View the CITL Teaching & Learning Newsletter September 28 Issue.
Announcements
Save the Date for the Create Your Own Online Course Series
CITL will be hosting the "Create Your Own Online Course" workshop on November 13, 14, & 15 from 9:00 am – 12:00 pm each day. This is open to all faculty, staff, eLearning Professionals, and TAs who want to learn best practices for creating an online course. Detailed agenda and registration information will be shared in our next newsletter. This is a particularly good opportunity for anyone interested in earning the Certificate in Technology-Enhanced Teaching.
TA Reading Group Registration Continues
How do the best college teachers teach? Find out by reading Ken Bain's What the Best College Teachers Do along with fellow TAs and a CITL facilitator. Meetings will be arranged to fit your schedule and participation will count towards the teaching certificates. Sign up for a reading group by following this link - you will be matched up with other TAs and a facilitator with similar availability.
This Learning Life Photography Contest Submissions Open Now
Will the winner of the 2017 U of I This Learning Life Photography Competition be one of your students? The Center for Innovation in Teaching & Learning invites all students on campus to submit images to the contest. Submissions are being accepted through November 17th and there will be an awards ceremony on December 7 at the Courtyard Cafe in the Illini Union. There will be grand prize winners, runners up and category prizes. Categories include "Studying Around Campus," "Learning with Technology," Information Discovery" and "Learning Through the Arts." We want to see what learning looks like through your students' eyes! Encourage your students to sharpen their visual communication skills, get prizes and recognition, and get that great personal image that will stand out form the crowd. Click here for more information about the contest.
CITL Open House is Over, but It's Not Too Late to Visit
The CITL Open House (Sep 12-14) showcased newly completed Innovation Spaces on the first floor of the Armory including the TechHub, Innovation Studio, Virtual Reality Lab, and iFLEX Innovation Classroom. If you weren’t able to make it to the Open House here’s a video produced by student intern, Zhitian Chen, showing the sights and sounds. Stop by anytime, or visit our website to discuss a collaboration or arrange a tour.
Moodle Basics Workshop Schedule for October
Need a mid-semester Moodle refresher, or teaching online for the first time during the second eight weeks of classes? ATLAS is offering Moodle Basics Workshops this fall to help get you up to speed with Moodle. We're happy to answer any individual questions during this time as well. All faculty and teaching assistants are welcome to attend.
- Monday, October 16, 2017, 1 PM - 3 PM in Room G17, Foreign Languages Building
- Thursday, October 19, 2017, 2 PM - 4 PM in Room G8B, Foreign Languages Building
CITL Events & Workshops
Want to see what workshops and events are coming later in the system? Look at our full calendar for more information.
Monday, Oct. 2
Developing Your Teaching Philosophy Statement for a Faculty Job Search
2:00 P.M. - 3:30 P.M., room 428, Armory
Speaker: Lucas Anderson (CITL)
Monday, Oct. 2
EPI Workshop Session 4: Practice completing sample EPIs; set goals for oral English improvement; learn about resources you can use to improve your English skills
5:30 P.M. - 6:30 P.M., room 428, Armory
Speaker: John Kotnarowski (Linguistics)
Tuesday, Oct. 3
Is That Really My Job?: Handling Difficult Situations
4:00 P.M. - 5:00 P.M., room 428, Armory
Speaker: Katherine Jo (CITL Graduate Affiliate)
Wednesday, Oct. 4
Jr. Faculty Seminar Series #3: Improving Our Testing and Grading of Student Achievement
11:30 A.M. - 1:00 P.M., room 428, Armory
Speaker: Cheelan Bo-Linn (CITL)
Wednesday, Oct. 11
Jr. Faculty Seminar Series #4: Enabling Students to Think Critically and Problem-Solve Creatively
11:30 A.M. - 1:00 P.M., room 428, Armory
Speaker: Cheelan Bo-Linn (CITL)
CITL Technical Training
Wednesday, Oct. 4
Illinois Compass2g Grade Center Drop-In Clinic
3:00 P.M. - 4:30 P.M., room 428, Armory
Speaker: Adam Edwards (CITL)
Thursday, Oct. 12
Illinois Compass2g Grade Center Drop-In Clinic
2:30 P.M. - 4:00 P.M., room 428, Armory
Speaker: Adam Edwards (CITL)
Training Opportunities Across Campus
Want to see what training opportunities exist across campus? Look at the Illinois Staff Training Calendar for more information. Also check out the Savvy Researcher Series.
Wednesday, Oct. 4
Helping Students in Difficult Situations: Strategies for Faculty Mentors
12:00 P.M. - 1:30 P.M., room 104, Illini Union
Sponsor: Graduate College Faculty/Staff Training
Friday, Oct. 6
Savvy Researcher: Introduction to Infographics Using Piktochart
10:00 A.M. - 11:00 A.M., room 314, Main Library
Sponsor: University Library
Teaching Tips
Improving Your Test Questions
An effective test can accurately measure what students know but also the kind of knowledge and the depth of that knowledge. It can also provide you with key information regarding alignment of the learning objectives stated at the beginning of the course with what is being assessed in your exam. Implementing key testing principles and making good decisions regarding exam types, test items, and grading are ways to ensure that student learning is accurately measured. Here are some tips from our Center for Innovation in Teaching & Learning. You can also register for our CITL workshop on Oct. 4th (Improving Our Testing and Grading of Student Achievement) to learn more.
How Should I Study for the Exam?
When an exam approaches, virtually all students agree they need to study and most will, albeit with varying intensity. Most will study the same way they always have—using the strategies they think work. The question students won’t ask is: How should I study for this exam? They don’t recognize that what they need to learn can and should be studied in different ways.
When they get a good grade on an exam, students regularly attribute the success to luck. Students’ success as learners would advance if they had a larger repertoire of study strategies, if they could match study strategies with learning tasks, and if they constructively confronted how they studied with how they performed. Students need help on all three fronts, but courses are already packed with content. Most teachers have time to do little more than admonish students to study hard, avoid cramming and memorizing minutia, and abstain from any sort of cheating. Here is a short survey to administer to your students and how to start a short discussion on “How to study for this exam."
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