SensusAccess is a file converter tool that makes inaccessible documents (such as Word and PDF files) into more accessible media (such as searchable PDFs, audio MP3 files, Braille, or e-text) and is now available to all Pitt faculty, staff, students, and alumni with an active University email address. Click on the headline to check out SensusAccess’s e-learning course.
The conclusion of your course marks the beginning of a new phase: the end of semester is the perfect time to take stock of your course and reflect on your teaching.
In an article for the Chronicle of Higher Education, Sherry Turkle argues that, in an age of multitasking, less is actually best.
Mix up your routine by adding some EdTech tools to your lessons. While downloading, learning and implementing a new app is time consuming, these two may help to identify knowledge gaps and reduce grading time.
Administering mid-term evaluations for your course is the first step to incorporating student feedback into your curricular design. Find out how to take the next steps.
A new grading software called Gradescope is now available for all Pitt faculty and students at no cost. This grading software makes administering paper-based assessments and more meaningful feedback easier for instructors. In addition to improving many traditional assessments, Gradescope also has advanced features for online student submissions and auto-grading features for computer programming assignments. Gradescope also offers LMS integration...
As student populations grow more diverse, it’s becoming increasingly important for instructors to ensure a safe space for all students. Find out how to recognize microaggressions and learn strategies for addressing the subtle messages sent that can create a feeling of marginalization among community members. By knowing what microaggressions are, the impact they have on students and learning, and how to respond to them, faculty will become more e...
As student populations grow more diverse, it’s becoming increasingly important for instructors to ensure a safe space for all students. Find out how to recognize microaggressions and learn strategies for addressing the subtle messages sent that can create a feeling of marginalization among community members. By knowing what microaggressions are, the impact they have on students and learning, and how to respond to them, faculty will become more e...
Teaching inclusively is more than just the latest trend in higher ed, it is a guiding factor for serving all students in a classroom. Making an effort to engage all the learners in your classroom does not require a total course redesign but rather a few thoughtful additions, such as: incorporating structured discussions and assignments, rethinking the percentage of certain exams or papers, or simply reminding students, “You belong here.” Read mo...
Making your CourseWeb course available to students is not as intuitive as it may seem. Here's a quick refresher to make your course available to students in five steps.
A number of important upgrades have been made to in-classroom technology here in the building, including new projectors, sound systems, wireless mikes, and more.
From copying an entire essay that was submitted years before by another student, to forgetting to write down references, the majority of instructors will encounter at least one case of plagiarism in their teaching career. However difficult these confrontations may be, avoiding them means losing potential teachable moments. Learning how to address plagiarism without it being a punitive moment can make your job easier and your relationship with yo...
A wide variety of disabilities affect people’s capacity to take in words and photos and can range from major to minor and from temporary to permanent. It may feel overwhelming to produce digitally accessible content for everyone, but there are plenty of small steps you can take. Make your web content more accessible by following these quick and simple steps.
Enhance your courses by creating your own impactful multimedia asset at the Media Creation Lab located in Alumni Hall. The Teaching Center’s new Media Creation Lab is a broadcast-grade digital media studio designed for the development of a wide range of multimedia content to assist instructors in producing their own innovative and effective teaching and learning resources.
A number of upgrades to classroom technology have been made at Pitt Public Health, including new wireless microphones and projectors. Please remember to turn off any tech that you are not using and/or shut everything down at the end of your lesson!
If you are thinking about using open resources/ digital publications for your course, check out the article "Why Digital Publishing is the Future in Education," which explains how open resources mean to promote equity and personalized learning in addition to lowering upfront educational costs.
Faculty interested in deepening their teaching practice are encouraged to attend workshops which aim to increase awareness about diversity and to help instructors develop skills needed to teach in a diverse, multicultural environment. Remaining sessions cover topics, such as: mental health support, LGBTQIA communities, intersectionality, and equity.
Reading students’ comments on official end-of-term evaluations – or worse RateMyProfessors.com – can often be painful and upsetting. So it’s no surprise faculty skim the written section and focus on the quantitative ratings. Check out this week's Teaching Tip for some suggestions for soothing the sting from those hurtful student comments.
If you taught a course between fall 2016 to summer 2017, your CourseWeb class will be archived and moved to a backup server on May 10, 2019. If you want to keep your CourseWeb courses handy and in your CourseWeb dashboard, you need to perform one of two options: submit an exemption request form or export and import your course.
With OMET student surveys now available to students, it is time to start thinking about implementing effective strategies that encourage students to provide feedback. While you should be reminding students, inside and out of class, to complete the surveys prior to the deadline, here are some less-than-obvious tips that can help to increase your response rates.
Last week’s teaching tip provided you with ways to tap into your student’s emotions to activate student learning. These four principles for engaging students utilize active learning techniques in new and exciting ways. This week explores two more of these principles.
Instructors can activate student learning through tapping into emotions. Four principles for engaging students utilize active learning techniques in new and exciting ways. This week’s teaching tip explores two of those.
Create a learning environment in which people of all identities are included and welcomed with the power of language to strengthen academic writing and discussion, foster a respectful learning environment, and reflect professional best practices.
Mid-term evaluations are a great tool for getting constructive feedback from students before it is too late to make adjustments to improve teaching effectiveness. Learn how to implement mid-term evaluations in six easy steps!
Lectures are not always going to look like they do in the movies, where students are held captivated by their professor’s charismatic genius. Planning large lectures to be engaging and effective in student learning can prove difficult in an age of short attention spans. Learn the top tips that various academics from all over the world recommend on how to keep your lectures interesting.