Tag Archives: For Instructors

Blog posts that are for instructors

Applications Are Now Open! Summer 2019 Online/Blended Teaching Institute

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The UW-Whitewater Learning Technology Center (LTC) is pleased to announce that applications are now open for the Summer 2019 Online/Blended Teaching Institute.

Applications are due by 5:00 p.m. Monday, April 15th, 2019. Deans will select participants from their College’s pool of applicants.

The Online and Blended Teaching Institute consists of a series of interactive workshops focusing on best practices for teaching online and blended courses. Ted Witt, Teaching Learning and Technology Consultant, and Eric Loepp, Assistant Professor of Political Science are your co-facilitators.

Dates for the 2019 Summer Online/Blended Teaching Institute:
June 14: Face-to-Face meeting: 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
June 21: Face-to-Face meeting: 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
June 28: Online using WebEx: 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
July 12: Online using Web Ex: 9:00 am – 12:00pm
Submission of final Institute content: July 26th

Institute Objectives:

  • Develop a unit/module utilizing best practices in online/blended course design.
  • Demonstrate technological proficiency useful in facilitating online/blended courses.
  • Apply methods to facilitate assessment and evaluation.
  • Illustrate approaches to building community online.
  • Develop strategies for effective time management.

For any additional information or questions, please contact the LTC.
Learning Technology Center
(262) 472-1004
ltc@uww.edu

Apply here:
http://uwwhitewater.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0fhoB4mL2bmVCRv

Adaptive Learning using Cerego

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Adaptive learning offers a way to structure student learning activities and assessments. In adaptive learning, content and/or assessments continuously adapt based on how a student performs, providing feedback and additional learning material so the student can better understand, and master, the course material.

Cerego Logo

With Cerego, instructors can create content for students to learn course material through the use of various options including multiple choice and true/false questions, flashcards, fill-in-the-blank passages, and interactive figures. Based on the students’ correct and incorrect responses, the Cerego platform determines what individual students need to study next. If you think you might be interested in using adaptive learning in your course over the next academic year, please consider attending the LTC’s spring adaptive learning information session to find out if adaptive learning using Cerego might be a good fit for you, your students, and your course! 

Thursday, March 7th, 2019 at 12:00 pm

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

Spring 2019 “Teaching with Webex Teams Bootcamp”

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The LTC’s Spring 2019 “Teaching with Webex Teams Bootcamp” takes place on a series of Thursday afternoons in April (4/4, 4/11, 4/18) from 3:30 pm to 4:15 pm at the UW-Whitewater campus.

Any instructor interested in using Webex Teams is welcome. Registrations are encouraged. You do not need to attend all sessions, but the second and third sessions build upon the information provided in the first session.

Webex Teams

Thursday, April 4, 2019: Why Should I Use Webex Teams?

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.

Thursday, April 11, 2019: How Do I Use Webex Teams?

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.

Thursday, April 18, 2019: Now What Do I Do With Webex Teams?

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: The LTC does not provide a stipend for attending the “Teaching with Webex Teams Bootcamp.” However, if you complete all three sessions, you will receive a digital 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.

TED Tips — Issue 25: Ideas for Digital Instruction

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Welcome to a very special 25th issue of UWW Ted Tips!  This special blog post takes the form of a video blog or VLOG!  You’ll find a video recording below with an outline of notes.

The main purpose of the TED Tips blog this week is to provide some ideas of how to build a digital “lesson” and to show you some ideas how to do that inside of Canvas!

The main idea is to create a written outline or “to do” list associated with that idea.  It is always a good idea to provide communications to students for a completed lesson — in this case, I’ve shown an announcement in Canvas for that page.

Inside of Canvas, you’ll want to create a page or a module as a “wrapper” to contain the content.  It’s a good idea to include a purpose or objectives — what’s the key idea or essential learnings for the digital content.

Things to consider including in a lesson:

  • Summary of key points
  • Outline of main ideas
  • A review of previous content or how this connects to the larger course content
  • You can include a Video summary or note
    • (similar to what’s shown in the VLOG!) this particular vlog posts shows an introduction [timestamp 1:21]
    • an example is shown in the Vlog to a previous piece of digital content
    • Canvas supports Kaltura Capture which is an easy way to record simple videos or screencasts
  • Lecture notes
  • Powerpoint presentation
  • Related readings from a textbook or other course documents
  • Links to other websites or resources
  • Multimedia embedded from other sources

TIP:  It is always helpful for students to provide context and clear insights for what is important for students to review.  Instead of just linking to a multimedia source or video, provide a timestamp and other clear guidance. [timestamp: 2:59]

  • Links to Canvas Discussion questions
  • Other instructional activities including
    • practice questions
    • lab work
    • online learning activities (flashcards, games, puzzles, etc.)
  • Homework assignments
  • Other resources like links to other websites
  • Citations / References

Issue 25 was structured in a way to provide an example of what this could look like and will set the tone and idea to explore these in different ways!

