Author Archives: Aaron Axelsen

Fall 2018 Canvas Courses Now Available

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Beginning on Friday, August 10th, 2018 all Fall 2018 courses are now available in Canvas.  A few reminders about how this works:

  • No More Course Requests!  With Canvas, your courses will be automatically created every semester.  You no longer need to fill out a course request form.
  • Course Combinations.  Do you want to combine multiple sections of the same course into a single Canvas course?  Follow the steps in the Cross-Listing/Merging Canvas Courses guide.  If you need to combine courses that you are not the teacher for or if you have any questions please contact Canvas support.

Now that you have your course – here is what’s next:

  • Courses are Unpublished.  By default, all courses that are created in Canvas will come across as unpublished.  When a course is unpublished, it’s only visible to you – and students will not see the course.  Once you have your content loaded up into the course and ready to go, simply hit the “Publish” button in the top right corner on the course home page.  For more information see: Canvas Guide: How do I publish a course?
  • Import your content (Master Course).  If you have been working in a Master (Blank) course inside of Canvas – great!  You can easily copy that content into your Fall semester course and then you’ll be ready to go!  Follow these steps to Copy Content from an Existing Canvas Course.
  • Import your content (Desire2Learn).  If you want to pull content directly over from Desire2Learn into your Canvas course – we got you covered!  Follow these steps to Export your Desire2Learn Course and Import it into Canvas. Keep in mind, there will be some adjustments you need to make – so don’t want until the last minute.  Check out the D2L Course Complexity App for more information.
  • Canvas Support.  As a reminder, with Canvas we do have 24/7/365 Phone, Chat and Email Support (links on the login page)!  Please direct all questions to Canvas support.  If they cannot assist you, they will escalate the issue to local support at UW-Whitewater.

Many of the external applications and integrations that were available in D2L are already completed and ready to go in Canvas.  Respondus LockDown Browser has recently been completed is now available and ready for use.  For the full list of integrations, check out the External Applications Integrations list.

Want to learn more about Canvas? Join us at one of our workshops during welcome back week! Signup at: http://go.uww.edu/ltc-workshop-signup  Can’t make a workshop? Check out our Training Resources.

If you have any questions or concerns about the transition, please reach out to the UW-W Learning Technology Center.

 

LTC Staff Presented at the 2018 Distance Teaching and Learning Conference

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Several Learning Technology Center staff members recently gave presentations at the 2018 Distance Teaching & Learning Conference in Madison, WI. The conference ran from August 7th to August 9th, 2018.

On Tuesday August 7th, Learning Technology Specialist Andrew Cole co-facilitated a pre-conference workshop called How Can We Apply the Science of Learning to Online and Blended/Hybrid Courses?

On Wednesday August 8th, Director of Learning Technology Nicole Weber presented an information session on Extending the LMS for enhanced communication and collaboration.

On Thursday August 9th, LMS Administrator Shane Degen and Learning Technology Specialist Andrew Cole facilitated a discussion session on Maintaining Community after Online/Blended Faculty Development “Ends.”

For more on the Distance Teaching & Learning Conference, please see the conference website. For more on the individual presentations, check out the Conference Guidebook.

For more on the Learning Technology Center, please see the LTC website.

Looking for Ways to Get Immediate Feedback from Students?

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If you are interested in a tool that can allow you to receive immediate (and potentially anonymous) feedback from your students this fall, you might benefit from using “Poll Everywhere.” Poll Everywhere allows students to text answers from their mobile phones or submit answers via the Poll Everywhere website (for free) to prompts that you create. Though there is an app available, neither you or your students need to download an app to use Poll Everywhere.

In the video below, Juk Bhattacaryya (a UW-Whitewater faculty member who piloted the use of Poll Everywhere in Spring 2018) discusses using Poll Everywhere.

If you think you might be interested in using Poll Everywhere, consider attending one of the LTC’s “Using Poll Everywhere to Engage Students” sessions to learn more. Attending one of these sessions will provide you with more information on Poll Everywhere, and help get you started with your own account.

The dates/times for upcoming “Using Poll Everywhere to Engage Students” sessions are below (just click on the session to sign up; you will need to log in to register):

Tuesday July 24th, 2018 at 9:00 AM in McGraw 19A

Thursday August 2nd, 2018 at 2:00 PM in McGraw 19A

Wednesday September 26th, 2018 at 3:00 PM in McGraw 19A

Friday October 5th, 2018 at 10:00 am in McGraw 19A

If you have any questions about these sessions, please contact the UW-W Learning Technology Center.

Interested in Adaptive Learning?

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You may have heard recently about adaptive learning, but might not be sure exactly what it is. Adaptive learning is a general term that describes a variety of ways that course content and assessments can be aligned to student progress throughout a course.

