers the live chat service.   

If you have any questions, please submit a support ticket."

Video for Learning: 15 Things The Research Says—and prepare to be shocked!

The author's title, not mine nor Stephen's! 

From the venerable Stephen Downes, who always cuts to the chase: (emphasis mine)

I'm not a fan of the clickbait title of this post ... and I also question some of the 'research' behind the suggestions. But overall this is a pretty good post and contains a lot of things to think about, even if you don't follow them. This is especially the case for the bits about working memory and cognitive load. But there's a general message here—that video is more about perception and feelings than it is about content and remembering—that is important. Video helps you learn because it shakes your perceptions and has you asking questions, not because it gives you stuff to memorize.

Regarding: Video for Learning—15 Things the Research Says (Some May Shock You)

5 Stock Photo Sites That Will Make Your Content More Inclusive & Diverse

We have lots of options for searching for free and open license stock photos and illustrations on ETL's LOR/OER/CC* resource page. (If you know great resources that aren't listed, please share them with us so that we can add them!)

Here is a list of five stock photo sites (most free) that offer photos that include a broader spectrum of human diversity than many stock photo sites currently do.

If you need help making your course content more engaging visually, please send an email to helpdesk@uah.edu with the subject line "Course design request" and we'll help you review your options and get you started!

*LOR/OER/CC stands for Learning Object Repositories, Open Educational Resources, and Creative Commons. This type of course content has no copyright nor cost! To learn more, email helpdesk@uah.edu.

Wayback Machine Internet Archive

What better way to start the New Year than with a look back at how far we've come? Check out UAH's very first website on the Wayback Machine Internet Archive. Besides being a great way to spend a rainy Sunday looking back in time at various websites, it's a fantastic resource for faculty and students. The tool has a feature that lets you "cement" a web reference in time, ensuring that it will never expire in a course you've developed, or in citations used for research. You can even build your own archives with no technical expertise! The Internet Archive offers extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari as well as mobile apps for both iOS and Android.

This tool needs to be on the top layer of your digital toolbox! I found this fantastic scale/change management tutorial from 2008 that has long since left the pages of the current Web and had left no trace in search results.

If you're interested in developing or taking your on-ground, hybrid, or online course to the next level, it's not too late to sign up for QEPO 2020! We have options for everyone from face-to-face sessions to completely online.

Happy New Year!

Looking back can be fun!

Master Courses: They're all the rage!

Are you developing content for courses in  Canvas yet? It's never too early to start, even if you're not aiming to go all-online quite yet. Master courses are useful for classes delivered in on-ground or hybrid delivery modalities as well. If you need a master course for course development, email helpdesk@uah.edu for assistance.

ETL Closed for Winter Holiday

ETL and its Online Learning, Academic Technologies, and Center for Collaborative Learning are closed for business Monday, December 23 through Wednesday, January 1, 2020. We will reopen Thursday, January 2nd ready to assist faculty with spring semester preparation.

If you need help over the holidays, please use these contacts for timely support:

Canvas Support is now available 24/7 at 844-219-5802.
For any other requests, please contact the OIT Help Desk at 256­-824-­3333.
Automatically create a help ticket by emailing helpdesk@uah.edu.

QEPO 2020: A graphic syllabus

Graphic syllabi can be sleek or funky—graphic design can engage learners! Check out this QEPO 2020 graphic syllabus (text alternative) and think about how you can make the "birds eye view" of your course more engaging. For help, email helpdesk@uah.edu.

EDUCAUSE 2019 Faculty & Student Technology Reports

EDUCAUSE has posted 2019 reports for both faculty and student technology perspectives. The findings are insightful for stakeholders from many different perspectives, whether strategically planning support unit staffing, or developing a course as a faculty member addressing student needs. The infographic (PDF document) highlights key findings!

New Canvas Gradebook arrives at UAH January 2020!

This is your friendly reminder that Canvas has developed a New Gradebook and it will become the global default in January 2020. The New Gradebook has a lot of exciting new features that will be helpful for instructors and students alike. Learn more by viewing video tutorials, FAQs, a feature comparison chart, and other reference materials.

Why go digital?

In addition to the obvious benefits of going digital right here at UAH, Amazon is moving toward even greater incentives for faculty to author, design, and develop their own digital course content: there's an open market coming! Imagine being able to duplicate that killer module on cell mutation or incredible interactive budget spreadsheet you developed for your business course—and sell it on an open market among peers (infinite copies with no additional cost or investment!) on an a la carte or course package basis.

We're registering now for QEPO 2020 ... we'll show you how to create academically robust, graphically beautiful, and perhaps even marketable course content! Amazon is working in K-12 now, but there's already a market growing for higher education as well. Will you be ready?

NEW! Google Workspace enhances collaborative teaching & learning

Say hello to Google Work Spaces!

QEPO 2020: Come join the fun!

Interested in designing a course for online delivery but don't have much time to devote to the whole training and course development process?

Consider enrolling in QEPO 2020 before the deadlines are assigned, and we'll help you take your face-to-face, on-ground course to technology enhanced, hybrid (at least 51% online), and eventually completely online, on your schedule!

If you register for QEPO 2020, you may choose to take it all online or in hybrid options which offer face-to-face training and support in the FRC computer lab in completely customizable schedule that fits to yours! Faculty who attend group sessions are benefited by having staff members on-hand who can help you design an accessible course that can be taught in ANY modality from one semester to the next! Check out the QEPO 2020 program brochure for dates, details, and registration link.

Please join us!

