CTL Monthly PD Workshop Descriptions

Wrapping up mid-term assessments and unsure of why your assessment did not yield the results you were anticipating?  Perhaps looking for ways to elevate your questions into higher cognitive levels or find alternative, authentic assessment options?  Drop in with your assessment for a conversation and some suggestions to get your results to where you envision them to be.

Setting up a discerning multiple-choice assessment can be a challenge for even the most seasoned educator.  In this session we will review tips and tricks to create multiple choice items that will provide appropriate discrimination between learners who have the knowledge and those who may “multiple guess”.

Short answer questions are a great way to get to the heart of learning, and can be used in diagnostic, formative and summative assessments in various ways.  In this session we will explore how to set-up short answer questions to target specific levels of assessments and understanding.

Understanding how memory creation and learning works is integral in developing lesson plans and study strategies that promote durable learning and ease of knowledge retrieval and application.  This session will focus on how educators can use the Science of Learning to encourage and support study strategies to promote deep and durable learning in preparation for midterm assessments and beyond.

Are you creating a lesson that is engaging and supportive of student learning?  Have you leveraged the Jumpstart lesson planning strategy, but are unsure if you have met the goals of this lesson planning process?  Perhaps you would just like to bounce some ideas around or have another set of eyes review your plan.  This session is for faculty who would like to have their initial lesson plans previewed and provided with constructive feedback ahead of deployment.  Pop in with your lesson plan or ideas in hand!

Struggling to figure out the best way to deliver content in a way that is both productive and engaging?  Have some ideas but not sure how to make them happen in a remote delivery format?  Pop in to have a brainstorming session and conversation on how to create active learning activities that will meet the academic needs of your course, while making learning engaging for your students.

Authentic assessments allow students to demonstrate learning using real-world problems/cases, projects, skills and/or tasks that are representative of what would be expected in that field. These types of assessments move away from the traditional test or exam, in favour of micro task assessments, leveraging professional resources, and scaffolding formative assessment tasks into a larger summative assessment. Join us to learn more about authentic assessment strategies and explore how you may be able to make the shift from traditional to authentic assessment practices to encourage creative, meaningful and relevant expression of learning from your students.

Rubrics are an essential tool for most assessment strategies. They let the students know how to be successful, ease grading, and remove subjectivity from the process; however, they don’t always work out as planned. If you have a rubric that is not performing the way you had hoped, pop into this session with your rubric and assignment for some troubleshooting and ideas for revision. Writing a great rubric takes time, practice and a lot of do-overs!

Delivering a relevant and well-constructed test or exam can reduce text anxiety, improve question comprehension, and be the difference in effectively evaluating the knowledge and understanding of your students. Unsure of how your test or exam is shaping up? Drop in with your assessment for a review, conversation and perhaps some suggestions to shape your test into one that will be relevant, discerning, and reflective of student learning.

Academic Integrity is becoming an increasing concern for educators across the institution. In this session we will discuss contract cheating, how to use Turnitin to your greatest advantage, and ways in which you can design assessments that support students in avoiding academically dishonest behaviours. There will also be an opportunity to answer your questions related to specific situations you have encountered.

Looking for ways to change up your assessments? Struggling to get your students to work to their greatest potential? Striving to have your students make connections between learning and application? Authentic assessments require students to demonstrate their learning in active, engaging and meaningful ways, often mimicking tasks they may encounter in their everyday lives or future careers. Join us to explore how you can begin to make the move away from traditional assessments, and design authentic assessments that challenge your students to “show what they know” in ways that are relevant to them (and perhaps even a bit of fun for you).

This session will demonstrate how to use Microsoft Teams to post your recorded session, create break-out sessions through channels, and use the assignments tab.

This collaborative session will provide faculty the opportunity to see advanced features inside of Microsoft Teams (such as breakout rooms), learn about new features coming to the platform, and participate in a question-and-answer period.

This session will demonstrate how to get started with using Zoom in DC Connect. Faculty will learn to run an effective synchronous session, schedule Zoom meetings, create breakout rooms, and the basic functionality of Zoom.

This collaborative session will allow faculty to see advanced features inside of Zoom, learn about new features coming to the platform, and participate in a group discussion with other faculty members using Zoom.

This session will provide an overview for Windows users, of how to create videos for your course.  Methods for creating the following types of videos will be discussed: slide show recording, screen recording, as well as a demonstration or “talking head” video.  This session will also cover captioning and sharing videos.

This session will provide an overview for Mac users, of how to create videos for your course.  Methods for creating the following types of videos will be discussed: slide show recording, screen recording, as well as a demonstration or “talking head” video.  This session will also cover captioning and sharing videos.

H5P is a great tool that would allow faculty members to add more dynamic content quickly to their courses, no technical skills necessary. This introductory session will provide a brief overview of eCampus Ontario’s H5P Studio website, including steps to create an interactive drag and drop learning activity from start to finish.

In this session we will explore the versatility of Sway as a digital storytelling platform that can accomplish many educational aims such as active learning, collaboration, and assessment. We will learn how to navigate the Sway interface, add images and videos, stack and group cards, and customize layouts. If you're interested in learning how to bring innovation to your teaching, explore Sway with us!

