Category: Articles

In higher education, while intellectual growth is often prioritized, students’ mental health plays a critical role in their success. Research shows that mental health challenges can lead to academic struggles and limited career opportunities (Hughes & Spanner, 2019). Faculty can support students by fostering a compassionate and inclusive learning environment, using open communication, flexible course design, and practices that help students feel valued and supported.

Are your students groaning at the thought of yet another discussion post? In online education, discussion boards are essential for engagement, but too often they become mechanical and uninspiring tasks. This article explores creative strategies to transform discussion assignments into dynamic conversations that spark critical thinking and genuine interaction. From reshaping prompts to incorporating multimedia and fostering instructor participation, discover how to revitalize your online discussions and enhance the learning experience for your students.

Incorporating in-video quizzes into your Canvas assignments is an excellent way to enhance student engagement and reinforce learning. These quizzes allow students to interact with video content by answering questions as they watch, helping to ensure they are actively processing the material. In this article, we will discuss the steps to create an in-video quiz within an assignment in Canvas, utilizing the Annoto integration. 

Feedback from students can be an important source of information about what is working or not working in a course. Most often, student feedback comes in the form of a summative course evaluation. Here at NSU, students fill out course evaluations at the end of each semester. While these evaluations have value, they also carry limitations.

Gamification is defined as “using game-based mechanics, aesthetics, and game thinking to engage people, motivate action, promote learning, and solve problems” (Kapp, 2012). Gamification is the incorporation of game design elements into non-game contexts (Deterding et al., 2011). As a strategy in education, gamification has garnered increasing attention, offering several key advantages including increased motivation, enhanced engagement, sense of achievement, real-world application, and reduction of anxiety. The application of gamification in education can lead to a more motivated, engaged, and successful learning experience for students, catering to a variety of learning styles and preferences. 

Today’s students are just like the rest of us – they use their phones for everything. And this includes accessing their courses, communicating with their professors and fellow students, and staying on top of grades and upcoming deadlines. Do you know how your course displays on a phone? Have you considered whether your course content can be accessed on one? Why are these questions important to consider?

Podcasts are digital audio or video files available on the internet that cover a range of topics. These recordings are available on various platform and often consumed on a mobile device, making them available anytime, anywhere. They are versatile and can be used in various course formats across all disciplines. Whether you create them yourself or curate existing podcasts to support your course content, podcasts provide a unique way to engage students, appeal to various learning styles, and teach skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, and teamwork. In this article we discuss how instructors can use podcasts to enhance teaching and learning and offer useful resources for anyone who is interested in creating their own podcast.  

With the emergence of AI, concerns are arising regarding the potential replacement of jobs by AI in the future. Nevertheless, it is essential to recognize that AI lacks the capacity for critical thinking skills. Consequently, it becomes important to teach students critical thinking skills, which not only impacts their academic success but also their chosen careers.

What a fantastic year for the Learning and Educational Center! Thanks to our amazing LEC Advisory Committee, we hosted our second annual teaching and learning conference. We brought you fresh and exciting workshops on everything from AI to enhancing your Zoom sessions. This year, we integrated the LEC competency framework into all our offerings, connecting it to workshops and conference presentations. Our instructional design team rocked it, publishing articles on topics like accessibility and NSU-specific video tools. To champion quality teaching, we called on students to share thank you notes with their faculty, and the response was incredible – over 2000 messages of gratitude poured in! Cheers to a remarkable year in the LEC! 🎉

The LEC team authored several articles in 2023 with topics ranging from Harnessing generative AI tools for Assignments, Activities, and Assessments to Maximizing Student Engagement and Learning with NSU Video Tools. The team has also continued to produce informative, bite-sized videos in the Learning with the LEC series with videos on topics like Using Polls to Create Breakout Rooms in Zoom, Using the Accessibility Checker in Canvas, and Creating and Managing Assignments through the Canvas Calendar. If you’ve missed this wealth of information, we encourage you to take a look!