This course aims to help learners build skills in critical thinking, self advocacy, and navigating support services, as well as to empower them to utilize their strengths for their academic success.
Details: Approximately 30 undergraduate students, 8 week online course on Brightspace LMS
As faculty I'm required to:
Engage with students in discussion boards weekly
Grade assignments
Outreach to learners who are having challenges with participation or assignments
Create announcements once per week: I choose to do them 3x, on Mondays, Thursdays, and Sundays (see samples of my video announcements below!)
I've been trying out the creation of videos for my Monday and Thursday announcements. The videos are optional for learners to watch or listen to instead of or in addition to reading the text-based announcement. The video includes me talking through the announcement, but not word for word. It does not include any additional information beyond what is within the announcement. The videos do include auto-generated captions (not perfect but better than nothing).
While normally I'd recommend people NOT say a specific date in a video so they don't have to recreate the video each time the course runs, I did the opposite with my videos. I did this because I wanted the students to KNOW that I am actually creating these videos for them each week. Sure, I create them a day or two before it is posted, but I am doing so with the knowledge of how they are doing up to that point.
How I created them:
used Canva to create the thumbnails for the video
recorded using Microsoft Stream,
downloaded video file to then upload to YouTube
unlisted link shared within the announcement, as well as embedded video player to be able to watch within the course environment
📼 Visit the playlist I've created of all my announcement videos! 📼
Before the course began, I sent an announcement that included this video.
My first announcement... I get better at it! :)
Encouragement is key!
By this point I've figured out a setup for reading the announcement, and lighting is better.
Truly a highlight of 2020 for me! I was hired part-time as a co-instructor for the online course, EDT 180: Technology Literacy- Problem Solving with Digital Technology Applications.
My love of teaching was further ignited, as I got to know 25 students over 7.5 weeks as their facilitator of learning the design thinking process, John Dewey's four impulses of education, and various technology tools to create video, infographics, and podcasts.
As part of a team of instructors, I've been able to suggest and implement changes to the course too.
We taught students to use Google Sites, as well as Google Drive folders, link sharing, and Docs, Sheets, and Slides. It was a joy to see their growth as they progressed through the course!
We also used FlipGrid for video/audio discussions. Students did have options to not show their face when using this technology. The engagement levels increased with the use of this tool, as students liked seeing each other as a way to connect.
I've taught this online course in the following semesters:
Fall B 2020
Spring B 2021
Fall B 2021
Below is a sample video I created. I used Canva to create the thumbnail image. This was a welcome video I shared with students so they could put a face with the name they saw as their instructor.