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Representation in Course Images

September 27, 2021
How many times have you looked at an image and thought, “Have I seen this before?” Chances are, if you are browsing a stock photo site, it’s often. That feeling of déjà vu occurs because images reflect an amalgam of artistic, cultural, and ideological influences (Hall, 2015).

Six Strategies for Multimodal Content Delivery

November 02, 2022
If you’re developing a course with synchronous and asynchronous elements, you have a host of options for engaging students and delivering content. Research suggests that incorporating multiple modalities increases accessibility, engagement, and learning (Mick and Middlebrook, 2015; Margolis et al., 2017). With that said, it is important to be intentional about multimodal course design. Both synchronous and asynchronous methods of delivery are effective, but activities can be better suited to one or the other modality and synchronous time is often limited. Delivering selected content asynchronously can support students’ understanding of how information is organized and leave more time for interactivity in synchronous sessions.

Universal Design for Learning

October 10, 2022
Universal Design for Learning (UDL), which has roots in Ronald Mace’s concept of Universal Design, is a pedagogical framework that supports diverse learning needs. According to CAST, the creator of the framework, UDL seeks “to improve and optimize teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how humans learn” (2018). UDL is not a step-by-step curriculum plan, but rather an approach to pedagogy and curriculum development that aims to make the learning environment as accessible as possible for as many learners as possible (Derer, 2021; CAST, 2018).

Formative Assessments

October 14, 2022
Formative assessments encompass a broad range of low-stakes activities aimed at improving student learning outcomes. In contrast to summative assessments, which are intended to measure products of student learning, formative assessments are oriented towards the learning process itself (Black & Wiliam, 1998). They can provide students with opportunities to evaluate their developing understanding of key concepts, practice new skills, and prepare for summative assessments (McLaughlin & Yan, 2017; Orange, Agak, Okelo, & Kiprotich, 2018). They can also provide instructors with valuable data on student progress (Bell & Cowie, 2001; McLaughlin & Yan, 2017). The results of formative assessments can indicate where individual students are struggling or excelling, allowing instructors to provide targeted feedback and tailor their instructional delivery accordingly.

Creating Learning Objectives

September 24, 2021
Learning objectives help inform students about what they will learn and how they will be assessed. Objectives are meant to align with course expectations. Therefore, any assigned exercises should be guided by the course’s specific learning objectives. Everything in the course should work together to ensure students master the course objectives.

Rubrics as a Tool to Support Equity and Inclusion

October 07, 2022
While student populations have become increasingly diverse, many groups, including first-generation, non-native English speakers, and individuals with disabilities, still face barriers and bias that can derail their success in college (Super et al., 2020). Traditional grading practices—including penalties for late work, writing in dialects other than standard English, and even plagiarism— are prone to bias and only perpetuate disparities, the research says (Feldman, 2019; Savini, 2021).

Five Ways to Combat Linguistic Bias in the Classroom

December 29, 2022
Developments such as the evolution of World Englishes (WE) and African American scholars’ use of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) have opened an important dialogue around academic writing standards, language ownership, and linguistic justice (Canagarajah, 2006; Young, 2010). Authors like Gloria Anzaldua who mix, for example, Native Indian, Spanish, and English in texts, are engaging in the literary tradition of code meshing, which has been shown to facilitate acquisition of English when used by multicultural students in the classroom, according to research (Canagarajah, 2006). By adopting inclusive practices, course designers can combat linguistic bias and promote writing achievement for all learners. This blog contains five recommendations for reducing linguistic bias in online education.

Self-Recording Best Practices

September 24, 2021
While traditional lectures are delivered in front of a classroom, allowing you to read students’ engagement and adjust in real time to both content and pacing, online lectures do not afford the same flexibility. Therefore, it is important to carefully plan your videos in accordance with best practices in online learning. There are many video types and formats to choose from (See the Envision blog: Matching Video Production Style to Learning Goals), and one decision you'll need to make is whether you want to appear on camera. This guide covers best practices for videos that will include your webcam footage.

Choosing Tech

September 27, 2021
“How do I choose the right technology?” is a common question in education generally, and in online program management in particular, where it is usually asked in the context of developing an online course or other virtual learning experience. After all, the Subject Matter Expert and Instructional Designer are hoping to create an experience for students that is both meaningful and valuable. Knowing how to orchestrate content and pedagogy is already hard enough, but add in the fact that there are thousands of technology options, and the task can feel even more daunting.