Incremental change
Get ready for next semester now. This teaching tip helps you think about how to make the needed changes while enjoying the process. Whether face-to-face or online, all classes need routine care.
Category Teaching Tips
HTML Basics
HTML is the code behind what we see on web sites. Whether you realize it or not, every time you create online (make a Blackboard entry, publish to a website, post on Facebook, comment on a blog, etc.) you are using HTML. Web design has come a long way from the beginning when you had to hand code everything; usually we just have to fill out a form and our content magically appears. However, knowing some basic HTML can be really handy when you are trying to troubleshoot something that looks strange, for appearance, or for custom sites.
Big bad MOOCs — are you afraid?
Thanks to the media deluge, you’ve probably heard of the precipitous rise of the MOOC (Massive Open Online Course)
and maybe even peeked into a MOOCourse or two. If you haven’t–or hoped to just ignore them–you might want to
think again.
Extra credit
How you choose to use extra credit can enhance a student's learning opportunities. Whether you're for or against the use, a few simple rules will make it easier to deploy. Consider using optional quizzes over the reading material prior to the start of class to encourage students to be prepared for in-class discussion.
Wearable technology
Wearable technology is an advanced electronic device that is small enough to be worn naturally in the form of clothing, accessories, or portable lightweight containers. While this is not a new product genre (we can look back at things like the calculator watch and Sony Walkman), the items and their functionality are progressing rapidly.
Facilitating discussion
Learning doesn’t happen in a vacuum, and promoting meaningful discussion in the classroom helps create a more dynamic and effective learning community. Get some ideas in this week's Teaching Tip.
File management
Maintain order over your files by instilling file management best practices: give your files comprehensive titles, and save them in appropriate subfolders (not just lobbed into the pile on the desktop!).
Blackboard global navigation
Get an overview of your activity within the Blackboard world all in one spot by using the new Global Navigation feature in the update, Service Pack 11, for Blackboard 9.1. This efficient suite of tools will help you and your students get an overview of your activity within the Blackboard world —all in one spot.
Headfirst
The Understanding by Design model teaches us how to create our curriculum backward from big ideas to activities...but what about the benefits of teaching backward? Allowing students to explore larger concepts, while you fill in, here and there, with the details, helps to enliven the experience of the subject.
Pinterest in the classroom
Pinterest is a free image-based curation site that allows users to create themed “boards' onto which they may “pin' relevant links, which appear as tiles. Board creators and viewers alike may comment on the pins. In this week's teaching tip find out how Pinterest relates to education.
Annotate with Thinglink
The cliché, “A picture is worth a thousand words,' has taken on a new meaning in the online world of web 2.0 tools. Using an online service such as Thinglink.com, you can actually create an interactive image by adding text, video, music, and web links to increase the meaning of your— image.
Choosing the best technology
With so many new software and hardware options being released every day, how do you know where to start when either integrating modern tools into your course activities or moving your course or materials online?