Future TED tips will explore more focused tips on:

  • selecting and curating good multimedia
  • research on what types of multimedia works and why
  • Recoding short videos at home using Kaltura Capture from inside Canvas
  • Recording longer reusable videos utilizing the LTC Video Recording studio
  • Recording podcasts
  • Where to store videos in canvas and host them on VBrick Rev

– Ted Witt
Teaching, Learning, and Technology Consultant

Resources:

Interested in Poll Everywhere?

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Are you interested in using a new tool to facilitate student engagement in your Spring 2019 course? “Poll Everywhere” is a live polling tool that allows students to submit answers, in real-time,  to closed or open-ended prompts that instructors create. Students can respond using the Poll Everywhere website, the mobile app, or even through text messages. 

Introducing Poll Everywhere YouTube Video

If you are interested in learning more about using Poll Everywhere in your course, consider registering for the workshop on Friday, February 8th, at 8:30 am. You will need to enter your UWW Net-ID and password to register.

If you have any questions about Poll Everywhere or any other learning technology, please feel free to contact the UW-Whitewater Learning Technology Center.

Winterim 2019 Poll Everywhere Workshop

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Are you interested in using a new tool to facilitate student engagement in your Spring 2019 course? “Poll Everywhere” is a live polling tool that allows students to submit answers, in real-time,  to closed or open-ended prompts that instructors create. Students can respond using the Poll Everywhere website, the mobile app, or even through text messages. 

If you are interested in learning more about using Poll Everywhere in your course, consider registering for the Winterim 2019 Workshop at 12:00 pm on Tuesday January 8th.

If you have any questions about Poll Everywhere or any other learning technology, feel free to contact the UW-Whitewater Learning Technology Center.

TED Tips – Issue 24: Winter Break!

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As the 2018 Fall Semester concludes, I want to reflect on the first six months of writing this blog. It has been a great honor to share discoveries, explore new ideas, and write about topics related to Technology, Education, and Design. I hope that these TED tips continue to inform and inspire as we celebrate teaching and learning at the University of Wisconsin Whitewater.

RELAX

Winter Break

Over the last six months, we have explored the difference is between a Learning Management System (LMS) and a Digital Learning Environment (DLE). This distinction is important as it helps to lay the foundation for some of the key decisions applicable to the migration from D2L to Canvas at Whitewater and throughout the UW System.

Canvas has been a source for several posts. The LTC Canvas peer mentors shared some of most important lessons learned while working with Canvas in the classroom. We looked at ways to support communications in Canvas and the importance of making a good first impressions. We explored grading and using Speed Grader in Canvas.

What are some different ways technology can be used in the classroom to support your teaching learning? Tools like Poll Everywhere can increase student engagement and interaction. “23 Things for Digital Knowledge” provided activities that can build student fluency in digital literacy.

TED Tips have explored the 2018 NMC Horizon Report and its view the trends, challenges, and developments in educational technology as it impacts higher education. Using the Horizon Report provides a lens to highlight pilots and innovative work taking place on campus like Adaptive Learning.

The blog will continue to promote workshops sponsored by the Learning Technology Center and its many partners and collaborators. For example, there is a series of upcoming Canvas workshops this winter: Canvas Open labs, hands on workshops for newcomers to Canvas, Construction Zones to help instructors move their courses from D2L to Canvas, and deep dives into single topics to help with your teaching. Grading in Canvas and building and using rubrics will be explored in early January. For a full list of times and locations of the upcoming winter Workshops visit the LTC. https://blogs.uww.edu/instructional/2018/12/12/canvas-workshops-winter-2019/

The next session in the 2018-19 UW-Whitewater LEARN Center/Learning Technology Center Workshop Series: “Back to Basics to Balance Workload” is Thursday, January 10th from 10:00am to 2:00pm in the University Center. This four hour workshop includes lunch and is designed as a hands-on activity to help prepare for your spring classes! Session Four: Setting the tone early saves time in the long run: Crafting your syllabus and engaging students before the first day of class and beyond.

During the morning session of the workshop, presenters will share evidence-based strategies for creating a more learner-centered syllabus and share tips for engaging students from the first day (and even before class begins!). After a lunch discussion, participants will learn more on how to better utilize Canvas in their courses in a way that clarifies organization and sets expectations in a more transparent manner. Participants will end the session with time to revise their syllabi, first day activities, and/or Canvas course pages and share their materials for small group feedback.

