IT Teaching Resources

Supporting mental health and well-being

The demands of remote learning can be uniquely stressful. Balancing the mental, emotional, and physical self often requires new strategies in order to maintain health alongside productivity. Explore the below articles and stories about ways to make your classroom a space for students to learn and feel supported in their well-being.

Instructor and student voices

Greta Olivares focuses on maintaining health and fostering engagement in the online setting

Greta Olivares, a GSE alumna, shares how maintaining her health and staying connected with others helped her succeed in online classes

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Resources

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Getting Things Done: Strategies and Digital Tools for Time and Tasks

Understanding personal energy and procrastination to improve productivity

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University students’ mental health amidst the COVID-19 quarantine in Greece

A quantitative study of 1,000 university students in Greece shows the mental health challenges from COVID-19

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YouthTruth Survey: Learning and well-being during COVID-19

A bird’s-eye view of changes to students’ well-being in response to shifts in their learning environments during COVID-19

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The impact of COVID-19 on student mental health

A survey from Active Minds, a leading college mental health organization on the impact of COVID-19 on student mental health

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Student anxiety and depression increasing during school closures

A survey assessing new mental health challenges among California high school and college-aged students

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COVID-19’s mental health effects on children, college students, and adults

This article discusses how college students, children, and adults are uniquely impacted by COVID-19

Structuring and streamlining content

Remote classes offer opportunities to think critically about the purpose of a course. Instructors must consider not only what learners engage with, but also where and how learners might access these ideas and experiences within the digital course. Explore some approaches for mapping course content in an intentional and learner-centered way in the articles and stories below.

Instructor and student voices

Christopher Cormier and Catalina Martinez share their technology tools for success

Christopher Cormier and Catalina Martinez talk about dynamic teaching methods and the technology they use to facilitate their course

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Resources

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Building video-based learning experiences with Panopto

Now integrated into Canvas, the Panopto video platform can enhance presence and streamline access to media

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Canvas course organization: Recommendations and templates

A guide on how to use and import premade modules and templates to quickly set up a Canvas course

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Canvas FAQ

A collection of answers to the most commonly asked questions about Canvas courses and general Canvas tools and features

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How to organize learner-centered course material

Options and tips for organizing class materials and resources, using a learner-centered Canvas compatible approach

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Zoom FAQ

A collection of answers to the most commonly asked questions about Zoom meetings and the general tools and website features

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How to download and sign into Zoom

A guide on installing Zoom to your computer and attending a meeting as an authenticated user

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Hosting a Zoom meeting or class: Best practices

GSE-IT shares Zoom best practices and how to schedule and host a meeting

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Collection of teaching resources for instructors and TAs

This collection of internal and external resources can help instructors and teaching teams adapt in-person courses to an online format

Promoting student engagement

Online classrooms can offer opportunities for rich interaction. As instructors seek innovative avenues for communication and remixing of ideas, new tools and patterns have emerged that benefit interaction. Explore the below insights towards a more generative and interactive learning environment.

Instructor and student voices

Lunch-n-Learn: (Re)Designing Online Classrooms for Active, Collaborative Learning

GSE instructors share their technologies and strategies on how they support active learning in online environments

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Lunch-n-Learn: Instructor Panel #2

GSE instructors share their methods, tools, and strategies on how to support the student learning experience and foster engagement in the online setting

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GSE IT Workshop: Creating Space for Connection and Engagement

A workshop lead by Denise Pope and Laura Easley on how to use teaching and learning to build a connection

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Nicole Ofiesh and Kathryn Payne

Lunch-n-Learn: Universal Design for Learning

A Lunch-n-Learn panel presented by Nicole Ofiesh and Kathryn Gray on how Universal Design for Learning (UDL) fosters better learning outcomes

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Robert Wachtel Pronovost designs remote learning around choice and trust

Video discussion, escape rooms, and malleable reading lists set the stage for an inclusive and organic learning environment

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Resources

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Bringing cooperative learning structures online using breakout rooms

How to bring traditional peer interaction structures like jigsaw, speed dating, gallery walks, and mix and mingle into the digital space

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Utilizing Kahoot to assess understanding

Kahoot is an online platform for hosting interactive quizzes and knowledge-based competitions

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How to use Google Jamboard to build ideas visually

Google Jamboard is a virtual whiteboard that elevates collaboration via sticky notes and doodling tools

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How to utilize Poll Everywhere, a surveying and data-collection platform

Poll Everywhere provides short and versatile polls for data-gathering and feedback in class

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The Flipped Classroom: Engage millennial students through active learning strategies

A literature review on the benefits and challenges of a “flipped classroom” approach

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The instructor’s face in video instruction

Two field studies highlight the value of social cues for motivation, and expresses caution against the one-size-fits-all approaches to instructional design

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Using Zoom breakout rooms

A descriptive guide describing the various ways to create and manage Breakout Rooms in Zoom

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Facilitating class community building before the quarter begins

