Faculty Focus

MARCH 18, 2025

While many of our conversations have focused on what generative AI means for student assignments and learning outcomes, there’s another question faculty are askingoften individually and quietly: How can we leverage AI in our own academic and administrative work? Then, share the assignment prompt. And more importantly, should we?

Assignments 64

Assignments Testing Course Design Writing 64

Faculty Focus

DECEMBER 8, 2024

Instructors are encouraged to take small steps to start building HIPs in their curriculums, and there are some HIPs which are easy to incorporate into an existing course. One of the most accessible practices on this list might be collaborative assignments and projects. Emphasize the importance of each component or stage.

Assignments 87

Assignments Instructors Critical Thinking Activities 87

Edsurge

APRIL 8, 2020

For instance, instructors can ask students to post a one-sentence summary or brief reflection after going through an assigned reading or watching a short video lecture. Experts in online teaching have been debating and researching the question of synchronous versus asynchronous for decades.

Teaching 218

Teaching Instructors Distance Learning Lecturing 218

Ask a Tech Teacher

FEBRUARY 7, 2022

All classes follow an easy-to-use course design: establish goals–what students will learn by the end of the class. Writing Prompts. Effective Writing Prompts for All Students. You can watch the video, rewatch, submit assignments and assessments when you’re ready. assess success at completion.

Teaching 179

Teaching Education Learning Assignments 179

Faculty Focus

JUNE 2, 2024

Most of our grade was supposed to come from a single class project, but no assignment instructions were ever posted. But what about this assignment that was worth so much of our grade? When students know the purpose of the work they’re being asked to do, they have greater buy-in than if they see the assignment as mere “busy work.”

Syllabus 131

Syllabus Course Design Learning Students 131

Edsurge

MARCH 7, 2024

That’s an approach that’s grown over the past decade or so where colleges try to harness the digital breadcrumbs left by students as they move through digital platforms and online course materials to find patterns that can improve course design and even personalize material for individual students. “AI

Intelligence 212

Intelligence Syllabus Feedback Assignments 212

Edsurge

NOVEMBER 20, 2018

Students cheating on assignments is hardly a new or surprising problem. In research and surveys conducted by Dr. Donald McCabe and the International Center for Academic Integrity over the span of 12 years, 68 percent of undergraduates who responded admitted to cheating on tests or written assignments.

Academic Integrity 148

Academic Integrity Exams Assignments Instructors 148

Faculty Focus

MAY 7, 2024

With a commitment to ensuring educational excellence and student success, in 2020, UF CJC Online developed a comprehensive course design strategy to elevate its online courses, a mission mandated by the State University System of Florida’s 2025 Strategic Plan for Online Education.

Feedback 120

Feedback Course Design Instructors Education 120

Faculty Focus

JUNE 2, 2024

Most of our grade was supposed to come from a single class project, but no assignment instructions were ever posted. But what about this assignment that was worth so much of our grade? When students know the purpose of the work they’re being asked to do, they have greater buy-in than if they see the assignment as mere “busy work.”

Syllabus 108

Syllabus Course Design Learning Students 108

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 8, 2023

But since the grammar assistants in my word processors often flag what is already correct and miss what I wish they should have caught, I’ve never felt AI writing was advancing very quickly. I’ve seen it create (in a flash) movie scripts and comic strips, sonnets and grant proposals, graduate course syllabi and lessons.

Metacognitive Skills 138

Metacognitive Skills Ethics Writing Plagiarism 138

Faculty Focus

MAY 7, 2024

With a commitment to ensuring educational excellence and student success, in 2020, UF CJC Online developed a comprehensive course design strategy to elevate its online courses, a mission mandated by the State University System of Florida’s 2025 Strategic Plan for Online Education.

Feedback 110

Feedback Course Design Instructors Education 110

Faculty Focus

AUGUST 4, 2024

A lightboard is a large glass panel coupled with technology that allows an instructor to write or draw on a large surface (McCorkle & Whitener, 2020). Instructors who use a Lightboard to create instruction for asynchronous online learning can replicate what they would do in a traditional classroom when they draw or write on a whiteboard.