Participants will leave with:

  • An overview of best practices for syllabus development
  • Experience with a variety of first day activities that can increase student engagement and sense of community
  • Ideas to organize their Canvas course pages
  • Revised syllabi/activities to enhance student engagement

To register for this workshop: https://my.uww.edu/signup/Registration/Details/15867

Thank you for taking the time to read these posts! TED Tips will return in 2019. Topics next year will build on and support some of the upcoming workshops with TED Tips planned to explore several types of rubrics, building them in Canvas, design of a course homepage, navigation, analytics, and many others. I hope to experiment a bit more in format and content and hope to record the occasional complementary podcast! Until then, have a great holiday break, recharge, and relax! See you next year!

– Ted Witt
Teaching, Learning, and Technology Consultant

Resources

LTC Canvas Peer Mentors http://www.uww.edu/icit/ltc/canvas-portal/peer-mentors

Canvas Workshops Winter 2019
https://blogs.uww.edu/instructional/2018/12/12/canvas-workshops-winter-2019/

LEARN Center/Learning Technology Center Workshop Series:  “Back to Basics to Balance Workload.”  Session Four: Setting the tone early saves time in the long run: Crafting your syllabus and engaging students before the first day of class and beyond. https://my.uww.edu/signup/Registration/Details/15867

TED Tips – Issue 23: Podcasts

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Podcasts have recently seen a dramatic increase popularity. Podcasts are audio shows, often produced on a particular theme or topic, and hosted online. These audio files can be extremely valuable resources. Several have archives of hundreds of episodes. Many come with corresponding “vodcasts” (video files) as audio supplements to other media. They can provide a great supplement to class, replacement for a lecture, or additional resources for students.  Because they are easy to create and accessible, a podcast assignment could replace a written paper or report.  They are portable audio files; perfect for a commute, time at the gym, or other activities.

headphones

podcast

Many previous radio shows and (more recently) TV shows have been repackaged and rebranded with corresponding podcasts.   Most podcasts have free webpages (many embedded from this post) that allow you to navigate to the webpage, find the link and site you are looking for, and press play. These are also great because it can be easy to link from a classroom page to an online resource. Several of the prominent sites include guides on how to incorporate them into your own classes.

Various podcasting apps or “podcatchers” can help enhance that experience. These let you to download to a mobile device (for offline listening), update when recent episodes come out, and allow you to search and browse by topic to help find the shows you are interested in. I recommend trying one, customizing the settings to meet your particular needs, and experimenting with different shows.

What follows are some of the most common applications and services (there are many others). This should not be seen as an endorsement of any particular service but a list to help get you started. There are several types of apps, services, and many contain upgradable premium functions.

Free services:

  • Apple Podcasts (built into your iPhone).
  • Google Play Music (Android users)

Premium(ish) services:

  • Spotify (known mainly as a music service but recently expanded into podcasting)
  • Pocket Casts. App specifically for the full podcast experience; easy to search, curate, and see updated episodes. https://www.pocketcasts.com/ ($4.00)
  • Overcast. Gold standard for iOS podcast apps.  https://overcast.fm/ (podcast player for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch; free with premium $10/year)

What are some good podcasts?

Radiolab with Jab Aburmrad and Robert Krulwich. Since 2002, Radiolab has been devoted to investigating a strange world. My favorite from this year has been “Unraveling Bolero”: a story about obsession, creativity, and a strange symmetry between a biologist and a composer that revolves around one famously repetitive piece of music.  I was obsessed when listening the original episode and ended up staying in my car for fifteen minutes after I had reached my destination to finish the podcast. https://www.wnycstudios.org/story/unraveling-bolero

“Higher Ed” podcast by Jennifer Statyon. These 15 minute podcast cover a wide range of topics that apply to education. A recent one called “Better Problem Solving Through Puzzles” (October 28, 2018) advocates that puzzles are a great approach for students because it often simulates more real world on the job problems. http://kutpodcasts.org/higher-ed/higher-ed-better-problem-solving-through-puzzles

“Research in Action” (“RIA”) is a podcast about topics and issues related to research in higher education. The goal of the podcast is to do two things – increase research literacy and build community among researchers. Katie Linder, research director at Oregon State Ecampus, hosts. Of note, RIA includes a number of resources for instructors and specific guidelines on how to incorporate podcasts into their own classes. A very recent episode from November 26, 2018 called “Getting Started with Podcasting” that was one of the points that inspired me to blog about this topic this week. https://ecampus.oregonstate.edu/research/podcast/e139/

Teaching in Higher Ed Podcast. “This is the space where we explore the art and science of being more effective at facilitating learning. We also share ways to increase our personal productivity, so we can have more peace in our lives and be even more present for our students.” The podcast focuses on topics such as digital pedagogy, creativity in teaching, educational technology, and many others.
https://teachinginhighered.com/episodes/

