CELT News

Preparing for Final Exams & End of Semester (Teaching Tip)

Posted on
Students studying in the Student Innovation Center at Iowa State University
As we wrap up the Fall semester and prepare for final exams, here are a few resources and key pieces of information to keep in mind:
  • Grades are due December 21. All grades must be submitted by 2:15 p.m. on Tuesday, December 21. The End-of-Semester Checklist provides resources to help you submit grades through Canvas. The CELT Instructional Design Team will also hold Open Labs specifically focused on grade submission on December 20 and December 21 from 9 a.m.-2:15 p.m. in 3015 Morrill and online via Webex. Stop by at your convenience.
  • Course conclusion in Canvas. The anticipated date for Canvas course conclusion for Fall term courses is January 3, 2022. All faculty with Fall courses on Canvas are encouraged to review the Course Conclusion in Canvas CELT webpage, which provides tips to help you navigate the course conclusion process.
  • Winter Break hours. CELT will operate on a modified schedule over the winter term in an effort to conserve energy with fewer activities on campus. The CELT office will be closed the week of December 27-31. Beginning January 3, CELT will be open with modified hours of 7:30 a.m.-4 p.m., Monday-Friday. We will resume normal business hours (8 a.m.-5 p.m.) when the Spring semester begins on Tuesday, January 18.
  • Canvas Support, 24/7. We would like to remind you that Canvas support is available 24/7 if you are in need of assistance while our offices are closed or on a modified schedule. Follow the “? Help” icon in your left navigation bar in Canvas for all of the support options available to you.
If you need any further assistance, you can always email celt-help@iastate.edu. This will create a ticket and one of our team members will be assigned to help you as soon as they’re able. We wish you the best as we enter the final weeks of the semester!

Full Teaching Tip

View the published CELT Teaching Tip: Resources for Success (December 2, 2021 – Constant Contact) page.

Prefer a Print Version?

To view the Teaching Tip as a printable document with web addresses, download the CELT Teaching Tip for December 2, 2021 (PDF).

Almost at the finish line (Teaching Tip)

Posted on

Over a decade ago, I participated in my first marathon. Despite being exhausted, the last two miles were my two best miles because the end was in sight. I knew that I would accomplish the goal that I had spent months preparing for. We are mere weeks away from the end of the semester. What could you do in the next class session to help your students and yourself see the finish line?

Review course objectives

Consider spending the first 2-5 minutes of an upcoming class period asking students to reflect on the new knowledge and skills they have gained from your course. You could ask students to examine the course objectives as outlined on your syllabus and rank them (either using paper or Top Hat – use the Sorting type of question) from their most to least confident. This information, combined with your knowledge of students’ progress in your course can help inform your final exam preparations.

Ask for their questions regarding final assessments

It is also a great time to display the course schedule. Remind students of the tremendous progress that has been made and ask for their questions on upcoming exams, projects, and assignments. If you have a particularly talkative class, this can be accomplished through verbal feedback. Alternatively, providing them a means to write down or type the responses and submit via a Canvas ungraded survey allows for the opportunity to clarify and hopefully improve their success on final assessments.

Student Ratings of Teaching

In the coming weeks, students will receive emails asking them to complete the student ratings of teaching. Students often do not understand why these are important to instructor’s formative plans to improve the class and summative annual reviews. To help provide guidance for students providing useful feedback, share the Providing useful and constructive feedback webpage with your students.

Finally remind your students that learning is hard work. There is an overabundance of neuroscience research that proper nutrition, adequate sleep, and fitness supports good health as well as improved learning.*

With a joy for teaching,

Sara Marcketti, Director
Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching

*Doyle, T., Zakrajsek, T., & Gabriel, K. (2019). The new science of learning: How to learn in harmony with your brain / Terry Doyle and Todd Zakrajsek; foreword by Kathleen F. Gabriel. (Second ed.).

Full Teaching Tip

View the published CELT Teaching Tip: The 10,000-hour rule applied to improving your teaching (April 18, 2019 – Constant Contact) website.

Prefer a Print version?

To view the Teaching Tip as a printable document with web addresses, download the CELT Teaching Tip for April 18, 2019 (PDF)

Course Evaluation information (Class Climate) now found in Canvas

Posted on

Are you looking for Course Evaluation information (Class Climate)?

You may now find it on the Student Evaluation of Teaching (Class Climate – Course Evals) website in Canvas.

