Accessibility is a broad concept that encompasses “access” needs of many kinds other than physical. Universal Design for Learning (UDL) provides an understandable framework for addressing some of them.
Check it out in the most recent of our Tips ‘n Techniques series: Intro to UDL I: Overview and the Framework
AI’s effects on, and possibilities for, students, has rightly consumed most educators’ attention. But AI, directly and through its integration in many popular instructional tools and platforms, presents an abundance of opportunities for teachers to enhance and improve their work and productivity. This tip highlights some of the most important resources and considerations for today’s teachers.
Check it out in the most recent of our Tips ‘n Techniques series: AI for Teaching I – Platforms, Privacy, and Ethics
In April of this year, the Department of Justice finalized changes to Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), establishing new requirements for universities (and many others). Critically, all website and app content, whether password protected or not, must meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA standards by April 2026.
In this series of Teaching Tips we aim to provide helpful information for creating accessible content from the beginning, which will save you a lot of time and effort compared to remediating (revising, correcting, or even re-creating) your course materials later. The best part: you don’t need to be a technical wizard or accessibility specialist to create accessible materials!
This Tip focuses on creating accessible content using Canvas’s own tools. In later Tips we will go into more detail for content created using other software and applications, including documents and media.
Check it out in the most recent of our Tips ‘n Techniques series: Accessible By Design: Canvas
Canvas has finally addressed a longstanding shortcoming: the inability to assign pages, modules, and ungraded discussions to specific sections or students. This is particularly helpful for instructors who have multiple sections in one course site, but useful for all kinds of situations where differentiating content will make the student experience more understandable.
If that’s not enough, another helpful new feature: you can now use rich content formatting and even record video and your screen as part of your feedback in SpeedGrader.
Check it out in the most recent of our Tips ‘n Techniques series: New in Canvas: Assigning Content & SpeedGrader Rich Content
Transforming your syllabus from a static document to a living, breathing resource enhances your teaching flexibility while being more engaging and accessible to students. What’s not to love?
Check it out in the most recent of our Tips ‘n Techniques series: The Liquid Syllabus.
The Canvas Discussions Redesign, formerly a Feature Option for adventurous instructors, will be rolled out to all Canvas courses on Jun 12, 2024. In this Teaching Tip, we’ll look at some of the more important changes and new features for instructors.
Check it out in the most recent of our Tips ‘n Techniques series: Canvas Discussions Redesigned.
Traumatic experiences, which affect many of our students whether we know about them or not, can significantly affect one’s learning, behavior, and relationships at school. Trauma-informed teaching involves understanding, recognizing, and responding to the effects of trauma on our students.
Check it out in the most recent of our Tips ‘n Techniques series: Introduction to Trauma-Informed Teaching.
Learning to understand and affect one’s own thinking can result in a wide range of benefits. In this tip, avoiding the theoretical weeds as much as possible, we take a practical look at what metacognitive skills are and some approaches to developing them in your students.
Check it out in the most recent of our Tips ‘n Techniques series: Teaching Metacognitive Skills.
Did you know Canvas provides an integrated tool for shared annotation of web pages and PDF files, an activity that is often significantly more engaging and pedagogically rich than the traditional discussion forum activities? Learn how the tool works, and how students respond, in this 50-minute session with Dr. Nicole Blair.
In this one-hour session, Dr. Sundermann and Dr. Heller review the principles of authentic assessment, specifically related to using reflective essays in lieu of exams.