A collection of college level community and relationship building activities for before the quarter begins

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Participating in a Zoom meeting or class: Best practices

GSE-IT shares best practices and tips for participating in a Zoom meeting

Bridging synchronous and asynchronous learning

Online learning can happen synchronously, with instructors and students gathering at the same time and (virtual) place and interacting in “real-time”; or asynchronously, with students accessing materials at their own pace. Explore the stories and resources below for insights on how to incorporate both types of learning and foster continuity across these using hybrid activities

Instructor and student voices

Resources

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Canvas course organization: Recommendations and templates

A guide on how to use and import premade modules and templates to quickly set up a Canvas course

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Active and interactive learning online

This study compares the learning differences between students in an online writing course and an in-person writing course

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How chemists achieve active learning online during the COVID-19 pandemic

A Singaporean study on the transition to online learning

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How to handle unstable WiFi in Zoom

A short article on how to make Zoom meetings more accessible for students with poor or unstable internet connection

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Recording and sharing Zoom meetings and chat

How to record a synchronous and asynchronous Zoom class and access the chat features

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Hosting a Zoom meeting or class: Best practices

GSE-IT shares Zoom best practices and how to schedule and host a meeting

Building community and trust

Community is the foundation of a conducive learning environment. In digital environments, instructors find it especially important to intentionally build in opportunities for interactions that promote and reinforce students’ sense of connection and belonging. Explore stories and resources for ideas about how to create community, facilitate social interactions and connections, and build student trust in digital environments.

Instructor and student voices

Lunch-n-Learn: Reflections on Remote Learning – What’s Worth Keeping?

GSE instructors reflect over the past year and share strategies that have made a difference in remote instruction

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Podcast: Elena Darling-Hammond and Danny Pimentel share their experience as TAs bridging students and instructors

Peer conversation addressing the evolving role of the TA

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Podcast: Tatiana Zamora, Jesse Ramirez, Monica Sircar, and Jane Weiss provide insights on how courses supported their career goals

GSE first-year Ph.D. students chat about choosing classes based on personal and research interests

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Podcast: Ghisly Garcia and Brian Chien share what they learned about building community remotely

GSE master’s students reflect on how they built relationships with their cohort

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Podcast: Becca Hanlin and Rob Heavner share their remote experiences and community-building activities

GSE students reflect on what made their classes unique and share hopes for the next quarter

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Jarita Greyeyes recommends building connections with your cohort

Jarita Greyeyes, a third-year Race, Inequality, and Language in Education (RILE) student, shares how she copes with the stresses of her program

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Hannah Katherine D’Apice provides remote learning advice for Ph.D. students

Hannah Katherine D’Apice, a International Comparative Education (ICE) Ph.D. student, shares collaborating methods and tools for the online setting

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Lunch n Learn Student Voices

Lunch-n-Learn: Student Voices Panel

GSE students and alumni reflect on their online classroom experiences, how far they have come as online learners, and plans for the future

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Mathieu Penot offers advice on connecting with other students

Mathieu Penot, a Learning, Design and Technology (LDT) MA student, provides tips on how he managed online classes

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For Sean Reardon, the shift to online meant trying on some new hats

Sean Reardon and his teaching team create opportunities for levity while building a space for collective learning

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Resources

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Boosting awareness with digital design tools

How to apply design tips to boost course or event offerings using ready-made templates

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How to use Google Jamboard to build ideas visually

Google Jamboard is a virtual whiteboard that elevates collaboration via sticky notes and doodling tools

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Recommended Zoom meeting security settings

Managing the Zoom security settings to protect your classes from unwanted interactions

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Creating multiple pathways for student participation

Utilizing Zoom chat, Zoom polling, and PollEverywhere to increase student engagement and participation

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Building community and setting norms during the first day of class

A collection of community and relationship building activities for the first day of class

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Facilitating class community building before the quarter begins

A collection of college level community and relationship building activities for before the quarter begins

Gathering assessment and feedback

Frequent and varied opportunities for assessment and feedback are key to understanding where students are at. Intentional feedback points can deliver these insights and help to adapt a course accordingly. But gathering feedback can pose distinct challenges depending on the data, student, and learning environment. Explore these ideas and more through the articles and stories below as we consider what assessment online can look like.

Instructor and student voices

Hannah Johnstone shares challenges and best practices for working from home

Hannah Johnstone, a GSE alumna, describes her challenges with online learning and offers some promising practices for remote learning

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Resources

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Utilizing Kahoot to assess understanding

Kahoot is an online platform for hosting interactive quizzes and knowledge-based competitions

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How to use Calendly to schedule meetings

Set up meetings and Zoom links efficiently via online booking tool

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How to utilize Poll Everywhere, a surveying and data-collection platform

Poll Everywhere provides short and versatile polls for data-gathering and feedback in class

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Office hours in an online world

A guide presenting ways for instructors to make digital office hours accessible and meaningful to students