If you are potentially interested in adaptive learning but do not know where or how to get started, consider attending one of the LTC’s adaptive learning information sessions. We will discuss what adaptive learning is, as well as some different ways that you could utilize adaptive learning in your courses.

Upcoming Session Dates and Times:

Thursday, July 19, 2018 at 10:00 AM

Wednesday, August 01, 2018 at 3:00 PM

(Please note that you will need to log in with your UW-Whitewater credentials to register for these sessions)

If you have any questions about these adaptive learning information sessions, or adaptive learning more generally, please feel free to contact the UW-Whitewater Learning Technology Center.

Canvas Workshops – August & Fall 2018 Welcome Back

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The LTC will be offering both Canvas Hands-On Introduction and Canvas Construction Zone sessions during the month of August. We are planning to offer additional sessions during the Fall 2018 semester.

Canvas Hands-On Introduction (2 Hours) – August 2018
We will cover the basic function of the core tools in the Canvas platform. There will be time to ask questions along the way. If this is your first time touching Canvas, this workshop is the one for you!

Date/Time Location Register
Monday, August 6th – 1:00pm Hyer 210 In-Person Registration
Webinar Registration
Tuesday, August 14th – 9:00am Hyer 210 In-Person Registration
Webinar Registration

Canvas Construction Zone (2 Hours) – August 2018
Are you ready to start digging into your course setup? Do you need help straightening up after moving a course from D2L into Canvas? Do you have questions on how to set things up? This is the session for you! This session will be 2 hours of lab time with support staff on hand to help you construct your course in Canvas. Don’t forget your hard hat!

Date/Time Location Register
Wednesday, August 8th – 1:00pm Hyer 210 In-Person Registration
Thursday, August 16th – 9:00am Hyer 210 In-Person Registration

Canvas Welcome Back Schedule – August 2018
We will be offering a mix of the above workshops during the Fall 2018 Welcome Back events!

Event Name Date/Time Location Register
Canvas Hand’s On Introduction (2 Hours) – LUNCH INCLUDED @ Noon Wednesday, August 22nd – 10:00am Hyer 210 In-Person Registration
Canvas Construction Zone (2 Hours) – LUNCH INCLUDED @ Noon Wednesday, August 22nd – 12:30pm Hyer 210 In-Person Registration
Canvas Hand’s On Introduction (3.5 Hours) Friday, August 24th – 8:30am Hyland 3101 In-Person Registration
Deep Dive – Using Canvas for grading and Feedback Canvas (1 Hour) Friday, August 24th – 2:00pm Hyland 3101 In-Person Registration
Canvas Hand’s On Introduction (2 Hour) Monday, August 27th – 2:30pm Hyland 3101 In-Person Registration
Deep Dive – How to build content in Canvas (1 Hour) Tuesday, August 28th – 3:30pm Hyland 3101 In-Person Registration

If you have any questions about these sessions, please reach out to the UW-W Learning Technology Center.

Using Poll Everywhere to Engage Students

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Are you looking for ways to increase student engagement? You might be interested in using Poll Everywhere. Poll Everywhere allows you to receive immediate feedback from your students, who can respond in real-time to polls that you create. Students can respond to Poll Everywhere polls via their computers or mobile devices, thus offering the potential to transform lectures from a passive experience to a more active and engaging experience for students.

This summer, the Learning Technology Center is offering two sessions where you are welcome to come learn more about using Poll Everywhere in your course. Each session aims to introduce you to Poll Everywhere, and to help you get it set up to use in your own class.

The dates/times for the sessions are below (just click on the session to sign up):

Tuesday July 24th, 2018 at 9:00 AM in McGraw 19A

Thursday August 2nd, 2018 at 2:00 PM in McGraw 19A

If you have any questions about these sessions, please contact the UW-W Learning Technology Center.

Adaptive Learning Information Sessions

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The LTC will be exploring adaptive learning, using the Cerego adaptive learning platform, during the academic year 2018-2019. Adaptive learning offers a customizable way to structure student learning activities and assessments. In adaptive learning, content and/or assessments continuously adapt based on how a student performs, providing customizable feedback and additional learning material so the student can better understand, and master, the course material.

If you think you might be interested in using adaptive learning in your course, please consider attending an information session to find out if adaptive learning might be a good fit for you, your students, and your course!

Thursday, July 19, 2018 at 10:00 AM

Wednesday, August 01, 2018 at 3:00 PM

If you have any questions about these information sessions, or adaptive learning more generally, please feel free to contact the UW-Whitewater Learning Technology Center.

Teaching with Webex Teams Bootcamp in July

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As you begin thinking about the fall, are you looking for ways to facilitate communication and collaboration with your students? You might be interested in the Learning Technology Center’s (LTC) “Teaching with Webex Teams Bootcamp!”

