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 […]
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 […]
Learn how you can utilize Twine to create interactive, gamified course materials. As faculty consider strategies for increasing student enthusiasm for learning, many are turning to gamification. For a lot of us, this has taken on a few different forms. We have either assigned an existing game for students to play or utilized game-like features […]
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted a need for flexibility in course schedules. In this post, we explore how to balance flexibility and structure in a way that leads to positive learning outcomes. “Can I still turn in this assignment even though it’s past the due date?” “I had an emergency come up and can’t make it […]
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 […]
“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 […]
Learn how brainstorming your next course topic like a big adventure can shift your mindset and set you, and your learners, up for meaningful success. As a person who loves traveling, I often compare course development to planning my next big trip. I plan a travel schedule to make sure I get from point A […]
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). […]
Learn about one instructor’s participation in a Faculty Learning Community and how it led to a positive experience with ungrading in their classroom. As an educator, I have long struggled with the notion of letter grades and even percentages in the classroom. In this blog, I reflect on my grading practices and student feedback after […]
Learn how to use the Set Default Grade feature in Canvas’s Gradebook to lighten the grading workload. Whenever a new semester or academic year rolls around, I always find myself thinking about how I get work done and how I can most efficiently approach the grading in the weeks and months ahead of me. With […]