Padlet is a digital collaboration space and a community space where students can visualize their thinking; its interface is simple and yet this simplicity does not limit its versatility. We will explore the various Padlet formats and brainstorm how to use each type of visual representation of thinking in our classes. Join us to explore how to use Padlet as an interactive tool to engage your learners and help them visualize their thinking.

In this session we will review how to use the game-based platform Kahoot! We will explore some common features such as multi-select answers, polling, open-ended questions, and word clouds. We will connect the functionality of Kahoot to the science of learning and examine various use cases. So, if you are interested in learning more about Kahoot or if you have experience with Kahoot in your class and would like to share your expertise, please join us for a fun and engaging session.

Are you looking for an EdTech tool to support your digital organization? Are you trying to find a collaborative whiteboard space to support active learning in your classes? Look no further than Microsoft OneNote. Join the CTL to explore the functionality of Microsoft OneNote. We will be investigating how to create a OneNote notebook and a OneNote class notebook, how to organize notes, how to add content to the notebook, and how to share notebooks. We will also explore use cases for OneNote such as a class notetaking tool, feedback tool, whiteboard tool, and a collaborative space

Learn how to utilize the advanced features of OneNote such as the math assistant, page templates, internal links, and so much more. We will also explore various use cases for OneNote in our teaching and learning.

This introductory session will look at how some of the tools you’re already using can be utilized for basic video capture, editing and sharing.

This session will include:

• A brief discuss on how Teams, Zoom or a mobile device can be used to capture video
• How PowerPoint can be used for basic video editing such as trimming, transitions, combining clips and adding titles
• How to share a video using OneDrive
• DC Connect’s Video Note tool

Drop in to discuss anything related to educational technology with a member of the Centre for Teaching and Learning and fellow faculty members.

This session will demonstrate how to use both Microsoft Teams and Zoom so you can choose which platform is most appropriate for your course. We will cover how to run an effective synchronous session, schedule meetings in Zoom, start a video call in Teams, create breakout rooms, and the basic functionality of using both platforms.

This session will walk faculty through the process for copying and updating your course(s) for the winter semester. This session will cover the following recommendations: https://devcourses.durhamcollege.ca/ctl/educational-tech/updating-your-courses/

This introductory-level session will introduce features of DC Connect that help to support students.  In discussing features like Release Conditions and Intelligent Agents we will be changing our focus from content delivery and direct student interaction and instead looking at ways to guide students in their learning using DC Connect and assisting students who need it. The Pulse App will also be introduced.

This intermediate-level session will introduce the Discussions tool and the Groups tool in DC Connect. Participants are expected to have a basic familiarity with DC Connect prior to attending this session. This session will take a closer look at how instructors can use the Discussions tool in DC Connect to interact with students and promote collaboration. In addition to settings for discussion on DC Connect, usage ideas and facilitation methods will be discussed. This session will also explore how to create groups and manage online group discussions.

This introductory-level session will provide an overview of DC Connect and some of its most essential features and is strongly recommended based on Durham College's Learning Management System Use policy. This session will provide hands-on training on the DC Connect user interface as well as how to add and manage content within your course. Participants will have the opportunity to explore and experiment with the Announcements tool, with the Content tool, and with copying components from one course to another.

The percentage of mobile devices (smart phones and tablets) among college students continues to rise. DC Connect is now much more mobile friendly, with a cleaner and fully functional user experience. As more students are interacting with their course content and activities through their phones, it is important that your content is easily available.

The use of templates creates a consistent course experience for your students. A consistent visual experience helps learners understand the flow of your course. In addition to consistency, use of templates create visual appeal. By applying simple formatting to your content, you increase user engagement. If it is easy to read, your students are more likely to read it.

Are you having any difficulties adding the different template components to your course content or just have questions about using the Template? If you answered yes to any of those questions, then please come join for this drop-in session.

(NOTE: The content explored in this session extends naturally from Using DC Connect Templates and Using DC Connect Templates Drop-In sessions. It is strongly recommended that learners attend either of those sessions prior to registering for this session!)

Have you used our DC Connect template but never explored using the existing interactive elements to better organize your content? When using the interactive elements, have you wished there was a way to customize them without knowing html code? Then please join us for a workshop focusing on how incorporate these interactive elements into your content; and how to use a NEW INTERACTIVE QUIZ TOOL that can be added directly to your content pages as formative assessment.

This introductory-level session will introduce the Assignments tool in DC Connect. The Assignments tool enables faculty to create folders where students can submit their assignments electronically. Faculty can also view and download student submissions and return them with grades and feedback. This session will cover how to configure Assignment Submission Folders and discuss best practices for their use.

This intermediate-level session will introduce the Quizzes tool in DC Connect. Participants are expected to have a basic familiarity with DC Connect prior to attending this session.

