Braving Uncertainty
Will Fall 2020 be the Semester of Uncertainty? Decisions keep being remade in the wake of new information, and it's so, so difficult to construct meaningful learning experiences for our students when the ground keeps shifting beneath us. And students who were patient with the unevenness of online learning in the Spring semester may have higher expectations of their schools and their teachers moving forward. All this pressure may scare us into clinging to what worked in the past, even though it may not actually be the best approach for the present or for the future. "Most learning experts...are far less worried about the possibility that professors' pedagogical experimentation in virtual learning will fail than that there won't be nearly enough of it" (Lederman, 29 July 2020).
Because our work is so important, we really want to do it well, and this is one of the reasons that the uncertainty of the COVID era is so difficult for us. But we can also tap into this deep well of caring to garner the courage to try new strategies, and fail, and learn from failure, and adjust, and try again. Try something new this semester. Just one thing. See how it goes. Tell your colleagues about it so we can all participate in the construction of a new pedagogy together.
We may return to full normalcy after a period of time, or we may need to adapt to as-yet-unknown permanent changes in how our society functions. Either way, if we are brave, we will end up with new patterns of teaching and learning that will prepare our students for their bright futures by modeling how to leverage uncertainty as a motivator for continuous experimentation and improvement.
Is Your Syllabus Up-to-date?
If you aren’t already using the Kapi‘olani CC Syllabus Template, now’s a great time to adopt it! The syllabus template is not only ADA compliant, but it also links out to 3 webpages with up-to-date information on Student Responsibilities, College Policies, and How to Get Help.
Mahalo to VCAA Maria Bautista, Angela Coloretti McGough, and Student Affairs for providing the latest updates for Title IX, DSSO, and Mental Health Counseling, as well as adding COVID-19 Campus and Classroom Safety Guidelines. Need assistance with adapting the syllabus template? Please submit a CELTT request.
Digital Accessibility Tip (Tables)
Do you use tables to lay out your content in a Word doc or a Google Doc? Or do you insert images into a table? Tables are tricky (when it comes to meeting the digital accessibility requirements); they are handy for content layout but unfriendly to screen reader users. If you have to use/create a table, below are some guidelines to help make your tables more accessible.
Identify a “table header row/column” in your table (so that the screen reader program will distinguish the heading text from the data area).
Provide a title and an alt text to your table. Place the title outside of the table (e.g. above or underneath)
NO merged/empty cells.
Create tables as plain text, not as an inserted image (e.g., no screenshot of a table).
Note: In Microsoft Word, always use the “Insert Table” tool (instead of the “Draw” tool) to generate a table because the header row, first column, and banded rows are automatically selected by utilizing that tool. It will save your time and energy to identify the table header row/column.
Video tutorials
How to Make an Accessible Table in Laulima (1:22)
If you are a big fan of Google Docs, you may consider using Grackle Docs to help check your document’s accessibility. See more instructions on Installing Grackle on Google Docs and How to Use Grackle Docs recommended by the UH ITS.
Google Jamboard
Do you and your students love collaborating in Google docs? Wait until you try Google Jamboard -- now included in your UH Google Suite of Apps!
Google docs is amazing for text collaboration, but have you sometimes wished you could draw or handwrite on it? Add sticky notes or insert an image to annotate on? Google Jamboard -- a free, cloud-based, collaborative digital whiteboard -- is the answer! This intro video by Google shows a smartboard-like device, but a specific device really isn’t necessary. You can collaborate on a Jamboard from any device (your laptop, smartphone, tablet, etc.) then optionally download the final product as an image or a PDF. Here’s a good tutorial video.
Writing equations or drawing diagrams/artwork are some examples that Jamboard can do well. Can you think of other ways that your students can collaborate on Jamboard?
Laulima & Google Assignments
Some English faculty have been telling us for a while that using Google docs for writing assignments provides workflow superior to uploading/downloading file attachments in Laulima. Have you wondered if you could share Google docs with students for draft essays so that there is only one copy of the file with instructor comments and peer feedback? What about using a comments bank and using built-in rubrics to simplify grading? Wait, there’s more! What about checking for originality? Google Assignments can do all that and it is now integrated into Laulima!!!
UH ITS had been quietly beta testing Google Assignments inside Laulima for the last 2 years and Google has officially released Google Assignments to all users on August 11th. We are still testing the tool but if you are interested in using Google Assignments in Laulima, please contact us at celtt@hawaii.edu.
Laulima Advanced Tips: Clean Up Your Orphaned Lessons Pages
Did you know that when you delete a lessons page from the left-navigation menu in Laulima, it isn’t really gone?
Before importing lessons into your new site, check your development or the previous semester’s site by opening any lessons page then clicking “Index of Pages” button at top right of your screen:
Missed Transferring Your Zoom Account to ITS?
No worries! You can request a Zoom Pro account from UH ITS Site License. When your request is approved, you will then have another chance to transfer to ITS.
Please keep in mind that Kapiolani’s Zoom licenses will be expiring in the near future so if you need a Zoom Pro license, request one from ITS as soon as possible.
Convert Google Sites Classic to New Google Sites
As of April 1, the New Google Sites is now available for all Google@UH users! This new version is quite the upgrade from the Classic Google Sites, with easy drag and drop functionality and features like embedding items from Google Drive, YouTube, and other external sources. You can even collaborate with other users in real-time.
What We Are Reading, Listening to, or Watching Now
How to Assess Learning in a Pandemic (article, Faculty Focus) This article is part of the guide Sustaining Higher Education in the Coronavirus Crisis.
As colleges ask faculty to prepare for a possible online, hybrid or altered in-person fall semester—or all three simultaneously—many instructors are wondering how to best measure student learning. In the latest episode of EdSurge Live, two professors who have long questioned traditional methods of grading about how to approach exams, essays and other assessments next semester give their thoughts.
A Four-Step Plan: The First Day of Class on Zoom (article, Faculty Focus)
“What do we do on the first day of class on Zoom?”
Step one: Create a good impression
Step two: Spotlight the course
Step three: Generate guidelines
Step four: End the class on a positive note
- Virtual Learning Will Be Better this Fall, Right? (article, Inside Higher Ed)
This thorough assessment of the dilemmas of college-level learning and teaching in Fall 2020 explores student expectations, shifting school plans, instructor and student reactions, the challenges of "flex" and hybrid models, and how best to serve underserved populations of students in the COVID era.
- Improving Breakout Room Discussions in Online Teaching by Using Collaborative Documents (article, Faculty Focus)
Practical guidance on using Zoom breakout rooms to encourage meaningful collaboration in your synchronous virtual classroom.
Kawehi Sellers
Chair, FS Distance Education Committee
Nadine Wolff
Vice Chair, FS Distance Education Committee
Jamie Sickel
Instructional Designer, CELTT
Youxin (Yoyo) Zhang
Helen Torigoe
Instructional Designer, CELTT
Melissa Nakamura
Instructional Designer, OCET
Kristie Malterre
Counselor, Online Learner Success
Kara Plamann Wagoner
Data Storyteller, OFIE
Leigh Dooley
Kelli Nakamura
Emeritus Distance Education Coordinator
