Tag: Professional Development

Week of January 27: Helping Students Find Help, ReggieNet, and Accessibility

Students on quad

As teachers, we’re often the first to encounter questions or issues related to a student’s well-being. There’s a lot of help across the Illinois State University campus for students. But we may not always know how to connect students with the help they need … or if it’s even our place to do so.

This week, the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Technology launches a new Teaching Excellence Series, “It Takes a Campus.” This sequence of four workshops is designed to introduce faculty to the kinds of issues students are likely to bring to the classroom. Participants will learn how to connect students with the support they critically need.

Week of January 20: Clickers, Prezi, and ‘Learn From My Mistakes’

students looking up

It may be a shorter work week because of the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday observance, but at the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Technology, it will also be a busy one. From our popular introduction to Microsoft Excel, to using Clickers in the classroom, to a highly requested workshop on Prezi, there really is something for everyone this week. Plus, seats are still available—though filling fast—for these workshops!

Educators can find tips, resources on CTLT’s new Pinterest page

CTLT's Pinterest Page

Ever find yourself wondering, what exactly it is students are doing on Pinterest? It’s just a Web page filled with pictures of things they like, right? Well, to some extent yes, we do appreciate adorable pictures of puppies or a great recipe for goat cheese empanadas. But did you know that Pinterest is not just for fluffy animals and incredible eats? Believe it or not, Pinterest can help educators, like you, connect to students, think up new and creative lesson plans, provide educational literature, and so much more.

Talkin’ ’bout online teaching & learning — with lunch!

It isn’t always easy to make time for professional development – trust me, I know.  But it is one of those activities that – when I make the time for it – really does re-energize me and gives me ideas that I can both use in my own teaching and share with faculty members. So,

Is it Blended or is it Hybrid?

Or is it just a matter of semantics? The short answer is that for all practical purposes, when people refer to hybrid or blended courses (or learning), they are typically talking about the same thing:  Some “seat time” of the traditional class is being replaced by “online” learning activities. I prefer the term blended (and

Online Professional Development. Should they be required?

 A study by Allen and Seaman on Online Education in the United States in 2008 reported that enrollment in online courses is growing at a faster rate than in traditional face-to-face settings. With this growing demand comes an increase in the number of faculty who teach or plan to teach in this learning environment. In