The Quizzes tool is used to create and manage quizzes. Various types of quiz questions may be utilized and many can be graded automatically. Quizzes may be used for assessment or for review. Quizzes can be shared between courses or faculty via the Import/Export/Copy Components feature of DC Connect. This session will cover the basic configuration of quizzes and several question types, as well as grading options, security and permissions for quizzes.

This introductory-level session will introduce the Grades tool in DC Connect and is strongly recommended based on Durham College's Learning Management System Use policy. The Grades tool is a powerful mechanism for record student performance. Faculty can set up a gradebook that reflects their approach to evaluation. They can control the grading formula used to calculate grades; how projects, assignments, tests, etc., are graded; and when grades are released to students and what information they see. This session will cover how to configure the Grades tool and discuss best practices for its use.

The course outline lays the blueprint for the assessment of a course and faculty are required to create a gradebook in DC Connect that reflects the evaluation criteria described by it. Where do Pass/Fail courses fit into this picture? Also, the Evaluation Notes can describe policies for missed assessments and student friendly re-weighting opportunities that seem incompatible with the basic function of the tool.

Fortunately, there are more options and flexibility in the Grades tool than might appear at first glance. In this workshop faculty will learn processes for creating Pass/Fail gradebooks as well as how to re-weight grade items at the student level.

The tools available in DC Connect can be associated with each other so that information passes from one to another. Assessment associations and release conditions are how we make this happen. Combining tools together can increase productivity and student engagement. Assignment submission folders are commonly associated with Grade Items, but did you know you can...

• Associate a rubric with a Discussion topic?
• Control access to an assignment submission folder with a Checklist?
• Reward high achieving students with automated positive messaging?
• In this workshop, participants will:
• Create and attach release conditions to content and activities.
• Associate Rubrics with assignment folders, discussion topics, and grade items.
• Control student access to an assignment submission folder with a Checklist.

In the absence of these tools, how would you manage your course with a comparable level of personalized communication? What would the work be for all this, just in time? A manual process is costly. If 45 minutes per learner is saved by using them, and 40 learners are in your course, that’s 1800 minutes or 30 hours per course. There is an upfront time investment, but with significant return. Energy can be focused on teaching, not administration.

A rubric is a grading tool that divides the assigned work into component parts and provides clear descriptions of the expectations associated with each component, at varying levels of mastery.  A well-designed rubric can reduce instructor subjectivity, provide a guide to students as to what is expected, act as a learning tool, and reduce the time spent in marking!  This session will discuss best practices in developing rubrics and how to configure rubrics in the DC Connect Rubrics tool.

This advanced-level session will introduce the Rubrics tool in DC Connect. Participants are expected to have a strong familiarity with DC Connect, including a basic understanding of the Assignments tool, prior to attending this session.

This is an open session where participants can ask questions they may have regarding the creation of course outlines, or regarding webCOT in general.

Preparing submission of your course outline and/or outlines for Spring? Responding to an action item from Comprehensive Program Review (CPR) and curriculum mapping? Join me and we will get you off on the right foot to begin writing strong and clear course learning outcomes (CLOs)!

Come prepared to engage with me and others to review the best practice for writing CLOs and critique existing CLOs (from other colleges, of course!).  This will be an interactive workshop – jot down a few preliminary ideas/expectations of the students for your course (your beginning thoughts for CLOs) to share with the group and be open to receiving and providing constructive feedback to others!

Always wondered why we map courses to program learning outcomes (PLOs) and course learning outcomes (CLOs) to PLOs? Always wondered how? Have you been invited to participate in curriculum mapping in the Comprehensive Program Review (CPR) process and not quite sure what curriculum mapping entails? Come join me to explore the wild and wonderful world of curriculum geek-dom where we will explore the why and provide an opportunity for you to demonstrate the how through the Curriculum Mapping Application (CMA)! No additional props needed from you, come willing to discuss, test and share openly!

Preparing submission of your course outline and/or outlines for Spring? Responding to an action item from Comprehensive Program Review (CPR) and curriculum mapping? Join me and we will get you off on the right foot to begin mapping the EESs! Come prepared to engage with me and others to enter the curriculum geek-dom to review the best practice for mapping the EESs across the program and in individual courses!

Are you a Comprehensive Program Review (CPR) Lead or Program Coordinator that will be starting the CPR process this Spring? Join me to review the CPR process and what to expect over the course of the year.

Are you a Comprehensive Program Review (CPR) Lead or Program Coordinator that will be writing the final CPR report this spring? Join me to review the final steps of the CPR process and review some written examples.

This session is targeted to Program Coordinators and Administrative Coordinators who are completing Major Change forms for POS changes for 2021 consideration.

This session will walk you through the process of exporting your midterm grades from DC Connect to Banner.

At the completion of this workshop, participants should be able to:

• Review the set-up of grades in DC Connect;
• Export the Final Calculated Grade from DC Connect to Banner as a Midterm Grade;
• Confirm the Midterm Grades in MyCampus.

This drop-in session will walk you through the process of exporting final grades to Banner. At the completion of this session, participants will be able to:

• Verify whether grades are visible to your students or not;
• Review setup of final grades and edit final grades, and
• Export grades to Banner from DC Connect.