Online Learning 111

Online Learning Learning Tools Instructors Learning 111

Faculty Focus

NOVEMBER 3, 2022

As a writing teacher, I’ve discovered that counseling writers to sequence details logically does more for their writing, their readers, and their intellectual development than encouraging them to take risks or to make art. Not just in story writing but in all writing and most thinking. Magna Publications.

Teaching 111

Teaching Writing Assignments Intellectual Development 111

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 21, 2025

Trusting students does not mean ignoring accountability; it means designing courses, policies, and practices that build their confidence and skills while treating them as equal partners in their education. Transparent policies: Clearly outline expectations while building flexibility. 2014; Agarwal, 2019).

Plagiarism 120

Plagiarism Syllabus Ethics Feedback 120

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 21, 2024

Flexible policies such as dropping the lowest quiz/assignment score and offering one free pass for a “no-questions-asked” due-date extension can reduce anxiety and logistical rigor. This type of intellectual rigor is desirable in course design. Lastly, we map the various due dates onto a calendar.

Syllabus 132

Syllabus Exams Students Motivation 132

Faculty Focus

AUGUST 4, 2024

A lightboard is a large glass panel coupled with technology that allows an instructor to write or draw on a large surface (McCorkle & Whitener, 2020). Instructors who use a Lightboard to create instruction for asynchronous online learning can replicate what they would do in a traditional classroom when they draw or write on a whiteboard.

Online Learning 98

Online Learning Learning Tools Instructors Learning 98

Scholarly Teacher

NOVEMBER 20, 2024

One theme on building critical consciousness explored in our program is the presence of implicit linguistic biases in course syllabi and assignment designs. Savini suggests that we ask ourselves what makes someone else’s writing unclear to us. What does the language in the syllabus/assignment assume about students (e.g.,

Teaching 98

Teaching Instructors English Languages 98

Faculty Focus

NOVEMBER 3, 2022

As a writing teacher, I’ve discovered that counseling writers to sequence details logically does more for their writing, their readers, and their intellectual development than encouraging them to take risks or to make art. Not just in story writing but in all writing and most thinking. Magna Publications.

Teaching 96

Teaching Writing Assignments Intellectual Development 96

Faculty Focus

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

This faculty member may give exams and may collect student artifacts, such as projects or papers, but the faculty really doesn’t connect student performance with the course design or classroom experience. During one particular total football practice, Ted assigns each player the name of another player.

Feedback 126

Feedback Course Design Assignments Evaluation 126

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 18, 2024

In preparing that first course, I focused on what I thought were the essentials of teaching: finalizing the syllabus, picking the readings, and writing the assignments. You could also integrate videos or podcasts into your course materials, in addition to assigning readings. Encourage student participation.

Teaching 119

Teaching Syllabus Feedback Instructors 119

Edsurge

MARCH 29, 2017

They visually demonstrate how students will complete assignments and apply learning in the real world. However, you can think of a pedagogically rich online course like a balanced meal that should strive to provide at least a serving of each. “Demonstrate” videos illustrate how to do something in a step-by-step way.

Instructors 146

Instructors Education Lecturing Knowledge 146

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 8, 2023

But since the grammar assistants in my word processors often flag what is already correct and miss what I wish they should have caught, I’ve never felt AI writing was advancing very quickly. I’ve seen it create (in a flash) movie scripts and comic strips, sonnets and grant proposals, graduate course syllabi and lessons.

Metacognitive Skills 98

Metacognitive Skills Ethics Writing Plagiarism 98

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 17, 2023

Seeber in The Slow Professor write that faculty are in a state of “time poverty” (2016, p. Faced with the stress of having too much to do, faculty are impoverished as they rush to design assignments to outwit ChatGPT, an AI chatbot that can write essays, or figure out how to get students to come to virtual office hours.

eLearning 111

eLearning Interdisciplinary Plagiarism Assignments 111

Gaggle Speaks

MAY 8, 2015

Think about how science classrooms are arranged much differently than writing or math classrooms. Design is an important factor to student success, but with more classrooms expanding online, it’s worth considering how the design of learning spaces should begin to expand as well. Assignment Organization.

