Search
There are 21 results.
Category
Tag
Tag
All (87)
Active Learning (4)
Activities (5)
Alt Text (2)
Assessments (4)
Asynchrony (3)
Authentic Activities (2)
Backwards Design (2)
Belonging (1)
Canvas (4)
Case Studies (1)
Collaboration (3)
Color Contrast (2)
Communication (2)
Community (4)
Competency-Based Education (1)
Content Creation (22)
Copyright (2)
Course Maintenance (5)
Course Materials (12)
Course Preparation (5)
Discussions (1)
Diversity (3)
Equity (2)
Faculty Support (1)
Feedback (5)
Formative Assessments (7)
Game-Based Learning (2)
Gamification (1)
Generative AI (4)
Group Work (2)
Images (3)
Inclusion (4)
Infographics (2)
Learning Objectives (2)
Multimodality (3)
Page Design (2)
PowerPoint (2)
Presentations (2)
Representation (2)
Revising (2)
Rubrics (3)
Scaffolding (1)
Screen Readers (1)
Summative Assessments (1)
Synchrony (3)
Third-Party Tools (1)
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) (3)
Video (12)
Visual Accessibility (2)
Visual Design (2)
Written Assignments (1)
Adult English Language Learners
Many existing best practices for course builds can be leveraged to support English language learners (ELLs). While designing your online course, consider ELLs and the diverse linguistic and cultural knowledge they bring to the classroom.
Easy and Essential Online Course Elements
Transferring your course online opens a world of possibilities. In fact, you might be tempted to spend hours trying to locate and learn new educational technologies, or to rebuild your entire course in the learning management system (LMS). But while effective use of technology can certainly enhance learning experiences, it can also introduce obstacles for both faculty and students.
No Sweat Alt Text
What is “alt text”? Alt text is descriptive text linked to an image, graph, or other visual content that allows users to understand the visual without viewing it. Any image online should contain alt text, but guidelines differ depending on whether the image is simply decorative or related to other content on the page.
Game-Based Learning Experiences
Game-based learning (GBL) is a learning experience, or set of learning experiences, delivered through gameplay or game-like activities with defined learning outcomes. GBL is often confused with gamification, which is the application of game elements to a non-gaming experience. GBL engages students cognitively, emotionally, behaviorally, and socioculturally (Plass et al., 2015). Many factors should be considered when designing GBL, including narrative, player positioning, and interactive design (Dickey, 2005).
Infographic Considerations
An infographic is a visual that combines text, graphics, diagrams, and graphs to present information. When used effectively, infographics can be a powerful tool to guide students through the learning process. “Infographics ask for an active response from the viewer, raising the questions, ‘What am I seeing?’ and ‘What does it mean?’” (Krauss, 2012, p. 10). Infographics also present information in an organized way, which can improve students’ critical thinking, analysis, and synthesis skills (Yildirim, 2016).
Don't Leave Your Learners Behind: Start Tackling Web Accessibility Now!
If you’re an educator, you're probably familiar with the concept of accessibility, which often manifests in the classroom in the form of accommodation requests to meet specific students' needs. If you're an online educator, you've hopefully heard about web accessibility, which requires adhering to specific guidelines when designing and providing materials via the web, reducing the need for student accommodations by anticipating and removing potential barriers to learning.
Ten Ways to Open the Gate to Accessibility
According to the United States Census Bureau, over 57 million Americans, nearly one in five people in the U.S. population, report living with a disability. To make certain all your students can have a successful learning experience, it is important to take steps to make the online learning environment accessible. Here are 10 strategies for making your online course space accessible to all users.
Inheriting an Online Course
Over the course of your teaching career, you may inherit an online course developed by another faculty member. While such a situation can offer many advantages, it can also provoke many questions and pose significant challenges. Inheriting a complete course with materials and assessments already in place can simplify and streamline some aspects of instruction, but it can be difficult to identify where to start and what to prioritize as you begin engaging with the course. This blog outlines a four-phase process that can lead to a successful transition.
Discussion Best Practices Guide
Discussions are an impactful way to build engagement and discourse in asynchronous online courses. When properly designed, discussions can encompass the three pillars of engagement: student-content, student-student, and student-instructor. Asynchronous discussions allow students time to reflect prior to participating, which can lead to deeper insights and richer discourse. Moreover, when participating in discussions, students have the opportunity to collaborate with others, participate in an online learning community, and gain insights from others’ unique experiences and perspectives (Ransdell, Borror & Su, 2018). Facilitating multiple types of engagement in an online course can improve student motivation, satisfaction, and achievement (Dailey-Hebert, 2018).
Rubric Best Practices Guide
When used effectively, rubrics facilitate clear and consistent assessment, enhancing the learning experience for both students and instructors. In the online classroom environment, where students do not have the frequent, physical access that a traditional classroom provides, rubrics can provide the added benefit of increasing student engagement with course material and clarifying an instructor's expectations (Keengwe, Adjei-Boateng, & Diteeyont, as cited in Haught, Ahern, & Ruberg, 2017). In fact, according to Martin & Bolliger (2018), online learners have reported that grading rubrics are highly important for learner-to-instructor engagement. For instructors, too, rubrics simplify the grading process, promoting consistency across students and terms. Eliminating the guesswork from grade determination, well-designed rubrics can save professors precious time and energy.