Tips for Teaching with Technology

Resources

Let your tech tools support, not hinder.

Start with the Learning Outcomes – map out how they will be met and/or assessed.
Make it Manageable: break content into modules or weeks – use “content buckets” or folders.
Use your LMS (Blackboard, Canvas, Moodle, etc): establish a Homepage or Announcements page with clear, reliable information.
Show the LMS: give your students a tour in Zoom.
Follow a predictable schedule: choose a Due Day
Let the Tools do the Work: use self-grading quizzes, automated grading rubrics, built-in plagiarism checkers, automated gradebook, etc – lighten your workload.
Name files consistently so students can find them when they download them: CRJ101 Syllabus, CRJ101 Assignment 2, CRJ101 Essay 3.

Take attendance: say their names, get to know the students and they’ll learn about each other.
Use pre-class time for ice-breakers
Establish a consistent communication plan: Zoom on Monday and Wednesday, announcement/reminder email Friday.
Recognize emotions, exhaustion, stress: acknowledge it, discuss it, and move on.

Tools: be consistent. For example, do not set up one discussion in the LMS, the next discussion on Flipgrid, 3rd on Piazza, 4th on Twitter – choose one Discussion Tool and stick with it….
Flexibility: …..unless a tool isn’t working out, then talk about it as a group and make a change.
Breakout Rooms: use Zoom Breakout Rooms for Active Learning. See: Active Learning in Zoom
Knowledge Checks: Use Zoom Polls, Google Forms, or quizzes in your LMS frequently to check student understanding and/or preparedness.
Use LMS or publisher site for mastery quizzing.
Recording your class session? Ensure students’ privacy (FERPA). Ask if they’ll watch it.