Managing large online classes
With strategic course design, it is possible in large classes to provide a strong instructor presence, give expert-level feedback on subjective assignments, and maintain a quality learning experience for students.
Refresh your course in three simple steps
Course revisions can be daunting, particularly this year, but a quick course refresh is achievable in three simple steps: start at the beginning, support failure, and remember — less is more!
Strategies for emotionally connecting with students
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.
Fostering engagement in online discussion
Creating active discussions in a course can be challenging. In times of COVID-19, fostering that space for community exploration and making connections between content and the current world can become the anchor that keeps the momentum.
Three ways to encourage student resilience
Today’s college students are excessively stressed. These suggested strategies can make your course less stressful without reducing rigor.
Creating a culture of mentorship
Explore the value of mentorship in academia and get ideas for how you can intentionally promote peer mentorship via course design and departmental initiatives.
Three courses embracing distance students
Nov. 5-9, 2018, is celebrated as National Distance Learning Week. UAF instructors employ a variety of ways to not only include non-local students but to actually use their differing locations to enhance a course. These three classes, in particular, are strengthened by students outside of Fairbanks:
Creating a communication plan for engaging students
The summer semester is short. Keeping students engaged and thinking about your course can be helped by creating a regular plan for communication at the beginning of the semester. In this Teaching Tip, we’ll discuss how to create a plan and provide considerations for using Blackboard Announcements to push your notifications out to students.
Instruction beyond the bounds of the semester
Without practice and application, students can rapidly forget course material between academic semesters. Instructors can counter this effect by pointing students to and creating their own, opportunities to engage with subject matter during the breaks.
First contact assignments can jump-start the semester
The start of a new semester begins soon! In a face-to-face class, you usually connect with students on the first day of class. You quickly confirm students know where and when to meet. Most faculty give an overview of the course and introduce students to the syllabus. Faculty introduce themselves to the students and often have the students introduce themselves to the class.
Use video to capture students’ attention
Engage your students via voice over visuals. You can do it with tools you already have. Sure, you can make a video and incorporate it, but if you’re not quite ready, don’t despair. Put your voice into your course today. Use Keynote (or PowerPoint) and Quicktime to bring your materials to life.
Students as creators
“A shift is taking place in the focus of pedagogical practice on university campuses all over the world as students across a wide variety of disciplines are learning by making and creating rather than from the simple consumption of content….University departments in areas that have not traditionally had lab or hands-on components are shifting to incorporate hands-on learning experiences as an integral part of the curriculum.
Visualization – gorgeous ways to present data online
Learning environments where students are active creators can help foster engagement and a sense of accomplishment. If your students are involved in data analysis and presentation, using these exciting and interactive tools could help them get hooked on working with data. These online interfaces are extremely easy to use and accept data in a variety of formats.
Visualization
Infographics are not just for the visual learner. Use one to engage your student where there is slightly dry material or to explain a particularly tricky concept.