Author: Eva Grouling Snider

Guideposts, Not Guardrails: The Role of Learning Objectives

February 21, 2024 by Eva Grouling Snider

If you’re frustrated by the restrictions that learning objectives place on your course, read this meditation on how objectives can open possibility, rather than closing it down. Teaching is an act of navigating constraints and agency – and, incidentally, helping students navigate the same. Perhaps you must use a particular textbook, but what chapters you […]

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Ideas to Spark Your Next Course Development

December 20, 2023 by Eva Grouling Snider, Cheri Madewell

Explore the greatest hits of 2023 on the Teaching Innovation Blog and discover something to help spark your next course development project. As the year winds down and you begin preparing your courses for next semester, what are you hoping to change? In the spirit of “small teaching,” we encourage you to consider making one […]

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Coyote Time: What Games Can Teach Us About Forgiveness in Learning

November 15, 2023 by Eva Grouling Snider

Video games often strike a balance between challenging players and forgiving them for not being perfect. How might forgiveness in games lead us to new insights about learning design? In platform video games – from the original Super Mario Bros. (1985) to more modern platformers like Celeste (2018) – you control a character who makes […]

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How to Use ChatGPT as an Ideation Partner (for You and Your Students)

November 8, 2023 by Eva Grouling Snider

Learn how to use ChatGPT to help you (or your students) quickly and creatively generate and explore ideas. Most of the higher ed discourse about ChatGPT centers on its ability to produce human-readable text. However, much more fertile ground can be found in using ChatGPT as part of the learning process. For example, ChatGPT can […]

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Lessons Learned from the ACUE Course in Effective Teaching Practices

October 18, 2023 by Eva Grouling Snider

Read reflections from Ball State faculty who completed ACUE’s Course in Effective Teaching Practices. Beginning in 2020, the Division of Online and Strategic Learning has supported a group of Ball State faculty, selected through an application process, to complete ACUE’s Course in Effective Teaching Practices. Delivered asynchronously through Canvas, this course engages faculty in content […]

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The Problem with Best Practices

October 11, 2023 by Eva Grouling Snider

“Best practices” is a bad way of looking at teaching. How can we frame teaching practices more productively to encourage experimentation and innovation? I’ve got a gripe I’d like to share. My hope is that my griping might help you consider your teaching practices in a new light. Here goes: I hate the phrase “best […]

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Transparent Ambiguity in Assignment Design

September 27, 2023 by Eva Grouling Snider

How can we both challenge and support students through our assignment design? Learn how careful planning of information, tools, and support can help students navigate uncertainty and solve complex problems. Assignment design frameworks often emphasize that assignments should be clear (such as Transparent Assignment Design), or that they should be real (such as Authentic Assessment). […]

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Canvas Quick Tip – Personalize Your Course Card with a GIF

August 30, 2023 by Paige Waters, Eva Grouling Snider

Learn why and how to use a GIF as your Canvas course card, welcoming students to your course with some fun and flair. When students access their Canvas dashboard, your course shows up as one card among many. Your course card image is the only part on the main dashboard you can customize to make […]

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There Is No Perfect Length for Instructional Videos

July 12, 2023 by Eva Grouling Snider

Arguments for a particular length of instructional videos miss the mark: engaging video can be any length, from less than a minute to more than an hour. If you listen to the commonly accepted wisdom, every instructional video would be a TED Talk: polished production values and a strict 10-15-minute time limit. In a previous […]

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Quick Tip to Get More Students Watching Your Videos

May 17, 2023 by Eva Grouling Snider

Learn about a simple tweak to your video scripts that can increase how many students engage with your instructional videos. You spend hours developing an instructional video – preparing the script, adjusting lighting, recording multiple takes, and trimming and combining. You put it up on your course site for students, then check back in after […]

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