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Building Community, Remotely
In an online remote context, virtual learning communities (VLCs) allow us to plan for: Interaction Communication Collaboration This video highlights some of the reasons we might want to develop rich VLCs in remote teaching. Below are some strategies framed from instructor competencies. Some strategies for developing interaction: Model participation and practice good nettiquette Use Discussion Forums and participate actively Steer conversations in the right direction Motivate and encourage Create a safe and supportive environment/network Moderate Discussion forum Temper the dominant voices in the forum Set the tone by being positive Encourage and motivate students Use introductions, online office hours and e-mail to promote interaction Incorporate collaborative learning and increased opportunities…
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Teaching Performance-Based Classes Remotely
For those of us who have ever taught courses that require a lot of practicing a skill, this move to remote and online instruction is crushing. It is one thing to record a video of something you’d tell your students and put it up online somewhere for them to access, and another thing to think about a performance based course. When I first taught drama online, I could not see how to do it, as I did not want to lose both the “doing” and the “together” parts of when everyone is learning by themselves at different times. To be honest, I still really prefer teaching drama in a room…
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Start Here…Pick Two
Let’s boil this down. What’s most important for us to rethink as we use our precious hours to redesign our courses for remote learning? Work with a colleague, friend, or student to talk through your answers after you fill this out. Still stumped? Contact gmctl-support@usask.ca PDF Version: Start Here – Break it Down – Pick Two First, let’s take a breath and focus on the big picture. What are two GUIDING PRINCIPLES that you want to keep in mind as you redesign and teach during this time? 1. 2. Next, let’s settle on some technologies or processes that feel comfortable to us. What are two TOOLS that you might use to…
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Sequencing an outcome
Summary: Align your course with clear goals! Learn how to sequence learning outcomes effectively to enhance student success and engagement. Date of publishing: May 14, 2020 How do you breakdown a course outcome into manageable sections, or chunks, of information or action for students? What do students need to be able to do with automaticity before they can meet this learning outcome? Here is a template to help you in docx form: Sequencing Template blank Sequencing Template A. My end goal is to have students be able to meet this specific learning outcome: B. Therefore, I need students to be able to do these three (or more) sub-components, in this…
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How to get students to hand in quality work by planning for choice
In my course, at this level, at this place of progress in their learning, what do students need to demonstrate to me? Handout version for USask Instructors What do I expect of my students? Offering choice in how students meet course objectives is rooted in inclusive education and that by providing choice we acknowledge and respect that there are many ways to demonstrate learning and students have the agency, when appropriate, to pick the one that motivates them. These checklists might help you think about “shifting the ‘locus of control’ from the teacher to the student” (Jopp & Cohen, 2020) There are three methods described: when students pick the medium…
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Inclusive Teaching Strategies: Reflecting on Your Practice
Summary: How do you engage with students? How do students see themselves in the content of your course? How are students expected to engage with each other? Date: August 30, 2024 Here are some strategies compiled from the University of Michigan with permission. Which ones do you do already? Which ones might you try? Instructor-Student Interactions Learn and use students’ names they choose to be called. Clarify how you want students to address you, especially if you teach students from a range of educational and cultural backgrounds. Distribute a student background questionnaire early in the term to learn about students’ experience with the course topics, educational background, professional ambitions,…
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Leveraging Peer Feedback in an Online Environment
When students take courses in-person, they often find at least one friend in the course with which they discuss the course, the assignments, give feedback to one another, and so on. With the shift to remote delivery, students might have more trouble finding someone to connect with on their own. This post explores how you can introduce peer feedback into your course to ensure that your students have a chance to share their work and receive feedback from peers. In the best cases, they might even form friendships, but another benefit of using peer feedback is that the quality of student work usually increases, which can make your marking much…
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Worried About Take Home Exams and Academic Misconduct?
There is more than one way of looking at the extended time period for open book exams when it comes to academic misconduct worries. You can see 24 hours of unsupervised time with an exam as more time for students to break your rules. Some students may use the time that way and that is deeply frustrating. More encouraging is a view based in research about academic integrity in higher education (for a great review, see the 2013 book referenced below). The basic premise is this: When students are more confident they can do what needs to be done on their own, they are less likely to cheat. Obvious? Perhaps…
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Land Acknowledgements – A Reflection 5-years After the TRC Report
By Stryker Calvez and Rose Roberts Five years after the release of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) report, Land Acknowledgements are still gaining strength as an important component of the University landscape. In fact, it is more common to notice when this statement has been missed at an event, meeting or in a course than when it is present. More often than not we have people tell us about how uncomfortable someone got when they didn’t hear the land acknowledgement at the beginning of a proceeding, and the lengths people have gone to right this wrong. These stories are a testament to the power of this protocol, its intended purpose, and the readiness of people and society to embark on the journey toward reconciliation. Five years after the TRC report, the concerns for land…
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It Helps To Be Transparent About Academic Integrity
You and your students will be out there wondering how fair final assessments can be when everyone is unsupervised. Thankfully, there are some students, that no matter what, will follow the rules and maintain their academic integrity. A small number, will seek to cheat no matter what we do. The group to focus on right now is that large majority that wants the rules to be clear, to be enforced, and for there to be a level playing field for all. The majority of students want to be honest, but at the same time, they do not want to feel at a disadvantage if they are. When students see their…