Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from April, 2020

How Colleges Can Improve Accessibility In Remote Courses

Colleges have long had offices designed to support students who have learning disabilities and to encourage broader accessibility in the classroom and beyond. But now that so many students are taking courses remotely, in improvised environments that may not be especially conducive to learning, it may take some extra effort to redesign instruction, assignments and assessments to address everyone’s needs. After all, “it's not just enough to put materials in Blackboard if it's not going to be accessible,” says Jennifer Albat, instructional designer at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville. On the latest installment of our monthly online discussion forum, EdSurge Live , we explored accessibility in this unusual era of emergency remote teaching. We heard from Albat and Stephanie Del Tufo, assistant professor in the School of Education at the University of Delaware, who studies individual differences in learning, language and literacy. They dug into the principles of univer

Q&A: A Virtual Chat with a Few of Our Teaching Professor Conference Presenters

The Teaching Professor Conference is an event where educators who are passionate about the art and science of teaching gather every year. This year, the education realm has been abruptly disrupted, but this has not prevented teachers from adding to their teaching repertoire, providing untold support to their students, and most of all, supporting one another. Now, we hope our virtual Teaching Professor Conference will surround you with the (virtual) company of like-minded educators, where you’ll engage in presentations designed to hone your pedagogy, drive higher student achievement, and advance your professional development. The virtual Teaching Professor Conference will give you access to on-demand delivery of 50+ concurrent sessions, and there’s even an opportunity for you to virtually attend live preconference workshops ! Below, we’ve asked a few of our presenters what key take-aways you’ll gain from their session, and we’ve also come across a few unexpected facts about our presen

From private to public school: A college counselor straddles an economic divide

SAN RAFAEL, Calif. — When California schools closed on March 13 in response to the coronavirus, college counselor Brad Ward didn’t know it would be the last day she’d see many of her students at Terra Linda High School. A few weeks later, school was canceled for the rest of the year, leaving her scrambling to stay connected with her seniors who are at a critical stage in determining their post-graduation plans. This story also appeared in Mind/Shift These days, she spends her time doing counseling sessions via Zoom and Facebook, editing juniors’ essays in Google Docs and trying to contact all 320 members of the class of 2020. She and her colleagues hope to reach every senior by email, phone or social media. Some have not signed in for a single remote class, and many have not picked up the laptops and hotspots offered by Terra Linda. Ward has traded a three-hour round-trip commute from Menlo Park to San Rafael for a virtual counseling office set up in her living room, which s

* NEW * Move PE Year 1 Throwing and Catching Unit Overview

Our Move PE Year 1 Throwing and Catching Unit Overview provides a clear outline of the 6 lessons available in this unit as well as the lessons’ aims, success criteria, assessment statements and resources needed. It also includes the Australian Curriculum content descriptors covered in the unit. What an easy way to plan for your physical education lessons! from Twinkl Resources https://ift.tt/3f3U054 via IFTTT

* NEW * Year 1 Term 2 Week 3 School Closure Home Learning Pack

You can use this Year 1 Term 2 Week 3 School Closure Home Learning Pack to further develop and assist your child's education at home. The comprehensive weekly planner outlines a consistent structure of scaffolded and sequenced activities that align with the Australian Curriculum. To access the curriculum links just click on the hyperlinks in the weekly planner. from Twinkl Resources https://ift.tt/2xsU1yE via IFTTT

Great TED Talks to Use With Middle Schoolers and Other Ages Too

I wanted to immerse my students in thought provoking TED Talks and videos as one of the new options in our final round of “Choose Your Own Learning. ” Watching these videos will allow us to continue the work we have done all year on expanding our world view and discussing “Whose Voices are Missing?” as well as allow students for a chance to work on their analysis skills. Students will watch one video a day and then either write or record a response to the video. While I wanted to draw in specific non-fiction skills, I also just wanted students to have a chance to connect and respond. To see my very much work in progress assignment, go here. While I had several videos I knew I wanted to use with students, I also knew that there were many I had not yet discovered. Enter my incredible Twitter network. I sent out the following Tweet 87 replies later, still growing, and I could not believe once again the treasure trove of incredible videos that were suggested. My gratitude runs deep and

Fall Scenario #7: Targeted Curriculum

Blog:  Learning Innovation Developing a Targeted Curriculum plan is the 7th of 15 scenarios we are considering for the fall . This option enables campus social distancing through a strategic design of face-to-face and online course offerings and schedules.  A Targeted Curriculum scenario is when certain courses are designated as high priority, are provided with institutional resources, and may be given precedence for being taught on campus. For example, courses with high demand but capped enrollments, such as seminars, might be taught on campus, as might courses that are essential to allow students to fulfill graduation requirements. Similarly, experiential courses, performance-based courses, and labs might be given priority for on campus meetings, as might courses that require intense faculty-student feedback and discussion, such as writing courses and first-year seminars. What “priority” means will vary from school to school. Some schools may give courses designated hig