Writing SMART Student Learning Outcomes

One of the most challenging tasks during the development of any curriculum is writing SMART learning objectives. (SMART being the acronym for specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timebound—a tall order!)

Check out the Learning Outcome Generator tool in this UCDavis online teaching course! (Thanks to Christy Stanley for the research!)

YES! Writing Assignment Samples

For those unfamiliar with YES! Magazine:

YES! Media is a nonprofit, independent publisher of solutions journalism. 

Through rigorous reporting on the positive ways communities are responding to social problems and insightful commentary that sparks constructive discourse, YES! Media inspires people to build a more just, sustainable, and compassionate world.

The publication is both ad-free and operates without a paywall, so all online content is open and free. They even produce educational content around some of the difficult topics it tackles editorially. I receive both the print version and email updates to online content. The Death Issue is a "Let's Talk About It" edition and includes stellar writing assignments around rather complex but highly relevant topics like:

• Three Things That Matter Most
• Border (In)Security
• Feeding Ourselves, Feeding Our Revolution
• Letters of Hope
• Less Stuff, More Heart
• Standing up for Our Neighbors
• Gender Pronouns
• Why Bother to Vote?
• What We Fear
• Your Sacred Place
• Justice for All
• Every Girl's Right

Each writing lesson includes access to a YES! article to introduce the topic and elicit responses, as well as writing prompts and samples of essays for inspiration.

Learn more about YES! Magazine and check out their discussion guides on other tough topics.

And don't miss the YES! National Student Writing Competition!

Discussion boards lackluster?

According to Quality Matters,

Discussion forums are a significant part of online courses, but only 66% of respondents say that forums are engaging, highlighting an opportunity for improvement.           (Learning House, 2019)

Most of us have been there both as student and instructor. How do you ignite a cold discussion board so that it invites all attendees to not just participate, but genuinely and with authenticity?

This discussion board grading rubric has proven helpful in multiple disciplines and academic fields. The benefits of this linear rubric are:

• It invites timeliness, often lacking in traditional discussion assignments. Late participation makes engagement nearly impossible. The early bird gets the worm!
• Even latecomers can score points, but they have to work for them. In order to add to the discussion, one has to have done the reading as well as processed all posts to date. There's lots of cognition built into that analytic process of determining what they can add or ask.
• It's simple to understand and a breeze to use while grading.
• It transforms a collection of traditional soliloquy or monologue-style discussion posts into interactive discussions more likely to prepare students for professional discussions around meetings or conferences. 

Feel to adapt or adopt as is! You can also find it in the UAH Canvas Commons, all ready for import into your course!

If you have questions about making your discussions more engaging, please send an email to helpdesk@uah.edu for assistance. Please specify if your course is on-ground, hybrid, or online for the most appropriate and fastest response.

SURVEY RESULTS: Faculty Acceptance of Online Learning from Inside Higher Ed

In Professors' Slow, Steady Acceptance of Online Learning: A Survey, Inside Higher Ed dives deeply into the data. Sometimes revolution feel more like evolution. But that's okay, because we're moving in the right direction! Fascinating read for those with opinions on either side of the debate.

“Embrace” is probably too strong. “Acquiescence” suggests too much passivity. Whatever word you choose, though, the data indicate that American faculty members -- whether grudgingly or enthusiastically -- are increasingly participating in and, to a lesser extent, accepting the validity of online education.

ePortfolio Tip Sheet for Students

I love using the e-portfolio as a final project in my courses, regardless of what I teach. Each module is intended to build a piece of that final deliverable that mimics authentically the challenges a student might face in their professional roles after graduation.

As students submit module assignments and incorporate feedback over the semester, they aggregate their feedback-applied final products into a linear or montage collection of samples of real work. Because I stress its value to them in applying for scholarships, programs, degrees, and jobs, they put a bit more time and energy into getting it right. And because I provide the rubric at the beginning of the semester by which the final product will be graded—and timely incremental feedback through the building stages—the final product is almost invariably A-quality.

5 Design Principles for Building Your First Portfolio is a tip sheet for e-portfolio construction that might help you help your students. We will be adding it to the broader Student Learning Guide to Multimedia Production that is available to any instructor to insert into their course who wants to provide it as instruction and support with assignments that involve multimedia production. We welcome comments (and questions via comments) on the document itself or by emailing OnlineLearning@uah.edu!

VIDEO: Accessibility & Academic Continuity (+ Video editing strategies!)

This week I created a 20-minute presentation for New Faculty Orientation, to be delivered in a face-to-face setting for those full-time faculty able to attend. But for those not able to attend, and for part-time faculty also not able to drop in, I recorded this quick Screencast-o-Matic master video shared in Canvas.

I captioned and posted it quickly to ensure immediate access to the content, but will further refine it by dividing it into two videos (one for each topic) that can be used individually or in conjunction with each other.

Best practice for video length is generally 5-7 minutes, but two 10-minute videos would work well here as well. This video can be used until my updated versions are ready. I'll need to recheck my captions for accuracy, and update anyplace where it has been embedded. This is why spreadsheet records of each video (and where it is placed) are such a timesaver!

Silencing Voices

Julian Stodd, "writer, researcher, (and) Captain at Sea Salt Learning" writes in "Silencing Voices:"

Perhaps when we consider the silent voices, we should distinguish between those that are drowned out, and those that simply never shout out at all. Self censured, not silenced.

If you need help finding ways to create and sustain dialog in your classes, contact ETL by emailing helpdesk@uah.edu and letting us know how we can help!