Help & Support

Tips to Make Your Course More Accessible (Teaching Tip)

Posted on
Students work together during Disability Awareness Week

This week, Iowa State University has been observing Disability Awareness Week, a week devoted to educating the Cyclone community about the experience of individuals with disabilities. As an instructor, you have a direct impact on a student’s experience and ability to grow and thrive at ISU. Consider these tips to increase accessibility and improve all student learning experiences.

  • Present information in multiple formats: A disability may impact a student’s ability to access specific forms of communication. Provide course content in a variety of modalities to eliminate this barrier, and allow all students the ability to access materials through the platform most beneficial to their learning. Create captions and transcripts for videos and audio recordings, include audio descriptions of images, diagrams, or maps, or include a simulation or hands-on experience.
  • Consider how students will engage with course materials and each other: Can you identify any barriers to or within the meeting location(s) or learning environment? Have you selected learning technologies accessible to students with disabilities? Support students by being flexible and providing alternative options for engaging with course materials and each other. Allow students to participate in person or virtually. Give them the opportunity to voice questions and comments, type them within a chat, or provide anonymous feedback via Qualtrics. Encourage students to work together using alternative formats including virtual rooms, team chats, discussion boards, or online interactive apps.
  • Use assessment for learning ownership: Identify alternative mechanisms students may utilize to demonstrate acquisition of knowledge and skills indicated in your learning objectives. Provide a variety of options for students to demonstrate their skills that allow for various strengths, preferences, abilities, and student disabilities.

Contact Lori Mickle (ldmickle@iastate.edu, 515-294-5299) for more information about course accessibility or email celt-help@iastate.edu with any questions.

Above photo courtesy of Alexandra Kelly/Iowa State Daily

Full Teaching Tip

View the published CELT Teaching Tip: Resources for Success (October 28, 2021 – Constant Contact) page.

Prefer a Print Version?

To view the Teaching Tip as a printable document with web addresses, download the CELT Teaching Tip for October 28, 2021 (PDF).

Respondus LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor Webinars

Posted on

To register for current Respondus higher education webinars, visit the Webinars- Respondus page.

This comprehensive training webinar is for instructors who plan to use LockDown Browser and Respondus Monitor with online exams. The session provides a detailed demonstration of both applications, including enhancements that make Respondus Monitor even more effective and easy to use. Register thru the Respondus website.

New Canvas Integrations: MS Teams Classes, Pressbooks, and more

Posted on

There are now several new Learning Technology Integrations (LTIs) installed and available to Iowa State University instructors to consider: Logos of Microsoft teams, Pressbooks, Oxford University Press, Visible Body, and Stukent Mimic Social arranged in a group.

  1. Microsoft Teams classes
  2. Pressbooks
  3. Visible Body
  4. Oxford University Press
  5. Stukent Mimic Social 

Microsoft Teams classes can be used to help you and students navigate easily between Canvas and Teams. Users can access their class Teams associated with their Canvas course directly from within Canvas. Once set up in Canvas, student rosters will automatically populate in Microsoft Teams.

The Pressbooks software enables instructors to design and format books. More information can be found on the Parks Library website. The Canvas integration allows instructors to easily add their Pressbook content to Canvas and any results from learner activity will be passed back to the Canvas Gradebook.

Oxford University Press is a publisher application, allowing for better content integration with their textbooks.

Currently, Visible Body and Stukent Mimic Social are course-specific LTIs that add interactive simulations to the learning process.

If you need or would like help with any of these LTIs or other learning technologies, email celt-help@iastate.edu. Doing this will create a ServiceNow ticket and one of our team members will be able to help you. Keep an eye on our website and our Instructional Tools page for more information and guides for each of these LTIs in the coming weeks.

Newly added apps (LTIs) now available in Canvas

Posted on

Logos for H5P, Great River Learning, MyBusinessCourse, ALEKS, and MyEducator arranged randomly in a clusterOver the Winter break, five new LTIs were installed and are available to the campus community. Those five LTIs are:

  • ALEKS
  • MyBusinessCourse
  • MyEducator
  • GreatRiverLearning
  • H5P

ALEKS (for business), MyBusinessCourse, MyEducator, and GreatRiverLearning are publisher applications now available and best used for better content integration.

H5p is an interactive content application, providing a variety of engaging question types that can be added to Canvas. Each instructor license for H5P is $190/year and can be used in an unlimited number of courses. If you would like to integrate H5P into your Canvas course, email celt-help@iastate.edu to request a license.

