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Smeal Academy Sessions

Michael Christie
In Instructional Strategies & Student Engagement, Smeal Academy Sessions

Remote Instruction Lessons Learned

Smeal Academy – Key Lessons Learned from Remote Teaching
Well, it’s Groundhog Day – and here we are teaching remotely again this semester! What have we learned from our past experiences of remote teaching? What real-world strategies work? Come and hear from Smeal faculty and staff about tips, tricks, and lessons learned as we continue to deliver instruction remotely.
Panelists:
  • Scott Collins, Clinical Associate Professor of Accounting. Courses: Accounting Information Systems, Intermediate Managerial Accounting, Advanced Financial Accounting, Accounting Scandals.
  • Misty Frederick-Ritz, Course Manager BA 342 & MGMT 301
  • Chris McKeon, Instructor and Course Coordinator of PSU 6, First Year Business Seminar
  • Rashmi Sharma, Instructor, SC&IS; SCM 404 – Demand Fulfillment, BAN 840 – Predictive Analytics for Business
Michael Christie
In Assessment, Smeal Academy Sessions

Grading and Assessment Strategies

 

This January 29, 2021 session reviewed Canvas gradebook setup and essentials for remote instruction and also explored some basics tools (such as Top Hat) and approaches to help evaluate student attendance and participation in a remote context.

Session Slides

NOTE: Core Top Hat features are available at no cost to instructors and students, and without the purchase of a standalone clicker device, students can participate in Top Hat activities with their smartphones or via the web for added convenience.

Session Links

Changing Name in Zoom

During the session, it was asked how someone goes about changing their name in Zoom. Faculty and staff should go into Workday to do this, click on personal information and preferred name. Students need to contact the registrar to do this. Here are instructions.

Michael Christie
In Instructional Strategies & Student Engagement, Smeal Academy Sessions

Active Learning Strategies

Active Learning Session – January 13, 2021

Think about the last time you learned something. What was the topic? How did you learn it? What motivated you to engage in the learning and stay engaged? What got you thinking critically about the knowledge you were seeking? What kind of innovation had you wished had been applied to the topic? What new tool would have been fun? This session discussed active learning strategies in online learning that help faculty engage learners and can lead to innovation in the classroom. Active learning is a teaching method that supports learning. The method uses techniques and activities that promote analysis, synthesis, and evaluation that guides students towards achieving learning objectives. These techniques and activities are based on ideas about how people learn and engage regardless of content discipline. Multiple strategies were discussed in a very active session.

Session Slides

Links mentioned:

Discovery Education Puzzle Maker Puzzlemaker is a puzzle generation tool for teachers, students and parents. Create and print customized word search, criss-cross, math puzzles, and more-using your own word lists.

Kahoot Millions of teachers and students unleash the magic of learning with Kahoot!. Create your own kahoot in minutes or choose from 40+ million ready-to-play games. Engage students who aren’t in school with our distance learning features, play in class, and dive into game reports to assess learning.

Michael Christie
In EdTech Tools & Course Delivery, Smeal Academy Sessions

Top Hat Tricks and Treats

Top Hat Tricks and Treats: In September 2020, Penn State adopted Top Hat, a tool that tracks attendance while creating engaged learning environments for students. In this session, the eLDIG team reviews some Top Hat tricks and treats, including Canvas integration grade syncing and Top Hat engagement tools like polling and whiteboards.

Session Resources

Michael Christie
In Instructional Strategies & Student Engagement, Smeal Academy Sessions

Group Work Faculty Panel Discussion

Faculty Panel – Group Projects in Online, Remote, and Hybrid Courses:

Are you trying to figure out strategies for group work in your online/remote and hybrid classes? This session explored how some of our faculty are integrating group work in their classes. They discussed best practices and lessons learned and allowed time for participant Q & A to discuss questions, concerns, and needs. This session was held Wednesday, September 9 from 9 to 10 a.m.

Panelists: Norm Aggon, Shawn Clark, Nancy McClure, Jeanette Miller, Felisa Preciado-Higgins, and Al Vicere

 

Michael Christie
In Instructional Strategies & Student Engagement, Smeal Academy Sessions

Engaging Students Synchronously


Link to Session Slides

Engaging Students Synchronously (A session designed as a collaboration between TLT and eLDIG): Are you interested in improving student engagement in your synchronous online classes? This August 27, 2020 session covered best practices when engaging students in synchronous, online settings. Topics included how to help students engage with the content, instructors, and their fellow students, as well as how to best adapt in-class activities to the synchronous online environment. This content applies to both blended and online courses.

Links to Resources Mentioned

Michael Christie
In Assessment, Instructional Strategies & Student Engagement, Smeal Academy Sessions

Engaging Students Through Assessment


Link to Session Slides

Engaging Students Through Assessment (A session designed as a collaboration between Teaching and Learning with Technology and eLDIG): How can you engage your students through online assessments (both formative and summative)? This August 19, 2020 session covered the changes can you make to your assessments to take advantage of the affordances of the online environment. Topics include setting expectations for online assessments, managing student stress levels, determining the most effective delivery method in your teaching context, adapting both formative and summative assessments from in-person to online formats, and alternatives to online exams.

Session Resources