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Infographic Considerations

September 27, 2021
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).

Inclusive Language

September 16, 2022
Use inclusive language across course content and communications to reach every learner. “Inclusive education must be cultivated deliberately if we want to advance in its implementation” (Márquez & Melero-Aguilar, 2022, p. 842). Inclusion entails creating an environment of open participation for all individuals. Inclusive course design works to ensure that all students feel heard, valued, and validated. The thoughtful use of language can establish an environment of inclusion in online learning.

Taking Stock at the Midpoint of the Term

March 15, 2024
Halfway through the term isn't a great time to change around a bunch of materials or assignments in your course. However, it is a useful moment to evaluate how the course is going, realign to match the goals you set out at the beginning of the term, and determine what you may be able to tweak to make your course work more effectively for you and for your students. This piece suggests actions you can take at midterm to help shape the second half of the course.

Engagement Series: Student-Content Engagement

September 25, 2024
This is the second in a series of pieces exploring different types of course engagement. This piece focuses on how course developers and instructors can foster student-content engagement in online courses.

No Sweat Alt Text

September 24, 2021
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.

Using PowerPoint in a Video

September 22, 2022
The familiarity and ease of PowerPoint make it a natural choice for creating instructional videos. After all, your energy is better spent on planning and recording videos than on learning a new tool. However, creating quality slides still requires significant time and attention to detail.

High-Impact Practices to Support Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging in STEM

October 09, 2024
When you think of a scientist, who comes to mind? If it’s Albert Einstein or Charles Darwin, you’re not alone. Gender stereotypes and a lack of inclusive role models in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) have contributed to spaces that have not always been welcoming for African American, Indigenous, and Latino students or those from other historically underserved groups (American Association of University Women, n.d.). Kimberlé Crenshaw’s concept of intersectionality, a term she coined in 1989, provides a framework for understanding Black women’s lived and overlapping experiences of racism and sexism (Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning, n.d.; TED, 2016). Crenshaw, a law professor and Black feminist scholar, explains that “intersectionality is a lens through which you can see where power comes and collides, where it interlocks and intersects” (Columbia Law School, 2017).

Case Studies in a Multimodal Course

December 29, 2022
Case-based learning allows students to develop higher-order critical thinking, problem-solving, synthesis, analysis, and communication skills by engaging with a realistic scenario in service of practicing course skills and concepts. Case studies are valuable tools for any class that combines asynchronous and synchronous learning. Indeed, some research (e.g., Webb, Gill, & Poe, 2005) suggests that a multimodal delivery model may be ideal for case study-based work, with the combination of synchronous and asynchronous elements enabling students to participate more fully in cases. In the first half of this piece, we outline some key considerations for using case studies in a multimodal course. In the second half, we make targeted recommendations for effectively prepping, facilitating, and reflecting on your multimodal case studies.

Instructor Presence in Online Courses

September 24, 2021
Consistent and meaningful instructor presence is one of the most important drivers of student success and satisfaction in online courses (Roddy et al., 2017). However, establishing instructor presence online can be challenging. In fact, studies have shown that many online students feel their instructors are largely invisible (Tichavsky et al., 2015).