Faculty Spotlights


 

Making Modules Work for You

One of my favorites is the Modules (…) a great way to organize a class.

Managing and Grading Student Work
Canvas provides “a one-stop platform to manage submission of written assignments, peer reviews, and grading, instead of the endless chain of emails with attached Word files.”
Studying Images
The Mirador image viewer allows instructors to 'post multiple angles of one object and students can manipulate the images (zooming in and out). Students can also study images side-by-side [and] learn objects in detail.'
Coordinating Teams, Grading Efficiently
Gradescope, which integrates with Canvas, “allows us to have students submit their homeworks online and provides just the right features for AIs to grade homeworks with maximal efficiency and consistency.”
The Importance of User-friendly Design
Canvas (has a) more user-friendly and more intuitive interface than Blackboard
Working Together With Canvas
We really like the Modules (and) the ease of student submissions online.
Encouraging Interactivity
Canvas should not be thought of as a repository of materials, but as a learning system where one can present the information in a more interactive way.
Speeding Things Up

Once you get to know your way around Canvas, the day-to-day management of a class is, at least in my experience, much smoother and quicker (than in Blackboard).

Check Attendance & Comprehension with iClicker Cloud

I use iClicker in my class for attendance and to check student understanding. In every class, I ask one or two multiple-choice questions to determine if students understand the concepts presented. Since this is to gauge their understanding, I don’t penalize them for incorrect answers.

Elicit Open-ended Feedback with Mentimeter

I used Mentimeter to create my lecture slides for my large introduction to moral philosophy class in the fall, and I am using it again this semester to create the lecture slides for my smaller environmental ethics class.

Collaborative Reading with Hypothesis

I use Hypothesis to engage students with the text in advance and to have a better sense of the themes we will address during the readings’ discussion. It helps to identify passages that we wish to spend more time on, to structure the class, and prepare additional material in advance.

Responding with Ed Discussion

I found Ed Discussion useful. In the large applied mathematics class that I teach, Ed served as a discussion tool and question and answer tool for students, in a format everyone can see.

Canvas as a One-Stop-Shop

Canvas provides a one-stop platform to create and administer writing assignments. My students submit their work and do peer reviews on Canvas. Not having to email back and forth to share Word attachments saves precious time.

Fast, Consistent, Transparent Grading

Using Gradescope last fall revolutionized the exam grading process for MOL 345. Whether the exams were in person or online, Gradescope made grading faster, more consistent, and more transparent.