The bootcamp will take place in McGraw 19A on a series of Monday mornings this July (7/16, 7/23, 7/30) from 10:00 am to 10:45 am. Please see the video below for a reflection from a UW-Whitewater instructor who used Webex Teams (when it was called “Spark” in the Fall 2018 semester).

All faculty and instructional staff are welcome to attend the “Teaching with Webex Teams Bootcamp.” Registration is recommended, but walk-ins are also welcome. UW-Whitewater has a campus license for Webex Teams, so feel free to bring your computer or mobile device to the bootcamp sessions and log into Webex Teams.

Bootcamp Summary:

Monday July 16th, 2018: Why Should I Use Webex Teams?

Registration Link: http://my.uww.edu/signup/Registration/Details/15639

This first session introduces participants to Cisco Webex Teams, and why instructors and students might benefit from incorporating it. Participants will be introduced to the concepts of “Teams” and “Spaces.” Facilitators will provide examples to help participants understand what Webex Teams is (and is not), how Webex Teams works, and the purpose in using Webex Teams.

Monday July 23rd, 2018: How Do I Use Webex Teams?

Registration Link: http://my.uww.edu/signup/Registration/Details/15640

This second session provides participants with a hands-on technical training with Cisco Webex Teams. Participants will practice creating “Teams” and “Spaces,” as well using Webex Teams to communicate and collaborate with others.

Monday July 30th, 2018: Now What Do I Do With Webex Teams?

Registration Link: http://my.uww.edu/signup/Registration/Details/15641

This third, and final, session provides participants with a forum to discuss potential applications of Webex Teams in their teaching. Facilitators will provide participants with “best practices” for using Webex Teams based on recent pilots at UW-Whitewater.

Please note: There is no stipend associated with attending the “Teaching with Webex Teams Bootcamp.” However, if you complete all three sessions, you will receive a badge.

If you have any questions about the “Teaching with Webex Teams Bootcamp,” or any other LTC training or workshop, feel free to contact the UW-Whitewater Learning Technology Center.

Canvas Training Course Invitation – Incorrect Link

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Earlier today (June 19th, 2018), we sent out invitations to the Canvas Instructor Training Course.  We discovered after the fact, that the link included in the email does not actually work as intended.  Please follow these steps to join the Canvas Instructor Training Course.

  1. Go to http://www.uww.edu/canvas and click on the “Login” button.
  2. Login using your UW-W Net-ID and Password.
  3. If this is your first time accessing Canvas, review and agree to the terms of services.
  4. On the Canvas Dashboard, you will see a message at the very top of the screen.
  5. Click on “Accept” to join the Canvas Instructor Training Course.  If you do not want to be in the course, you can click on Decline.

If you continue to have issues accessing the course or did not receive an invitation and would like to be added, please reach out to Canvas Support.

Canvas Transition Update

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We hope you had a great Spring semester!  We have been continuing to work on the deployment of the Canvas platform.  A few quick updates:

  • Instructor Training Course.  All faculty who have taught a course in the last two semesters, or are already scheduled to teach next fall, will be invited to join the Canvas Instructor Training course. To gain access, simply click the “Get Started” button in the email when it arrives, or sign into Canvas to accept the invitation.
  • Fall 2018 Courses.  The UW-System is working out the final issues with WINS enrollments and the Fall 2018 courses are expected to be available in July.  Courses will be automatically created for you, and there will no longer be a request process.  Currently all instructors should have access to at least 3 Blank Courses.  These courses can be used as a Master Course to develop your content which can then easily be copied over into your Fall 2018 course once it is created.
  • Freshman Facing Courses.  Are you teaching a course that typically has incoming freshman?  We strongly encourage you to get started with Canvas in the Fall 2018 semester!  We have been working instructors of the most common freshman courses, and we are trying to get as many of them over to Canvas as possible.  Our goal is to make things easier for the students, and limit their need to learn both Canvas and Desire2Learn.
  • Course Integrations (Turnitin, Lockdown Browser, etc).  We are actively working on getting all of the integrations in place.  Currently, the following integration’s are complete and ready for you to use: Films on Demand, Google Drive, Turning Point 8, Turnitin and W. W. Norton – InQuizitive.  For the full list of integration’s that are still being worked on, check out the tracking page at External Application Integrations List.
  • Canvas Peer Mentors.  The LTC has college-specific peer mentors available to help assist their colleges with the Canvas Transition.  The peer mentors are available to help answer your migration questions, and can provide you training information and resources about the Canvas platform.  Meet your Peer Mentors!

Want to learn more about Canvas? Join us at one of our online or face-to-face workshops this summer! Signup at: http://go.uww.edu/ltc-workshop-signup

If you have any questions or concerns about the transition, please reach out to the UW-W Learning Technology Center.