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Month: July 2015

Join the SPS Distance Learning Team!

We are excited to share two open positions in the Northwestern University’s School of Professional Studies (SPS) Office of Distance Learning: Director of Online Program Development and Learning Designer (three vacancies). Ideal candidates for both positions will bring experience and a passion for innovation in online teaching and learning.…

The Importance of Icebreakers In Online Classes

If you read the Chronicle Of Higher Education or follow coverage about online learning in popular media, a persistent question emerges: How can teachers build community in online courses? These publications frequently cite the importance of creating community in online courses.…

How to Make the Most of the Canvas Community Site

This year at InstructureCon, Canvas made some big announcements, including a presentation on the Canvas Community site called Community 2.0: Meet the All-New Canvas Community. One thing I’ve learned from the presentation is that I currently fall into the category of community participant that only engages when I need specific information; more frequent than those who rarely or never visit, but not as engaged as those who are actively commenting and contributing.…

Increasing Student Engagement in Discussion Boards

At InstructureCon 2015, I attended the presentation “Creating Online Learning Communities through Discussion Boards” by Marcella Caprario and Belinda Clements from Council on International Educational Exchange – Teaching English as a Foreign Language (CIEE-TEFL)
The presentation highlighted three key findings after a year of analyzing discussion board posts in their course and researching different theories of student engagement in the online space.…