Finally, it is relatively easy to create your own podcasts or create assignments that have your students create their own! At its most basic, any audio recording that you make and then upload to your students could be considered a podcast. Or consider having your students create their own podcasts instead of writing a paper. While the most popular and professionally developed podcasts have high production values – most phones contain a microphone suitable or recording. Computers also contain the basic equipment to facilitate ease of use

Consider activities:

  • Create a 3-5 minute unit or module overview! This audio file could be included with your material each week and help focus students on the weekly objectives, what to do, and any specific tips to be successful with key concepts and homework for the week.
  • Replace a written paper with a podcast assignment. Have students record a short 60 – 90 second audio report.
  • Have student research podcasts about specific topics. While not a substitute for formal research, it helps identify additional resources and allows students the opportunity to evaluate appropriateness for a course.

– Ted Witt
Teaching, Learning, and Technology Consultant

TED Tips – Issue 22: Lessons Learned

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TED Tips – Issue 22: Lessons Learned from Canvas Peer Mentors

Back in Issue 10 “Tips and FAQ’s from a Peer Mentor” at the start of the semester, we introduced the LTC faculty peer mentors that are available for each college to assist with the Canvas Transition. Canvas 24/7/365 is still the place to go for Canvas questions, but the peer mentors can help by sharing what they have discovered and learned.

canvas lessons

lessons learned

The peer mentors gather monthly to share notes and discuss what we’ve learned. Now that we are approaching the end of the semester, I want to share some of the lessons learned this term in Canvas from our most recent Peer Mentor meeting. These are all Tips shared by the mentors on things they learned this semester while using Canvas. Hopefully they can help you!

Lessons Learned

  • Provide a link to the Canvas Student Training during the first module or week in class. Canvas Student Training link: http://go.uww.edu/canvas-student-training
  • Provide a bit of navigation and orientation to the class at the beginning of term. Show students where important things are located in Canvas. Review with them where they need to go and what they need to do. While Canvas is mostly new to us as faculty, it is also mostly new to students. Even thing like how to submit an assignment in Canvas can be really helpful. Providing that guide to where things are in your course can be really helpful to students.
  • Setting up the Course Home page in Canvas is important. Organizing content by weeks or by topic helps a lot.  Don’t underestimate the important of structure. Students have the tendency to click on the assignment tab – and they miss the rest of the weekly content, the readings, and other supporting activities. It is important to link back to those weekly modules from the assignments…and remind students to check the content in each module each week.
  • Creating a weekly checklist or “TO DO” list is very helpful to students. D2L could create those as you were creating content, Canvas does not do that. I create a checklist item for students and post it at the top of each module as a roadmap for the week. I can also physically hand out a notecard with that weekly checklist to students in class so they know where to go and what to do.
  • Creating larger assignments with multiple parts is easier to set up in Canvas as a series of different assignment submissions. It is also easy to create these as multiple “zero” point assignments. So, for example, if a student needs to submit a rough draft as a paper, create a separate assignment for that rough draft – you can then use speed grader, provide feedback, and return it to students. The FINAL paper or submission can be created as a separate assignment in Canvas.
  • Setting up the gradebook to reflect more logical areas that corresponded with assignments makes providing feedback and grading much easier.

Canvas Peer Mentors The peer mentors are available to:

  • Help answer your transition questions.
  • Provide you with training information and resources about the Canvas platform.
  • Work with you to understand different ways that Canvas can be leveraged for enriching teaching and learning.

College of Arts and Communication
Jodi Galvan
Bill Miller

College of Business and Economics
Kelly Delaney-Klinger

College of Education and Professional Studies
Carmen Rivers
Eileen Schroeder

College of Letters and Sciences
Kris Curran
David Reinhart

– Ted Witt
Teaching, Learning, and Technology Consultant

RESOURCES:
Canvas Student Training link: http://go.uww.edu/canvas-student-training

LTC Peer Mentors: http://www.uww.edu/icit/ltc/canvas-portal/peer-mentors

Canvas Guides: great place to start for searching for information about Canvas: https://community.canvaslms.com/community/answers/guides/

Celebrating Teaching and Learning Conference 2019

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Save the date: Wednesday, May 22, 2019 from 8:30am-3:30pm

Celebrating Teaching and Learning, May 22, 2019

This special event is meant to showcase the wide variety of ways we are all transforming the lives of our students through teaching and learning.

Themes will include:

  • Integrating Teaching and Technology
  • Student Engagement
  • High Impact Practices
  • Civil Discourse and Diversity
  • and other topics