Category: Teaching News

Dedicated to news and announcements for the CELT community.

Best way to set-up the Webex tool in Canvas

Posted on

Follow the steps in this Webex guide to properly connect Canvas and Webex.

Note: Webex cannot be tested with the “Student View” feature and will result in an error message. If real participants receive an error or are unable to use Webex inside Canvas, they should email solution@iastate.edu with the link to the Canvas course, the time the error occurred, and which tool they were using.

Features

  • Schedule and record online class meetings
  • Create spaces for students to chat, meet, whiteboard and share files
  • Set up a schedule of virtual office hours to allow students to meet with you over a Webex meeting
  • Students can create spaces in which to collaborate

Limitations

  • No more than 1,000 users in a single WebEx Meeting
  • 24-hour maximum meeting duration

4 factors to prepare for remote assessments (Teaching Tip)

Posted on

So much of the spring semester 2020 is different. As you prepare for your final exams, consider the following factors, and consult the CELT Remote Assessments page for more information.

1. Determine the acceptable evidence of learning

  • Your learning goals are an excellent place to start when considering alternative assessments. Consider:
  • What can I do to promote student learning while we all are coping with COVID-19?
  • What do I hope students will be able to do by the end of my course?
  • What ways can they demonstrate what they know?
  • How can I make it more meaningful/authentic?
  • How can I incorporate knowledge creation?
  • How can I leverage the online context?

2. Consider the impact of proctored exams at this time

Traditional timed, proctored exams are possible using the tools available in Canvas along with remote proctoring tools (e.g., Lockdown Browser with Respondus Monitor) or proctor it yourself with Webex. However, proctored remote exams have several drawbacks, including increased stress and setup challenges (Woldeab & Brothen, 2019). Consider Canvas exams (quizzes), open-book exams, or the other assessment strategies (listed below) that are relatively easy to grade.

3. Choose the suitable remote assessment method

Changing a course from face-to-face to online teaching poses particular challenges. Go to the CELT Remote Assessments page and review the following options as alternatives to proctored assessments:

  • Annotated anthology or bibliography
  • e-Portfolio
  • Fact sheet
  • Group project
  • Non-traditional paper (essay)
  • Open Book or “Take-home” Exam
  • Peer- and self-review activity
  • Professional presentation or demonstration
  • Series of quizzes
  • Student-developed quiz question

4. Finally, be sure to communicate clearly your expectations to students!

Provide an announcement that contains information about the exam and ensure that students contact you with any questions. Use the guiding questions on the CELT Remote Assessments page to help outline your communication with them, clarify essential details, along with promoting academic integrity.

With a joy for teaching,

Sara Marcketti, Director
Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching

References

  • Woldeab, D., & Brothen, T. (2019). 21st Century Assessment: Online Proctoring, Test Anxiety, and Student Performance. International Journal of E-Learning & Distance Education, 34(1), 1-10.
  • Information adapted from Rutger’s University Remote Exams and Assessments website.

Full Teaching Tip

View the published CELT Teaching Tip: 4 factors to prepare for remote assessments (April 21, 2020 – 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 21, 2020 (PDF).

Implement online course essentials and guidance for virtual classes summer 2020 (Teaching Tip)

Posted on

Online Course Essentials (ONCE) is a simple ISU Course Template in Canvas and a straightforward process to assist instructors in including the must-have elements in their online courses. Whether a course is taught entirely online or as a combination of face-to-face lectures with online instructional materials, activities, and assessments, it can benefit from including these essential components. Both the ISU course template and the Plan Your Course Worksheet contain a reference to the following online course essentials:

  • Direct relationship between the course’s learning objectives, assessments, learning activities, instructional materials, and technologies
  • User-friendly, consistent, and accessible course navigation
  • Transparent learner expectations
  • Technical and academic support resources
  • ISU-branded course elements (not a necessary feature, but a nice option)

Built around the Essential 3-point Standards (PDF)  of the  Quality Matters rubric, ONCE gives instructors all the online course essentials. Focus less on the technicalities of creating an online course in Canvas and more on what matters the most – student learning.

To begin, visit the CELT’s Online Course Essentials (ONCE) page.

