Category: online assessment

Re-post from the TRU Digital Detox

Seems a bit lazy, but I thought this was definitely worth the re-post (or re-blog, whatever you call it – let’s call it sharing!)

In this week’s Digital Detox post (if you don’t know about the Digital Detox, check it out), Dr. Brenna Clarke Grey talks about e-proctoring in a post aptly called E-proctoring Sucks, So Why Won’t It Go Away?

The thing I appreciate the most about her post is her comment that while she does think cheating is a problem, she thinks “it’s largely a structural problem, not an individual one,” which I completely agree with.  Automatically assuming students are going to cheat online and forcing them into invasive proctoring solutions is not addressing the larger issue(s) – we need to examine why students cheat (and yes, there are many, many reasons) and think about our institutional role in pushing them there.

So, I encourage you to check out Dr. Clarke Grey’s post, and join in on the discussion!

Digital Detox #3: E-proctoring Sucks, So Why Won’t It Go Away?

Weekly Bulletin from CETL – April 3, 2020

Here is this week’s CETL bulletin we are sending out to our Camosun faculty every Friday.  These tips might be useful to you, and if you have your own to share back, please add them in the Comments!

The Sacred Circle

When the Creator put us on this Earth, he gave us four gifts to help us through troubled times.
The first was the gift of prayer; the second was the gift of sharing;
the third gift was the gift of crying to wash away the pain and the fourth was laughter.
If you are  able to do these four things, it is said that your are on a healing journey.
 (Education is our Buffalo, The Alberta Teacher’s Association, 2016)

Newly highlighted teaching resources and tips

Library resource highlights

  • AskAway online chat: Camosun Librarians have significantly increased the amount of time they spend monitoring this virtual reference service. If you follow the links on Camosun Library pages, chances are greater that you will connect directly with a Camosun Librarian. Not just or students, faculty can use this service too!
  • Google Scholar: Can be accessed via the library’s Databases A-Z . It will connect you with full text content from Camosun research databases as well as free coronavirus-related content from Elsevier, the Lancet, JAMA, Wiley, and many more!

Basic glossary for online teaching

  • Synchronous = “at the same time”. Teachers and students meet online in real time through videoconferencing or live chatting. USE SPARINGLY during previously scheduled class times, or one-on-one office hours, or as an optional chance to connect.
  • Asynchronous = “not at the same time”. Teachers create learning experiences for students to work at their own pace and take time to absorb content.
  • Blackboard Collaborate = Camosun’s web conferencing tool for synchronous learning (similar to Zoom, except Zoom does NOT meet privacy requirements as it is hosted in the USA. ) Contact eLearning for training.
  • Microsoft Teams = another Camosun-supported web conferencing tool. GREAT for staff meetings, but not available for students.
  • Kaltura = Camosun’s tool for recording, storing and distributing video through D2L (similar to You Tube). Contact eLearning for training.

An adjusted syllabus for our time (reprinted with permission from Brandon Bayne UNC – Chapel Hill)

Principles

  1. Nobody signed up for this.
  • Not for the sickness, not for the social distancing, not for the sudden end of our collective lives together on campus
  • Not for an online class, not for teaching remotely, not for learning from home, not for mastering new technologies, not for varied access to learning materials
  1. The humane option is the best option.
  • We are going to prioritize supporting each other as humans
  • We are going to prioritize simple solutions that make sense for the most
  • We are going to prioritize sharing resources and communicating clearly
  1. We cannot just do the same thing online.
  • Some assignments are no longer possible
  • Some expectations are no longer reasonable
  • Some objectives are no longer valuable
  1. We will foster intellectual nourishment, social connection, and personal accommodation.
  • Accessible asynchronous content for diverse access, time zones, and contexts
  • Optional synchronous discussion to learn together and combat isolation
  1. We will remain flexible and adjust to the situation.
  • Nobody knows where this is going and what we’ll need to adapt
  • Everybody needs support and understanding in this unprecedented moment