Students are more likely to engage in online courses when they understand expectations for communication. To support course engagement, instructors can create both formal and social discussion spaces, share expectations, and affirm student contributions.
It’s the first week of class. Do you know where your students are? It can be a rocky time for students the first week, even for those who are experienced. Here are some tips for helping them get up to speed as quickly as possible.
Your use of Canvas can help you translate your face-to-face course into an enjoyable online experience for you and your students. Here are a few steps to get you started, including how to build a template to use for each week or module and how to add your lectures right inside the editor.
Feedback can be a powerful influence on achievement, particularly when students are able to participate in the conversation. Find out how Canvas allows for quick, easy, personalized ‘feedforward’ collaboration in the gradebook.
Around 65% of your students may not purchase your textbook due to cost. This can have a significant impact on their success in your course. Using free and open education resources (OER) can ameliorate expenses for students and help make higher education more equitable for all students.
Skeuomorphism is where an object in software mimics its real-world counterpart. Learning Management Systems are riddled with skeuomorphism and this affects your course structure. Embracing the strength of online courses as learning environments requires the intentional use of skeuomorphism and modern web design.
Inclusive teaching practice involves embracing diversity holistically throughout your course and activities. This Teaching Tip provides some ideas and resources for how to think about your course through an inclusive lens.
Sending a welcoming message to students at the beginning of the semester is an important step in designing an effective online course. Intentional design and language choices in the announcement can create a lasting positive impression.
The Online Course Evaluation Rubric serves as a framework for making notes on and progress toward preparing your course for next semester. Several instructional designers worked together gathering important course elements into categories with evaluative statements to jumpstart your review.
UAF is expanding its pilot study of CircleIn, a supported online tool for peer study groups. Starting in fall 2021, CircleIn will be available to all students at UAF.
Blackboard courses are currently being migrated to Canvas to help make the transition easier for faculty. Once there, courses will be ready to teach with some lightweight cleanup.
Content organization functions differently in Canvas than it does in Blackboard. Students will easily learn to navigate your course when you thoughtfully design how your content is presented.
At the end of the semester, students may struggle to remember everything they need to accomplish before the break. Here are five things instructors should remind students to do as each semester comes to a close.
Daily Zoom calls can be draining. Here are a few ways to deal with Zoom fatigue to make your experience more relaxing and less draining.
Learn how disability accommodations work at UAF in a new series hosted by UAF Disability Services, the UA Human Resources ADA office and UAF eCampus.
At UAF, Student Progress Reports and Nanook Navigator Alerts are two mechanisms for providing feedback, which can lead to better student performance.
Enrollment of high school students in college courses is increasing. This Q&A was designed to answer questions about resources at University of Alaska Fairbanks.
You may have plans to work on your course over the winter break, and this is the perfect time to do some focused reflection on how things went this semester. This Teaching Tip presents suggestions for questions to ask when doing a self-critique in preparation for revision.
Everyone’s pinched for time and we need real solutions that are quick to implement with regard to accessibility. This tip provides a look at three areas you can improve in your course using simple ideas that are easy to execute.
Incorporating mid-semester evaluations into normal classroom routines is one way to improve student motivation and engagement in class, while simultaneously identifying ways to remove barriers and support student learning.
Learn some tips for self-care that you can practice daily to help counteract the stresses of living online.
These days, your webcam is likely one of the most important tools you use in your courses. Here are a few tips to make your webcam video look as good as possible.
This fall, UAF’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry debuted its asynchronous online organic chemistry series with labs. There’s a reason this has not been done before: It requires an enormous amount of planning. But we’re doing it, and with some of the wisdom shared here, you might think about taking your lab course completely online as well.
Instructors are the first line of defense in preventing academic dishonesty in online courses. Solutions are as easy as creating connections with your students, utilizing real life practices and creating a culture of integrity.
Emotionally connecting with students supports engagement and helps ensure high-quality teaching and learning outcomes. Here are some strategies to help students develop connections with the course content, the instructor and their peers.
Heidi Olson managed paper-based correspondence courses in the ’80s, supported UAF’s first online offerings in the late ’90s, and has handled thousands of online courses since. She retired last week. Read her reflections on these changes over time and advice on giving students the best possible learning experience.
There is no one right way to organize a course, but there are some basic principles that will help students navigate and stay on path.
Recommended strategies and language to include in your syllabus to help address the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, try surveying students about their current routines and internet access.
Course schedules are tried-and-true tools that provide a bird’s-eye view of your course, and can effectively communicate to students your plan for the semester. A well-crafted course schedule clarifies structure, facilitates planning and explains pacing.