As part of our professional development program, Cengage Canada offered five Empower Hour virtual workshops in March-April 2021. Each webinar was led by one of Cengage’s OLC-Certified (Online Learning Consortium) Teaching Mentors.
These workshop leaders provided expert advice, best practices, and answers to faculty questions around teaching and learning in an online environment.
Click below to watch the recording for each session and to access additional workshop resources.
Get to know instructional design a little better and get students to fall in love with your class. Whether you teach online or in-person, hear tested ideas for designing a digital course that fits your class format and fosters interactivity and engagement. Then, get a behind-the-scenes look as Professor Jenny Billings takes you through the setup of one of her courses.
Watch from 18:06 for tips on designing for online, hybrid, and face-to-face courses.
Watch from 39:30 for common course design mistakes and how to avoid them.
Check out the PowerPoint presentation here.
Online students deserve the same sense of community and encouragement as those in a face-to-face classroom. But engaging students in a virtual environment can be challenging. Sandra Scheier boils down 15 years of online teaching experience to share with you her best-tested tips for breaking down the cyber wall so students feel connected and supported in your online class.
Watch from 7:50 for tips on how to organize your online course. If you’d like to see how presenter Sandra Scheier set up her online course, check out this course tour video.
Watch from 8:46 for tips on how to communicate effectively with your students throughout your online course.
Watch from 16:20 for ideas on how to bring interactive, engaging content into your online course.
Check out the PowerPoint presentation here.
How much of your job as an instructor involves helping others? During this unique time in Higher Ed especially, you may sometimes find yourself stretched thin between course management, student support and trying to find time for your own obligations—and then there’s self-care. As instructors, you want to help others…but it’s just as important to take care of yourself. Join Tracy Daly, Registered Dietician and Health Educator from California State University, San Marcos, as she imparts ideas for balancing workloads and focusing on your own wellness amidst job responsibilities and the uncertainty of a pandemic.
Watch from 38:46 for stretches you can do at your desk and a short, guided meditation specifically for educators
Check out the PowerPoint presentation here.
Click here for a list of wellness resources mentioned during the workshop.
Connecting with students proves difficult when they can so easily disappear behind a “stop video” button. So, how do you push through and forge connections? What factors could contribute to students’ unreachability? Join Beth Ryan of Columbia College Chicago as she discusses these concerns, shares tips for effective outreach and answers your burning questions live.
Watch from 7:15 to discuss the many obstacles in the way of “student engagement” and to learn some tips to help your students overcome those obstacles
Watch from 14:20 to learn how you can help build an interactive, engaging community for students in your courses
Click here for a list of resources and digital teaching tools mentioned during the workshop.
Check out the PowerPoint presentation here.
Cheating is a chief concern in any teaching environment but can look quite different in online courses. Experienced online instructor, Elyse Adler will discuss the statistics, explore the scenarios and share some solutions to identify, address and ultimately prevent cheating in a virtual environment.
Watch from 1:20 to learn what the research says about cheating in the face-to-face versus the virtual classroom.
Watch from 7:00 to learn how to identify cheating – How do you define it? Does self-plagiarism count? Have you communicated your policies and your institution’s policies clearly to students?
Watch from 8:50 to explore what you can do in your classroom to address cheating
Check out the PowerPoint presentation here.
Learn how Cengage can support HyFlex, face-to-face, and distance learning. Connect with a Learning Consultant today.
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