February 17

8 MOOCs that Support Technology in Teaching

online_livingroom 011An article written by Dian Schaffhauser on Campus Technology website has listed 8 MOOCs that can help faculty learn more on technology use in classroom (“8 MOOCs for Better Technology-Enhanced Teaching”). These professional development opportunities are, of course, open and offered through different universities. They are offered at different times, are self paced, and you can take what interests you the most from them. I will list them as they appear in the article.

1) Instructional Design Service Course: Gain Experience for Good    (starts February 22; runs 12 weeks; requires 2-3 hours of work per week, Canvas platform, Description: Learn how to create open educational resources (OER) for people in adult basic education programs.)

2) Becoming a Blended Learning Designer    (starts February 22; runs for 5 weeks; requires 2-3 hours of work per week, canvas paltform, Description: This MOOC will talk you through the Blended Learning Toolkit, a free, open resource for institutions that want to develop or expand their blended learning programs.)

3) Teaching with Tablets  (February 29, 2016; runs for 5 weeks; requires about 3 hours of work per week, Blackboard platform, Description: Intended for educators from elementary school through higher ed, this MOOC will cover the use of iPads and other tablets for teaching and learning.)

4) Accessibility: Designing and Teaching Courses for All Learners  (February 22, 2016; runs 6 weeks, Canvas, Description: Your chance to gain the knowledge and skills to design inclusive learning experiences, especially for students with disabilities.)

5) Disability Awareness and Support  (Timeline: Self-paced, Coursera, Description: Advance your understanding of accessibility issues in education, including legislation, universal design and assistive technologies.)

6) Prior Learning Assessment for Educators and Industry (February 22; runs 3 weeks; requires 2 hours of work per week, Canvas, Description: This course will teach you how to develop policies and articulations for credit for prior learning (CPL), explain the use of portfolios and assessments and introduce you to existing credit “crosswalks” and assessment resources.)

7) Blended Learning Essentials: Getting Started (March 7; runs for 5 weeks; requires about 4 hours of work per week, FutureLearn platform, Description: This UK-produced course covers multiple practices and pedagogies to help participants learn how to use blended or hybrid tools and technologies “with confidence.” The “getting started” session is followed by an additional series on “embedding the practices.”)

8) Leaders of Learning (May 2016; runs 6 weeks; requires 2-4 hours of work per week, edX platform, Description: Richard Elmore, a professor of educational leadership in the Harvard Graduate School of Education, takes participants on a tour of the “shifting landscape of learning.” You’ll explore how learning is changing in a digital culture.)

February 3

STAR Symposium Presentation Schedule

STAR Symposium photo credit to: https://mnqm.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/logo2.png

Conference Schedule Session Title
Welcome and Logistics

8:30 AM – 8:45 AM

 
Keynote Speaker
8:45 AM – 9:45 AM
Keynote: Promoting More Good Learning: What Can Teachers Do?

Dr. L. Dee Fink

Concurrent Sessions
(50 minutes)
10:00 AM – 10:50 AM
Gamifying your online course using D2L Brightspace tools
Carrie Miller, Minnesota State University, Mankato
Using SoftChalk™ Cloud to Create Digital Lessons for Online Learners
Claudia Pragman, Patricia Nelson, Aaron Deris & Kristie Campana, Minnesota State University, Mankato
The Essence of Presence: Strategies for Online Courses
Darcy Turner, Saint Paul College
Break (15 minutes)  
Concurrent Sessions
(50 minutes)
11:05 AM – 11:55 AM
Video, The New Paper
Norb Thomes, Winona State University
Online Collaboration versus Isolation-Interactivity Makes the Difference
Roseann Wolak, Saint Cloud State University
Tech Challenged? No Worries! Your Students Can Lead the Way!
Mary Anderson, Winona State University
Lunch Break
11:50 AM – 12:45 PM
 