Learning Spaces 83

Learning Spaces Hybrid Courses Learning Assignments 83

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 18, 2024

In preparing that first course, I focused on what I thought were the essentials of teaching: finalizing the syllabus, picking the readings, and writing the assignments. You could also integrate videos or podcasts into your course materials, in addition to assigning readings. Encourage student participation.

Teaching 111

Teaching Syllabus Feedback Instructors 111

Edsurge

NOVEMBER 16, 2017

But the two faculty unions, the university’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors, and the EMU Federation of Teachers, which represents adjuncts, say that the company is involved in many aspects of course design and could bring in outside online coaches for students without faculty oversight.

Teaching Assistants 118

Teaching Assistants Instructors Coaching Counselling 118

Faculty Focus

APRIL 6, 2023

Yes, ChatGPT could write it and it might look a little like this: My philosophy of teaching is centered on the belief that all students have the potential to learn and succeed. Faculty members need a philosophy of teaching statement when applying for jobs and throughout their time in higher education.

Teaching Philosophy 111

Teaching Philosophy Teaching Beliefs Universal Design 111

Faculty Focus

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

This faculty member may give exams and may collect student artifacts, such as projects or papers, but the faculty really doesn’t connect student performance with the course design or classroom experience. During one particular total football practice, Ted assigns each player the name of another player.

Feedback 111

Feedback Course Design Assignments Evaluation 111

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 21, 2025

Trusting students does not mean ignoring accountability; it means designing courses, policies, and practices that build their confidence and skills while treating them as equal partners in their education. Transparent policies: Clearly outline expectations while building flexibility. 2014; Agarwal, 2019).

Plagiarism 98

Plagiarism Syllabus Ethics Feedback 98

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 11, 2024

I read course materials, created assignments, and graded student work in my free time. Simplifying assignments. Over the last two semesters, I’ve been experimenting with simplifying assignments and even eliminating some entirely.  Do I really need them all? Turns out, I don’t.

Assignments 111

Assignments Elementary School Elementary School Grades 111

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 11, 2024

I read course materials, created assignments, and graded student work in my free time. Simplifying assignments. Over the last two semesters, I’ve been experimenting with simplifying assignments and even eliminating some entirely.  Do I really need them all? Turns out, I don’t.

Assignments 111

Assignments Elementary School Elementary School Grades 111

Edsurge

MARCH 7, 2017

In fall 2016, Mote integrated the MyWays framework into Cortex so that when creating an assignment or assessment, a teacher could select the specific quadrant and competencies being targeted. In some cases, the framework’s quadrants are central to course design, impacting curriculum, instruction and the student experience.

Schools 141

Schools Laboratory Languages Language 141

Faculty Focus

NOVEMBER 29, 2022

We can activate students’ prior knowledge with: quizzes and exercises to reach back to concepts and learning covered earlier in the course, as well as covered in previously required courses. students spending 10 minutes before starting a topic sitting with a blank piece of paper on which to write everything they know about the topic.

Knowledge 126

Knowledge Quizzes Students Learning 126

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 30, 2024

The collaboration consists of exploring future course content through think/pair/share exercises (sometimes writing a response on a small white board and holding it up) or responding to mini-research prompts.

Syllabus 124

Syllabus Lecturing Discussions Science 124

Faculty Focus

DECEMBER 15, 2024

When times abundant, some teachers read books like Wiggins and McTighes Understanding by Design , a thoughtful, research-based system. But as I write this article in mid-December, the reality is there are papers and projects to grade, events to attend, holidays to celebrate, and a short break before spring courses commence.

Syllabus 107

Syllabus Exams Course Outline Attention 107

Edsurge

MAY 16, 2024

She’s also director of the Center for Teaching Excellence there, which provides faculty with support for instruction, edtech, course design, classroom management and grading. And they immediately wanted to write those students off. They were frustrated with them, they wanted nothing to do with them.

Students 201

Students Instructors Lecturing Participation 201

Faculty Focus

JANUARY 17, 2023

Seeber in The Slow Professor write that faculty are in a state of “time poverty” (2016, p. Faced with the stress of having too much to do, faculty are impoverished as they rush to design assignments to outwit ChatGPT, an AI chatbot that can write essays, or figure out how to get students to come to virtual office hours.

eLearning 98

eLearning Interdisciplinary Plagiarism Assignments 98