Winter Professional Enrichment Opportunities from the Center for Instructional Innovation & Assessment

January 10, 2018

This quarter's Professional Enrichment Opportunities from the Center for Instructional Innovation & Assessment:

Winter Quarter line-up from ATUS Teaching, Learning, & Technology:

  1. MONDAY MORNING MENTOR: Online teaching strategy videos - Watch within the week, or join us to watch+snacks and discussion.
    Monday mornings throughout Fall Quarter, 11:30-12:15, Haggard Hall 154 (Faculty Drop-in Center)
    Each week, we publish a new 20-minute video link that is accessible for 7 days; the script and supplemental materials persist on our Canvas Monday Morning Mentor site (Join this Course to view). Sponsored by the Center for Instructional Innovation and Extended Education.
    • 1/29: How Do I Create the Ideal Learning Environment for Modern Learners?
    • 2/5: How Can I Teach Routine Courses with Energy and Enthusiasm?
    • 2/12: How Can I Use Controversial Issues to Build Cognitive Skills in My Students?
    • 2/19 (Online only due to the holiday): How Can I Leverage Force Multipliers in the Classroom?
    • 2/26: How Do I Create Social Presence in my Online Classes?
    • 3/5: How Do I Effectively Review Online Courses and Programs for Quality?
    • 3/12: How Can I Make My Multiple-Choice Tests More Effective?
    • 3/19: How Can I Be an Effective Mentor?
  2. EMPOWERING TECH: Print - Rising from the Dead
    Wed., Jan. 17, 4-5, Haggard Hall 154 (Faculty Drop-in Center) [WWU users: Add to Outlook]
    Print is one of the oldest forms of mass communication, even in the digital age, yet can still be a powerful and extremely effective method of communicating. Explore the basics of producing printed material such as posters, flyers, and booklets using a variety of simple-to-use and readily-available tools. Join Kevin Dixey for this session, part of the “EMPOWERING TECH” series, where you will learn about ideas and tools to better organize for positive change.
  3. LEARNING TECH GROUP: Making Your Course Accessible
    Tues., Jan. 23, 1-1:50, Haggard Hall 154 (Faculty Drop-in Center) [WWU users: Add to Outlook]
    Western is committed to providing accessibility on the web for people with disabilities. Updating syllabi and course content in the Canvas LMS is not only important, it's also required. Join ATUS Instructional Technologist Chris Powell for an informative look in how you can make changes to your current content and better reach all of your students.
  4. WORKSHOP: Design & Development of Online Testing
    Fri. Feb. 2, 2-3, Haggard Hall 154 (Faculty Drop-in Center) [WWU users: Add to Outlook]
    Are your online quizzes versatile, valid, and reliable? Using traditional assessment design and assessment techniques in conjunction with the Canvas built-in item analysis tools, you can improve your methods of measuring student learning. Join Michael Wilder, ATUS Assistant Director, and Justina Brown, instructional designer, for this collaborative presentation and learn how canvas quiz analysis can estimate reliability, difficulty, and discrimination for your multiple choice and true/false questions.
  5. PANEL DISCUSSION: Faculty Course Transformations via the Summer Grant
    Wed. Feb. 7, 2-3:30, Haggard Hall 154 (Faculty Drop-in Center [WWU users: Add to Outlook]
    Looking to transform a course using blended, online, flipped, alternative text, or other strategies? Please join us to get ideas and to learn more about the summer grant. With a reunion of 2017 “Summer Grant” participants, we will discuss course transformations that were implemented as a result of this grant work. Justina Brown will be available to answer questions for those interested in participating in the June 2018 Summer Grant Workshops.
  6. LEARNING TECH GROUP: Leveraging Mobile Tools in the Classroom
    Fri. Feb. 16, 12-12:50, Haggard Hall 154 (Faculty Drop-in Center) [WWU users: Add to Outlook]
    When students pay more attention to their phones than the world around them, what are some ways you can engage your students with course material and each other? ATUS instructional designers, Justina Brown and Kevin Dixey,   will discuss new ways to collaborate in the classroom using digital technologies readily available to instructors at Western. These tools include the new Canvas Teacher App, Office 365 (OneNote Class Notebook), G Suite, and the Socrative Pro student response tool--as well as some of the built-in collaborative options in Canvas.
  7. EMPOWERING TECH: MacGyverTech - Using the Tools You Have on You
    Wed., Feb. 21, 3-4, Haggard Hall 154 (Faculty Drop-in Center) [WWU users: Add to Outlook]
    Did you know that your mobile phone can be a voice-activated personal assistant to help with your work and teaching tasks? This, and many other helpful ideas, are all part of MacGyverTech, a presentation that shines the light on ways to level-up the technology you carry with you. Join ATUS Instructional Technologists AJ Barse and Chris Powell on an hour-long trip through the lesser-known capabilities of Windows and Mac computers and Android and iOS phones. Join us for this session, part of the “EMPOWERING TECH” series, where you will learn about ideas and tools to better organize for positive change.
  8. WEBINAR: Incorporating 360-Degree Assessment into Your Classroom
    Wed. Feb. 28, 10-11, Haggard Hall 154 (Faculty Drop-in Center) [WWU users: Add to Outlook]
    Join us as we tune in to watch this webinar, led by Oliver Dreon, PhD, Associate Professor & Director of the Center for Academic Excellent at Millersville University of Pennsylvania. The goal of formative assessment is to monitor student learning and provide feedback, so students can grow and develop. But where should that feedback originate? Traditional formative assessment strategies involve instructor assessment, peer feedback, or self-reflection. 360-degree assessment is an improved approach that combines all three of these assessment strategies to support a greater culture of growth and foster student ownership and critical thinking skills. After the live event, WWU will have access to this recording and supplemental materials for one year.

Remember to utilize the Faculty Drop-in Center dedicated support space for instructional technologies and design, small group trainings, or individualized instruction on technologies provided by Western, including Canvas, Relay 5 (lecture-capture software), web-conferencing options, and response systems. Faculty may use the space by:

  • Using Drop-in Hours: Mondays 3-4:30 and Thursdays 10-11:30
  • Making Appointments: TLT.FDIC@wwu.edu
  • Taking Chances: Just stop by!