Concurrent Sessions
(25 minutes)
12:45 PM – 1:10 PM
Using Flipped Classroom Design to Facilitate Communications and Mental Illness Response Module in Law Enforcement Classes
Patricia Nelson, Minnesota State University, Mankato
Fascinating Online Discussions: A Few Practical Applications of Draves’ “Advanced Teaching Online”
Bill Joyce, Bemidji State University
A new twist on an old favorite: Evernote and BuildFire = Engaging capstone projects
Joan Sax-Bendix, Winona State University
Break (10 minutes)  
Concurrent Sessions
(25 minutes)
1:20 PM – 1:45 PM
Creating a Learning Environment That Promotes Student Engagement in an Online Course
Stacey Rosenberg, Southern New Hampshire University
The Structured Debate: Increasing Student Engagement
Jane Carducci, Winona State University
Leveraging Technology in the Socratic Graduate Classroom

Jason Kaufman, Minnesota State University, Mankato

Break (10 minutes)  
Concurrent Sessions
(50 minutes)
1:55 PM – 2:45 PM
The D2L Brightspace Learning Object Repository (LOR): What is it and how can I use it?
Deb McManimon & J.C. Turner, Riverland Community College
Creating Engaging Recorded Lectures

Robin O’Callaghan, Winona State University

Using Web Conferencing Tools for More than Online Teaching
Patrick Paulson, Winona State University
Break (15 minutes)  
Featured Speaker
3:00 PM – 3:45 PM
Creating Community: Building a Learning Community from Classrooms to the Cloud

Bethany Simunich, Kent State University

Wrap-up and Evaluation
3:45 PM – 4:00 PM
 

Date & Time:  Friday, February 19, 2016     8:30 AM – 4:00 PM (CST)
Location: Wherever you are! This is a virtual conference. Join from your computer or mobile device.
Cost:  $50 to attend sessions all day.  Register here!

**content borrowed from MOQI announcement STARSneakPeek

January 22

STAR Symposium a month away

STAR Symposium photo credit to: https://mnqm.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/logo2.pngWhile we are waiting for the full schedule, MOQI has announced their keynote speaker and several sessions.

Dr. L. Dee Fink will be the keynote speaker for the STAR Symposium. He will be joining us virtually to start the day with a keynote address. Dr. Fink currently works as a national and international consultant on college teaching and faculty development. In the past several years, he has been invited to 15 countries outside the United States to lead workshops or make presentations. He is well-known as the author of “Creating Significant Learning Experiences: An Integrated Approach to Designing College Courses.”

In addition to the keynote, below is a list of some of the sessions and presenters on the agenda:
Community of Inquiry (Bethany Simunich, Kent State University)
Gamifying Your Online course using D2L Brightspace Tools (Carrie Miller & Jeff Henline, Minnesota State University, Mankato)
Video, The New Paper (Norb Thomes, Winona State University)
Creating a Learning Environment That Promotes Student Engagement in an Online Course (Stacey Rosenberg, Southern New Hampshire University)
D2L Brightspace Learning Object Repository (LOR): What is it and how can I use it? (Deb McManimon & J.C. Turner, Riverland Community College)
Using Web Conferencing Tools for more than Online Teaching  (Patrick Paulson, Winona State University)

A reminder – STAR Symposium will be held on February 19, virtually, from your home or office, you will be able to attend 25 or 50 minute sessions from 8:30 am to 4 pm. You can register here!

January 20

SIG Learning Spaces and Instructional Technology Casual Conversations

SIG Learning Spaces and Instructional Technology Casual Conversations

Do all your best ideas always come when you are drinking coffee? Then come join MnSCU instructional designers and other professional development staff for Casual Conversations where we help you problem-solve through collaboration and creativity! 1st and 3rd Friday of every month @ 8am.

No preparation required! Just come and share your best ideas of what you are doing on your campus for your faculty and staff with good instructional design and technology practices.

