eLearning Newsletter for January, 2022
(Apologies and thanks to Sir David Attenborough Links to an external site.!)
Comic Transcript
Panel 1: Patrick McEachern holds a crate full of office stuff and says, "I'm going to miss the eLearning department, but I'm excited to start my new tenure as Vice President of Student Affairs at SFCC!" Sir David Attenborough narrates, "As a hermit crab grows, its shell becomes an ever tighter fit. Eventually, a crab needs to move into a bigger one. Suitable emty shells are few and far between."Panel 2: Ben pokes his head into the office and says, "Good luck, Patrick! So uhh... does that mean this office is available?" Narrator: "When a new shell washes ashore, the crabs arrange themselves in an orderly queue. The biggest at the front, the smallest at the back."
Panel 3: Caleb measures Ben's old desk thoughtfully. Narrator: "After a close inspection, the big crab moves in. This triggers a chain-reaction. Each crab hurriedly moves into the shell vacated by the crab ahead of it in the queue."
Panel 4: Nick peeks out hopefully from a cardboard box in the corner. Narrator: "The smallest crab sees an opportunity, if it moves quickly. To be left without a shell is a death sentence, and even a bad shell is better than none at all."
Action Research Training & Grant Opportunity
As we continue our work as a college to build a better normal, we are trying to think of ways to be stay open to new ideas. At eLearning, we were inspired by that spirit to collaborate with District Institutional Research to create a really exciting opportunity. This special module serves as an introduction to the Action Research framework, and the entry point for a more ambitious research opportunity! Check out the Professional Development tab below for more details.
Tech Talks
Jan. 11 @ 1pm: Interactive Knowledge-Checks in Canvas
View the Jan. 11 conversation on YouTube Links to an external site.
Download a Jan. 11 Calendar event Download Download a Jan. 11 Calendar event
Jan. 18 @ 1pm: Professor Pop-Up Office Hours
Professor Stacy Kowtko felt like her traditional office hours were not as productive or helpful as they could be. They filled big blocks of her schedule but were almost never used, and they rarely seemed to fit student schedules. Last Fall Quarter, she came up with a novel strategy for making office hours more approachable and accessible for students, and less time-consuming for her. She'll talk about her "Professor Pop-Up" strategy, and how it's worked for her so far!
Join the Jan. 18 conversation on Zoom Links to an external site.
View the Jan. 18 conversation on YouTube Links to an external site.
Download a Jan. 18 Calendar event Download Download a Jan. 18 Calendar event
Jan. 25 @ 1pm: Creating and using Template Courses
As we build more and more course content in Canvas, it's important to develop sustainable workflows for organizing and reusing content. In this session we'll discuss best practices for building course material in a template or master course, and how to move materials from one course to another to reduce your workload at the start of each quarter.
Join the Jan. 25 conversation on Zoom
Links to an external site.
View the Jan. 25 conversation on YouTube
Links to an external site.
Download a Jan. 25 Calendar event
Download Download a Jan. 25 Calendar event
Winter Focus: Action Research Projects
As we continue our work as a college to build a better normal, we are trying to think of ways to be stay open to new ideas. At eLearning, we were inspired by that spirit to collaborate with District Institutional Research to create a really exciting opportunity. That being said, this months module is a little unique.
The focus of our module is the Action Research framework. It is both a research style and a faculty development opportunity. It allows for you take a deep dive into problems you see in your classroom, and test out potential solutions. Our goal as Action Researchers is to learn what works best in our classrooms. Our module will discuss the ins of outs of this process and leads to an exciting opportunity for you to conduct your own research with IR!
Since the module is unique and leads to a larger grant opportunity it has its very own Canvas shell. Click here to view the module and become eligible for a $75 stipend for completion. After you complete the module there is an additional opportunity to apply for one of fifteen $600 grants for completing a research project. Further details can be found in the module.