If you need help with any of these LTIs or other learning technologies, email celt-help@iastate.edu. Doing this will create a ServiceNow ticket and one of our team members will be able to help you. Keep an eye on our website and our Instructional Tools page for more information and guides for each of these LTIs in the coming weeks.

Encouraging Student Ratings of Teaching (Teaching Tip)

Posted on
Jason Chan teaching a lecture course
We are rapidly approaching the end of Spring 2022, which means in part, seeking, end-of-course feedback from students. Student ratings are not perfect measurements of teaching effectiveness but can create an opportunity for students to reflect on their perceptions of the learning and the classroom environment.
 
Strategies for better course ratings include:
  • Seeking constructive feedback. Student input is most helpful when it is specific, focused, and respectful. Suggest a focus on observable behaviors and practices that the instructor can control, rather than remarks or criticisms based on identity.
  • Use class time to complete evaluations. Provide a bit of class time at the end of a session for students to complete their ratings (while you are not in the virtual or physical classroom).
  • Ensure students understand the importance of the feedback. Share with students an example of how you’ve used past feedback to make changes or provide examples of constructive feedback comments. 
  • Explain how ratings are used. Share with students how these evaluations are used by you to improve teaching, and how they are used at the department-level.
  • Consider offering an incentive. For example, once a percentage of the entire class has completed the evaluation, offer a small amount of extra credit.
To help make sense of the student ratings, consult the CELT Student Ratings Analysis Worksheet or work with a CELT Faculty Fellow or staff member.
 
If you have questions about end-of-course student ratings, contact your departmental SubUnit administrator.

Full Teaching Tip

View the published CELT Teaching Tip: Resources for Success (April 21, 2022 – Constant Contact) page.

Prefer a Print Version?

To view the Teaching Tip as a printable document with web addresses, download the CELT Teaching Tip for April 21, 2022 (PDF).

Building a connected community within a course, Dr. Sayali Kukday

Posted on

A Collection of Teaching Advice: Teaching through the Pandemic

Building a connected community within a course, Dr. Sayali Kukday

Sayali Kukday, Associate Teaching Professor of Biology, approaches students in her STEM-oriented online courses with empathy and works hard to instill a feeling of belonging in her learners. 

Watch

Watch the Building a connected community within a course video (2m 13s) in Studio.

Read the Brief

Read Kukday’s Building a connected community within a course, CELT Teaching Brief (PDF)

Explore resources

Kukday used these resources:

Return to the CELT Teaching Briefs page.

Five factors for success in remote assessment (Teaching Tip)

Posted on

As you prepare for your final exams, consider the following factors:

  1. Ask yourself: What ways can my students demonstrate what they know? How can I make it more meaningful/authentic? How can I incorporate knowledge creation?
  2. Consider the impact of proctored exams. Faculty should consider other assessment strategies to adapt to our unprecedented situation, only using proctored exams when no other options work (e.g., due to accreditation rules). For these reasons, we recommend choosing a suitable remote assessment method (e.g., fact sheet, group project, non-traditional essay, Open Book, or “Take-home” Exam, etc.) on the CELT Remote Assessments page.
  3. Communicate clearly with your students. Provide an announcement that contains information about the exam, clarify essential details, using these guiding questions.
  4. Be available. Recognize that students may require your assistance during your exam/assessment period (e.g., what happens if there are technical issues?). In your communication, please provide the most reliable way for them to contact you or technical support.
  5. Remind students about the importance of academic integrity. Continue to promote academic integrity throughout your course; don’t forget to prominently place the academic integrity statement at the beginning of the assessment to emphasize responsible behavior. See examples on the Academic Integrity page.

Are you interested in discovering more remote assessment strategies? Register to attend the ISU Online Learning Community, Nov. 13 (11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., via Webex form). Join us to hear Dr. Monica Lamm, Associate Professor, Chemical and Biological Engineering, explains “public exams” in courses while demystifying the design and development of final exams for students (see this Inside Iowa State story). We will also discuss recent Canvas updates and features to accommodate final assessments.

With a joy for teaching,

Sara Marcketti, Director
Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching

Full Teaching Tip

View the published CELT Teaching Tip: Five factors for success in remote assessment (November 12, 2020 – Constant Contact) page.

Prefer a Print version?

To view the Teaching Tip as a printable document with web addresses, download the CELT Teaching Tip for November 12, 2020 (PDF).

Loading...