Host a CELT Online Course Essentials (ONCE) course design virtual workshop. Upon participating in this workshop, attendees will be able to:

  • Build a Canvas course using ISU Template
  • Recognize the online course essentials
  • Map out the essentials for your online Canvas course
  • Locate CELT online teaching and learning resources

Submit a request via the CELT ONCE Course Design workshop form.

Need assistance? Contact CELT by emailing celt-help@iastate.edu and including “ISU Template” in the subject line.

Full Teaching Tip

View the published CELT Teaching Tip: Implement online course essentials and guidance for virtual classes summer 2020 (May 14, 2020 – 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 May 14, 2020 (PDF).

Download the New Playbook for Delivering High-Quality Instruction Online

Posted on

Delivering High-Quality Instruction Online in Response to COVID-19 is a faculty-focused playbook intended to improve course design, teaching, and learning in online environments. With special attention to the needs of instructors teaching online for the first time, the guide offers strategies for getting started and improving over time.

Developed by the Online Learning Consortium, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, and Every Learner Everywhere, with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the playbook provides a path for continuous improvement of instruction along a quality-oriented continuum.

  • Design guides immediate and basic needs for moving a course online. It is useful for translation of face-to-face or blended courses for fully-online delivery.
  • Enhance provides options to strengthen the student learning experience. It is useful for improving face-to-face course elements that do not translate easily to online modalities.
  • Optimize offers ideas and resources for online teaching that aligns with high-quality, evidence-based instructional practices. It is useful for continuous improvement of the online learning experience and student outcomes.

In addition, Delivering High-Quality Instruction Online in Response to COVID-19 addresses online teaching and learning in both emergency and non-emergency contexts with special attention to course design, course construction, course management, course evaluation, and strategies for continuous improvement.

The Every Learner Everywhere network includes Achieving the Dream, the Association of Chief Academic Officers, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, the Digital Learning Research Network, Digital Promise Global, EDUCAUSE, EdSurge, Intentional Futures, the Online Learning Consortium, SxSW EDU, Tyton Partners, and WCET (the WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies).

Learn more and download the Faculty Playbook from Online Learning Consortium.

Learn more and download the Faculty Playbook.

The Online Learning Consortium (OLC) is a collaborative community of higher education leaders and innovators dedicated to advancing quality digital teaching and learning experiences designed to reach and engage the modern learner – anyone, anywhere, anytime. OLC inspires innovation and quality through an extensive set of resources, including best-practice publications, quality benchmarking, leading-edge instruction, community-driven conferences, practitioner-based and empirical research, and expert guidance. The growing OLC community includes faculty members, administrators, trainers, instructional designers, and other learning professionals, as well as educational institutions, professional societies, and corporate enterprises. Learn more at onlinelearningconstorium.org

Every Learner Everywhere (Every Learner) is a network of 12 partner organizations that collaborate with higher education institutions to improve student outcomes through innovative teaching strategies, including the adoption of adaptive digital learning tools. Evidence demonstrates active and adaptive learning has the potential to improve course outcomes and digital solutions lower the cost of course materials, particularly for low-income students, and students of color. Our network partners represent leaders and innovators in teaching and learning. We have specific expertise in the adoption, implementation, and measurement of digital learning tools as they are integrated into pedagogical practices. Learn more at everylearnereverywhere.org

The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) is a research, policy, and advocacy organization dedicated to strengthening and advancing the work of public universities in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. With a membership of 246 public research universities, land-grant institutions, state university systems, and affiliated organizations, APLU’s agenda is built on the three pillars of increasing degree completion and academic success, advancing scientific research, and expanding engagement. Annually, member campuses enroll 4.9 million undergraduates and 1.3 million graduate students, award 1.3 million degrees, employ 1.3 million faculty and staff, and conduct $44.9 billion in university-based research. Learn more at aplu.org

Get Ready for Fall Semester! (Teaching Tip)

Posted on

Fall semester, beginning August 17th, is right around the corner. As you prepare, CELT has you covered with website resources, programming, and the ISU Course Template. Of great interest:

