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| I’ve been beating the AI drum pretty hard, so I will let our friends in ETS share an AI resource I found last week. It’s a fantastic guide—be sure to check it out!
This week, I’m circling back to a piece, Simple ways to support student mental health in class, that Becky Supiano featured in her Chronicle newsletter at the beginning of August. |
Teaching, Tech, and Tidbits Digest
The posts below are from a bi-weekly digest that encapsulates a range of evidence-based best practices and cutting-edge insights on innovative teaching strategies, effective use of technology, student engagement techniques, and effective assessment, to name a few. The content, diligently curated or crafted by the director Dr. Lew Ludwig, is grounded in robust research and drawn from a wide array of innovative articles, books, and online resources. The goal is to support timely, ongoing faculty development with the most current and impactful knowledge in the field.
I’m familiar with AI. Now what?
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Are you already pretty familiar with generative AI? Ready to try more advanced prompting? Our friends at the UCF’s Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning, led by Kevin Yee, have created a terrific resource: AI Hacks for Educators. Kevin and his group offer more than 50+ AI uses with detailed prompts that you can copy and edit for your purposes. |
From fear to familiarity
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In May, I had a conversation with Adam Weinberg about the use of generative AI and its implications for higher education. During that conversation, I recommended two things:
When we met last week, Adam shared his enthusiasm for Mollick’s book—he even purchased copies for the entire senior staff! |
Restoring Trust in the Age of AI
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| Trust is a peculiar thing. It is not unique to humans—I think my dog trusts me—but it is clearly something that chatbots do not possess. In his recent piece in The Chronicle, ‘Why We Should Normalize Open Disclosure of AI Use‘ Marc Watkins aptly notes that “Teaching is all about trust, which is difficult to restore once it has been lost.” |
Tidbit: First Day of Class
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| Preparing for the first day of class, I always revisit Lang’s four key things to set the right tone: curiosity, community, learning, and course expectations. This one-page newsletter gives a brief summary as well as a link to the more comprehensive article.
I am going to be particularly vigilant this semester not just for the first day but for the first two weeks. |
Tech: Canvas, Reproducibility, and Gemini
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| Canvas Updates and Support ETS created a page on My Denison to share tips for using the new Canvas template, so you can ensure your courses are student-friendly! Check it out to find important information, such as posting your syllabus in the most effective location and how to get more support. Reproducibility Using RStudio for Teaching and Research |
Teaching: Your Syllabi
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As my head slowly comes out of summer mode and I look toward the fall, it’s time to review and refine my syllabi. Our friend, Kevin Gannon, has updated his Chronicle piece, “How to create a syllabus,” with a handy table of contents link and a section on artificial intelligence. Gannon talks about the importance of workshopping—collaboratively reviewing and refining – your course syllabus with input from peers or experts. |
Teaching: Your fall classes and AI
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Tidbit: Celebrating our graduates!
The Center for Learning and Teaching (CfLT) is excited to announce the first graduating cohort of the Denison Teaching Seminar (DTS). The cohort includes Leksa Lee from Global Commerce and East Asian Studies, Stacey Truex from Computer Science, Tim Attalah from Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Amanda Arnold from Health, Exercise, and Sport Studies. These four joined the DTS in the fall of 2021, pioneering this community of practice.
Tech: Summer course prep-What you need to know
Canvas has a sleek new template coming, thanks to the feedback from over 100 faculty/students. The new template will launch in May- check out this 30-second sneak peek!
OER resources: As you think about course content this summer, this LibGuide for Affordable Content & OER makes an excellent starting point. If you are interested in learning more about affordable content practices, the Open Education Resources Initiative has a streamlined, self-paced Canvas course worth exploring.