This summer in my graduate work I’ve been diving into the question of learner engagement. Teachers intuitively know that engagement is important, but it’s often a struggle to know how to build learner engagement or even how to define it. Like Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s 1964 definition of obscenity, we sometimes say about engagement, […]
Graphic design isn’t a skill that we teach in education courses. After all, when would a teacher need to dabble in layout? However, when a teacher moves into online learning or even blended learning, graphic design becomes an absolutely critical skill. In today’s world, being able to create a page that clearly communicates information while […]
This semester I’m taking a course at Boise State University called Graphic Design for Learning. The course focuses on best practices for creating instructional graphics that help with learning in digital tools/online courses/texts. So far, the most mind-blowing fact I’ve learned is the potential impact of graphics on learning, both positive and negative. According to […]
I’ve come to realize that one of the biggest challenges of learning to create digital content is actually finding examples. All of our course content tends to live behind the walls of an LMS so it’s hard to see how someone else teaches (and learn how to do it!). In the video below, I’ve pulled […]
A tool that helps me schedule more time with my students? I’ll take it! I’ve talked before about being very picky about the tools I introduce in my classroom. They have to be really exceptional to get incorporated into my daily work habits. This spring a colleague shared one that’s amazing and I wanted to share it […]
Unfortunately during the school year there is very limited time for professional reading and that’s just the time when I most need encouragement and new ideas! Lately I’ve been attempting to be more deliberate with a dedicated time each week to focus on professional reading. One of the ways that I’m doing that is through […]
My absolute favorite tool lately is called Trello. Trello is a super flexible time management/project management tool. You can set up boards for different areas of your life like Work, Personal, etc. and then add lists within those boards. My Work board includes lists for ongoing projects, next action lists, someday projects, and done. It’s […]
A reader this week asked about what specific time tips I share with online students. What a great tie-in to a project I’ve been working on this year! I’ve been trying to add regular posts to my classes that specifically focus on how to be a better time manager and a better online student. The feedback from […]
My favorite teaching strategy in the last few months is so simple I’m almost afraid to share it on this blog. However, as with so many things, the simplest strategies seem to have the most impact and this one has been amazing. It’s a spreadsheet! In teaching online, there are so many different avenues of […]
This week I’m using Google Calendar to set up phone call appointments with my students who are currently in the 30-69% range in class. These are the “bubble students” who, with the right encouragement, will be able to pass for the semester. These phone calls are hopefully encouraging to them and also give them a […]