  • ISU Course Template: Easy to use and to adapt, the ISU Course Template contains the fundamental components for a quality online course. The template is pre-loaded with a homepage, modules, and necessary information of value to you and your students. Instructors such as Professor Stacy Cordery, History, have raved “The savings to me in terms of time, energy, and anxiety are incalculable. I know it’s going to be a great tool for faculty and students, whose lives will surely be made a bit easier with some uniformity and predictability as they try to navigate all their different syllabi (online, in class, and hybrid).” See the ISU Course Template page,
    Register to attend a webinar, Online Course Essentials (ONCE) using the ISU course template,

  • Quick Start Guide: Apply these strategies to help you prioritize and communicate with your students this fall, Quick Start Guide.
  • Teaching with Technology: Whether you are teaching face to face, hybrid, or online, check out the redesigned “teaching with technology” web resources. These resources include everything from the new Canvas @ ISU site, instructional strategies about teaching, including web conferencing (yes, info about Webex and Zoom!) to instructional tool how-tos to ideas for engaging students in the online environment. Review and bookmark the Teaching with Technology page.
  • Programming: Mark your calendars for exciting CELT programming from 30-minute “choose your instructional tool adventures” to hour-long discussions of course design, engaging students, inclusion, accessibility, web conferencing (Webex, Zoom, MS Teams), managing disruptive conduct in learning spaces to semester-long teaching and learning communities, via the Upcoming Events page.

Do you have questions, concerns, ideas about teaching and learning? Or ideas about programming? Email celt@iastate.edu.

With a joy for teaching,

Sara Marcketti, Director
Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching

Full Teaching Tip

View the published CELT Teaching Tip: Get Ready for Fall Semester! (July 29, 2020 – 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 July 29, 2020 (PDF).

Encouraging thoughtful participation (Teaching Tip)

Posted on

Teaching synchronously online poses unique challenges for encouraging thoughtful participation. The ability to foster student participation is especially true if you teach a face-to-face course simultaneously with students attending the course online. We asked ISU Faculty (and surveyed the literature) to share these strategies for engaging students.

  1. Build community. It is challenging to volunteer an idea if you do not know the others in your class. Consider icebreakers where students first discuss in smaller groups of students in online breakout rooms. Then, use collaborative signals in the large group, such as thumbs up or hands raised, to cue “I agree” or “I have a question.” (Megan Myers, World Languages and Culture).
  2. Communicate expectations. Tell students in advance that you expect them to participate in the discussion. If possible, provide the prompt before the discussion. Rather than beginning discussion within the large group, start with 5-15 minutes in smaller person breakout groups. Instruct the students to determine a recorder (i.e., a student with first name closest to the letter Z or the person with the most significant number of pets) who would then share one idea during the whole class portion of the session. (Amanda Baker, School of Education).
  3. Use collaborative notetaking tools. For large or small group exercises, create a shared notetaking tool, such as Google Docs, with the prompt and space for breakout groups to type their responses. At the end of the activity, the participants have a crowd-sourced list of ideas or notes. This action also allows the instructor to clarify any misconceptions or call on a student group to elaborate on particular items. (Idea contributed by many! Monica Lamm, Chemical and Biological Engineering and CELT Faculty Fellow, Clark Coffman, Genetics, Development, and Cell Biology and CELT Faculty Fellow, and Karen Bovenmyer, CELT).
  4. Consider not discussing! If you want to get a “pulse” on the students’ knowledge or attitude in the class, consider strategically using the chat window or a poll rather than large or small group discussions. Pose a question for the students to respond to in the chat window. Or display a problem with plausible solutions. Ask students to use the emoticons on Webex or Zoom to “vote” for the correct answer. (Lesya Hassall, CELT).
  5. Explain the why of discussing. Lastly, inform students that you value their perspectives and explain why you ask for their participation—seeing the why behind discussions can positively influence their participation.

Have an idea to share? Email it to celt@iastate.edu, and we will include it in our Instructional Strategies.

With a joy for teaching,
Sara Marcketti, Director
Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching

Full Teaching Tip

View the published CELT Teaching Tip: Encouraging thoughtful participation (August 28, 2020 – 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 August 28, 2020 (PDF).

Loading...