Description Traditionally, student learning has been recognized and stored through the official transcript. However, transcripts are limited to credit hour instruction and formal learning. Digital badges are a form of digital credentialing that recognizes learning in a range of learning environments and often smaller increments of learning. They have become increasingly popular as a way …
Continue reading “Use Digital Badges to Scaffold and Guide Student Learning”
Related Tags:
Cocurricular Learning,
Digital Badges,
Information Literacy,
Microcredentials,
Microlearning,
peer-reviewed entry
Description This strategy consists of sharing content-related announcements (either via email or through the Learning Management System) to help students see how topics being addressed at various points throughout the term are connected. This strategy is useful because online students value the clarity of information presented in the course (Sheridan, 2010), and courses that poorly …
Continue reading “Using Class Announcements to Make Content Connections Across Weeks or Units”
Related Tags:
Announcements,
Content,
Online,
peer-reviewed entry
Description Case-based learning is often used in social science classes, as well as in other disciplines. This can be challenging to implement online. By dividing a class into smaller groups, and assigning a separate discussion board to each group, the groups can do their planning asynchronously and completely online, while the instructor has a complete …
Continue reading “Use Discussion Boards, Google Docs, and Pages Tool for Online, Case-based, Collaborative learning”
Related Tags:
Case method,
Concept,
Google Docs,
Instructional model,
Interaction,
Method,
online discussions,
peer-reviewed entry,
Process,
Tool
Description Traditionally, feedback on student work is a one-way communication from instructor to student. Due to the inherent complexity of unilateral feedback, students may feel emotional and psychological impacts, a lack of power or autonomy, or demotivation. Re-engineering this process to include student-instructor dialogue in order to break down one-way flow provides space for interactive …
Continue reading “Disrupt the One-Way Street of Feedback to Encourage Reflective Practice”
Related Tags:
Assessment,
Feedback,
Metacognition,
peer-reviewed entry,
reflective practice
Description Educators are encouraged to provide informative feedback to students as a way of pointing out errors in hopes that students will take action to adapt their mental models and identify gaps in learning or misunderstanding. When students are receptive of this feedback, it becomes one of the most powerful influences on learning and achievement …
Continue reading “Use Criteria Starters to Develop Rubrics Based on Knowledge Levels to Provide Accurate Feedback to Students”
Related Tags:
Assessment,
Bloom's Taxonomy,
Criteria,
Feedback,
peer-reviewed entry,
Rubric
Description Student introductions are a high-impact practice: they build community within the course, set the stage for more substantive forms of student-student and student-instructor engagement, and can reveal unknown issues or strengths on the part of students (Dolan, Kain, Reilly, & Bansal, 2017). Building community in online classes (Nelson & Goodson, 2018) through introductions helps …
Continue reading “Create Intentional Communities through Meaningful Student Introductions”
Related Tags:
Assignments,
Course Content,
discussions,
Engagement,
equity,
Interaction,
Introduction,
peer-reviewed entry,
quizzes,
Social Presence,
Support
Description Online learning can cause students to miss the peer-to-peer connectiveness of the face-to-face classroom and feel isolated in their studies, which can lead to lower motivation, achievement, and retention in online classes (Angelino, Williams, & Natvig, 2007; Kanuka & Jugdev, 2006). To remedy students’ feelings of isolation, discussion forums are commonly utilized by instructors …
Continue reading “Implement Student Video Introductions to Foster Social Presence”
Related Tags:
Discussion,
expectations,
Interaction,
Introduction,
LMS,
peer-reviewed entry,
Rubric,
video introduction
Description Learning management systems provide different ways to deliver content. Linking presentations, uploading documents, and embedding articles make course materials easily accessible to all students. Embedding or linking videos in an LMS can also be effective content delivery methods, however, whether or not the videos are engaging or even watched is often an issue. According …
Continue reading “Deliver Content Using Short, Focused, Instructional Videos”
Related Tags:
Conceptual Knowledge,
Content,
content creation,
Lecture,
LMS,
Multimedia,
Multimedia Learning,
peer-reviewed entry,
Video
Description Approximately about half of students entering Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) change majors or leave college without completing a degree or certificate (Chen & Soldner, 2013). Researchers found that one of the main contributors for students to switch to non-STEM majors is the type of math courses taken in the first year (Chen …
Continue reading “Adopting Adaptive Courseware in First Year Online Math Course to Support STEM Retention”
Related Tags:
adaptive learning,
ALEKS,
algebra,
Content,
peer-reviewed entry,
STEM
