The FACILITATOR

Ep 33 - Hacking Quality Matters: Standard 2 - Learning Objectives (Live Highlights)

Excerpt of Shella & Mike's Live workshop on tips to Hack Quality Matters (QM) Course Design Rubric- Standard #2 : Learning Objectives. Three specific levels of building the key parts of this standard into your courses are discussed - Beginner (quick & dirty), Intermediate (little bit more time/ tinkering) & Advanced (digging into it). 
Episode Resources:
Aligning Objectives with Assessments & Activities
Editing Canvas Assignments
Canvas Outcomes Tool Video Walk Through
Canvas Learning Mastery Gradebook

Ep 32 - 4 Steps to Educative Assessment

The primary method to assess what our students know, throughout Higher ed,  remains stuck in a silo to simply audit and provide a grade, rather than a fully integrated learning tool itself.  L. Dee Fink in Creating Significant Learning Experiences (& others) have advocated for applying the research for an intentional shift to "Educative" Assessment. Mike unpacks the 4 pillars of this approach to assessment.
Episode Resources:
Educative Assessment
Giving Prompt Feedback
Grading Rubrics
Peer Review

Ep 31 - Hacking Powerpoint for Effective Presentations with Pecha Kucha

'Death by Powerpoint' is real. We know from the literature that doing default Powerpoint presentations reduces comprehension, retention and engagement out of a classroom, with time for active activities being lost as well. However, hacking PowerPoint by using the 'Pecha Kucha' (or its cousin Ignite Talk) format, make TED-talk style, engaging, cognitively effective and time efficient presentations of material that opens up time for application and active activities follow-up.
Episode Resources:
Pecha Kucha (Ignite Talk) Presentation Example, Tips & Resources
"The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint: Pitching Out Corrupts Within" (Tufte)
Five Ways to Reduce PowerPoint Overload [PDF]

Ep 30 - Hacking Quality Matters: Standard 1 Course Intro (Live)

Excerpt of Shella & Mike's Live workshop on tips to Hack Quality Matters (QM) Course Design Rubric- Standard #1 (Course Introduction). Three specific levels of building the key parts of this standard into your courses are discussed - Beginner (quick & dirty), Intermediate (little bit more time/ tinkering) & Advanced (digging into it). 
Episode Resources:
Quality Matters Course Design Benchmarks
CTE's START HERE/ Week 1/2 Module QM Templates 
Harvard's Project Zero Thinking Routines: Introducing & Exploring Ideas
Instructor Presence & Interaction
Recording Mini Zoom Videos
Regular & Substantive Interaction (RSI) Standards

Ep 29 - Mini Lecture Recording Top Tips

Mike does a brief dive into a collection of top tips for making cognitive friendly, reusable and easy to maintain mini lecture 'chunks' with a professional polish.
Episode Resources:
Zoom Tips (Live or Recording)
Mini Lecture Recording with Zoom
Taking Teaching Online: The Micro-Lecture
Why Long Lectures Are Ineffective
Cheapest Way to Soundproof a Room

EP 28 - James Lang's "Small Teaching" Low/No Prep Learning Science Best Practices

Mike takes a spin at a brief WHAT/WHY/HOW of James Lang's "Small Teaching." Now in its 2nd edition, Lang's book wonderfully lays out and distills 3 key elements form the science of learning - KNOWLEDGE, UNDERSTANDING & INSPIRATION. A starter for each of the HOW for the three specific principles under each of the headers can be done in Low/ No Prep by faculty in any area.
Episode Resources:
Episode 25 - Activating Prior Learning (HOWs for the RETREIVING principle)
Small Teaching Faculty Hub Summary/ Resource Page
Small Teaching Book (ThriftBooks copies from $6) 

Ep 27 - Usability of Course Sites & Materials

Flying solo, Mike dives into how application of principles from usability research to our course sites & materials can promote student success, engagement & Retention. Mike introduces the WHAT of Usability with ISO 9241 & Nielsen Norman Group's definitions. The linkage to WHY is addressed with intersection of several course design quality rubrics and teaching best practices. Then the application with HOW starts with Modules Usability (& common misuses). Next, chunking topical content via PAGES, as well as Optimizing Text for reading on screens., Naming Conventions & Consistent formatting is discussed. Our Usability world cheat sheet concludes with looking at LEGIBILITY & READABILITY of course materials - whether digital or hard copy etc.
Episode Resources:
5 Ways to Optimize Canvas Sites Tips, Examples & How Tos
8 Ways to Optimize Course Content Tips, Examples & How Tos
The Hemingway app
Legibility Readability & Comprehension: Making Users Read Your Words [Nielsen Norman Group]

EP 26 -Alternatives to Lecturing

Amid the ongoing scrutiny of the value of higher ed education, Shella & Mike dive into the timely topic of how to increase the learning value of classes with alternatives to lecturing. While lecture lurches on in higher ed (for now) as a predominant teaching technique, science and mounds of data tells it is a poor teaching tool with 5% of info being retained on average from a lecture. As such, we turn to the WHAT/ WHY (see above) & most crucially the HOW to diversify our teaching toolbelt!
Episode Resources:
NCSC Ctr for Teaching Excellence Non-Lecture Teaching Techniques
226 Active Learning Techniques (Iowa State U.)

Ep 25 - Activating Prior Learning For Engagement

Wading into the WHAT/ WHY & HOW of levering the powerful learning science of Activating Prior Learning for Engagement, support student (& Faculty!) time on task and promoting success.
Episode Resources:
NCSC Ctr for Teaching Excellence Activating Prior Learning Tips/ Resources

Ep 24 - 8 Week Courses Best Practice Tips

Tackling the HOW of Best Practices for teaching condensed/ accelerated 8 week courses for optimizing student success. Shella & Mike get into Sequencing (1:35) - what happens when with integrated 'Spiral' Design reinforcement; Managing Cognitive Load (3:14) on Students; Scaffolding with Support Resources (3:55) to offer built-in recovery/ time efficiency/ engagement;  Time Efficient Canvas Tools: Canvas Pages (6:55) for reusable evergreen remedial built in support resources;  Early Publishing of Your Canvas Course Site (8:20) to allow for a bonus 'Week Zero' of student prep/ orientation for success; Canvas Quizzes for Self-Check/ Practice (10:26) to allow students to be active learners and build confidence for applying/ higher order use of material;  Canvas Modules Optimization (11:48) applying best practices for lean but content packed modules; Grading Rubrics (12:33) for supporting student practice & faculty time efficiency;  Canvas Mastery Paths (14:31) to efficiently automatically connect students to appropriate level work; Communication Strategy/ Reinforcement (15:32)  for ensuring students get the word/ know what to focus on; Kicking 'Coverage' Fallacy (16:44); Outcomes Focus (17:37).
Episode Resources:
Sequencing a Course Tips/ Resources
Managing Cognitive Load of Students
Ways to Optimize Your Canvas Sites (Pages, Modules , Assignments etc)
Canvas Early Access for Students
Chickering & Gamson Respecting Diverse Talents/ Ways of Learning
Lang's Small Teaching Research
Grading Rubrics
Using Rubrics in Canvas SpeedGrader
Canvas Mastery Paths