Starting February 5th at 8am, the Learning Spaces and Instructional Technology SIG will host a new series of virtual meetings the first and third Friday of every month.  During the first meeting, they will discuss and select future meeting topics – they want your input! Join them Friday, February 5th at 8am in their Zoom Room:  MOQI Casual Conversation meetings

 

 

 

January 14

Library Widgets for D2L Brightspace

Instructors,

Our dear librarians have developed beautiful widgets that you can just add to your course page on D2L. It is very easy to find it: on the library homepage, under Find a Research Guide> By Subject/Topic choose Widgets for D2L Brightspace from the drop down list. You can see it on the screenshot below:

Library homepage Find a Research GuideThen, they give you a wide range of samples to choose from, depending on the course you teach. Further there are several documents that further explain how to add a widget you choose, and the embedded codes for specific widgets. The widgets give direct access to databases.

Library Widgets examplesYou can access the step by step description of how to add a widget to your D2L course here.

Big thanks to Cindy Gruwell and Melissa Prescott for developing this and making it available for our faculty and students.

January 4

Academic Technologies Team Workshops today

PatioLogoAs part of the January Faculty Workshop organized by CETL, our team will be presenting on several topics.

Today at 10 am we are presenting on  Using the D2L Discussion Board, in Centennial Hall 455 Lab.

This session is followed by another  D2L Discussion themed presentation, at 11:30 am in the same computer lab. However, this session will focus more on theory and strategies behind student engagement in both online and face-to-face classes.

Again, same space, at 3:30 pm, we will present on Importing Final Grades From D2L Brightspace Into ISRS. This very useful feature will be explained in detail, and you will have the opportunity to try it out, as long as you have your course requested and set up. Also, you can access the blog post on this topic here.

Finally, on Tuesday Come Learn About a New D2L Tool: LeaP, in the Alumni Room, Atwood Memorial Center. More on this in our next post.

Happy New Year and the start of the new semester!

December 29

ATT Sessions at January Faculty Workshops

St. C_Logo-GroupJanuary 4-8, 2016 Faculty Workshops will be held on various topics concerning Student Retention and Success. Our ATT team will be holding several sessions regarding using D2L, incorporating research based and best practices to help faculty design and deliver their courses in the both teacher and student friendly way. You can view the Full Schedule here. Below are the sessions facilitated by the Academic Technology Team. All are on Monday, January 4, and will be held in Centennial Hall 455 Lab.

10:00–11:15
Concurrent Sessions A
Using the D2L Discussion Board
This is a hands-on session designed for the novice user. In this session participants will learn how to create a Discussion where you and your students can post, read, and reply to messages on different topics, share thoughts about course materials, ask questions, share files, or where students can work with peers on assignments and homework.
Best Practices will cover:
a. Setting expectations—substantive posts, appropriate tone and respectful language, due dates
b. Responding to student posts
c. Attaching a rubric. (Rubric will be provided)
d. Attaching a discussion to the gradebook.
11:30-12:45
CONCURRENT SESSIONS B
Using D2L Discussion boards to engage students.
This is a hands on session designed for the intermediate to advance user. In this session the participants will learn how to use the discussion board to:
a. Introduce students to themselves (works for online and F2F classes)
b. How to pose a good discussion question (student- led vs. instructor led)
c. Use in a Face2Face class
d. Discussion use in a cohort to develop community.
3:30-4:45
CONCURRENT SESSIONS D
Importing Final Grades From D2L Brightspace Into ISRS
Faculty can now import student final grades directly from D2L Brightspace into ISRS via the eServices Grade and LDA Entry interface. Attend this hands-on session and learn how to: Prepare the D2L Brightspace gradebook settings to enable import to ISRS. Use “Grade and LDA Entry” in eServices to import final grades from D2L Brightspace. This session is open to all faculty using D2L Brightspace. Before attending this session, faculty should request their class shell(s) at http://huskynet.stcloudstate.edu/instructional/d2l. Prerequisites:
-Have a class shell to work in during the hands on session.
-Have a developed gradebook