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Teaching Resources

CSU Resources from TILT and ACNS

Keep Teaching – https://canvas.colostate.edu/keepteaching/

Canvas

Canvas is the CSU’s Online Learning Management System and is the primary methodology for instructors to share course materials with students (and vice versa). CSU provides support for Canvas in addition to several add-ons to the Canvas platform. Instructure, the company behind Canvas, also has a very robust help and support site with resources shared from institutions around the world.

Faculty Success = Student Success: Resources in Summer 2020

Please visit the Keep Teaching portal for up to date information regarding these webinars and resources provided over the summer.

  • The Student Experience Project @ CSU I: Using your course syllabus to communicate student potential

    Lisa Dysleski
    6.03.20 1:00 – 2:30
    In this session, we will focus on incorporating growth mindset language into the course syllabus, demonstrating how small changes in wording can ensure that messages, policies, and practices demonstrate the faculty member’s constructive beliefs about students’ abilities.
    Join Zoom Meeting
    Meeting ID: 946 5740 3086
    Password: Provided Privately

  • Social Identities in Online Classroom Engagement

    Fleurette King, Ria Vigil, and Laxmi Shastry
    6.15.20 10:30 – Noon
    Instructors will have an opportunity to reflect on their social identities and its impact on the classroom. They will learn how to engage students who have vastly different experiences with peer engagement, access to resources, time, support, reliable devices and the internet.
    Join Zoom Meeting
    Meeting ID: 954 0270 9796
    Password: Provided Privately

  • Creating an Effective Classroom Climate Online

    Stephanie Clemons, Jen Aberle, and Jen Todd
    6.15.20 Asynchronous
    Short videos share practical and user-friendly strategies to create a connected community and sense of belonging among students in online classrooms.

  • What we know about CSU Students’ Needs during Virtual Instruction

    Viviane Ephraimson-Abt
    6.16.20 1:00-2:30 pm
    In this session we will share data from a Spring 2020 PULSE survey about students’ academic experiences, review some national data sets and explore developmental considerations, and explore strategies and resources to be responsive to students’ needs to deepen and enrich learning in virtual, hybrid, and in-person classrooms.
    Join Microsoft Teams Meeting

  • The Student Experience Project @ CSU II: Effectively communicating student performance feedback to increase engagement.

    Lisa Dysleski
    6.17.20 10:00 – 11:00
    In this session, we will focus on providing Wise feedback, a technique that has been shown to increase student engagement with assignments and coursework, and consider how to utilize this and other growth-mindset language into early performance alerts for students.
    Join Microsoft Teams Meeting

  • Handling Hot Moments in Online Classroom

    Fleurette King, Ria Vigil, and Laxmi Shastry
    7.15.20 11:00 – Noon
    Instructors will learn strategies for creating and maintaining an inclusive, democratic, and rigorous synchronous & asynchronous learning environments, with a particular focus on how to move through challenging moments that are not aligned with CSU’s Principles of Community.
    Join Zoom Meeting
    Meeting ID: 922 2615 4008
    Password: Provided Privately

  • Fostering Well Being in Academic Environments: Easy to Implement Practices and University Resources

    Viviane Ephraimson-Abt
    7.22.20 1:00 – 2:00
    Learn about the Well-Being in Academic Environments Tool Kit. This web-based resource has easy to implement strategies for fostering well-being, while creating effective learning environments. It is based on a successful initiative from the University of Texas Austin. We will also explore additional resources for students, including virtual ones, like You at CSU and Silver Cloud modules.
    Join Microsoft Teams Meeting

  • Best practices for facilitation and engagement in online courses

    Colleen Webb and Lisa Pappas
    7.23.20 11:00 12:30
    This webinar will introduce implementable ideas for building student trust, motivation and engagement.
    Join Microsoft Teams Meeting

  • Best practices for facilitation and engagement in online courses

    Colleen Webb and Lisa Pappas
    8.6.20 11:00-Noon
    This webinar will introduce implementable ideas for building student trust, motivation and engagement.
    Join Microsoft Teams Meeting

  • Fostering Student Motivation in Online Classrooms

    Stephanie Clemons, Jen Aberle, and Jen Todd
    8.3.20 Asynchronous
    Short videos share effective and adaptable techniques to promote student motivation and involvement in online classrooms.

Recorded Faculty Showcase Forums

Links

Support

Support outside of what is offered by the colleges is being provided by a combined team of Instructional Designers of CSU-Online & TILT – using their “FreshService” Keep Teaching Portal.

The College of Natural Sciences Canvas Coordinators can be reached for support by a shared mailbox and individually as listed below.

Transitioning to Remote Instruction

There are various methods and tools for having your class online. If you are familiar with any existing tool, that is the recommended approach for Spring 2020. Beyond that, the university recommends one of the following approaches depending on the content, format, and expectations of your class. The College of Natural Sciences is encouraging low-fi options for teaching to ensure that class materials are as accessible to the most people as possible. If you are new to teaching online, reading Tips for Succeeding in Distance Courses would be a great start. Below are some additional resources for specific instructional tools.

Testing

Minimize the use of online proctoring as it may be impossible for students to take a test without interruption or in a space that  will not be flagged by the proctoring system as without interruption. Take advantage of technologies that use low-stakes assessments to enact instructional approaches based in the science of learning, for instance, by using open-book Canvas quizzes to promote spaced practice or alternative assessments (e.g., Canvas discussions, essays, or projects) to encourage elaboration and deeper conceptual understanding.

  • Canvas

    • Add an academic integrity statement to each exam (in the directions or as a first question).
    • Add a password to the exam so that students don’t inadvertently start the exam when they don’t intend to.
    • Have questions appear one at a time.
    • Do not release questions for review after the exam is completed.

  • Respondus Monitor

    • CSU has a license for Respondus Monitor and their LockDown Browser product for Spring 2020. More information available at the CSU Canvas Proctored Exams page.

  • ProctorU

    • CSU will be making ProctorU services available for all Canvas courses. The expanded ProctorU Auto license is for a set amount of exams. Instructors are asked to use ProctorU only for higher stakes items, such as mid terms and finals.

  • WebAssign

  • Alternatives for Small Classes

    • Open book/open note but with a set time
    • One-on-one exams with students for small classes (would need to utilize a video or phone conferencing system)

Tips and Tricks

External Resources