QUERCUS SUPPORT
It's mid-term time!

Selecting your online assessment tool: Which tool should you use and why?

Shockingly, we have moved impossibly quickly from the start of the term right into the middle of the term (I think we're one week ahead, but with a new study week this year from November 09 to 13, 2020, we're right on the cusp of being halfway through the Fall 2020 term). This means that that voice in the back of your head saying "I better build my assessments" is likely getting a little bit louder... 

Assessing student learning online can be challenging, but there are several tools that can help support your assessment strategy. In this session, we'll explore the benefits and drawbacks of the assessment tools that are part of the Academic Toolbox (see how the toolbox works). For example, if you have a large course where there's an element of student submission of paper-based/handwritten work, you might consider Crowdmark. If you're looking to run a multi-question test that allows for a unique instance for each student writing, you might consider Quercus Quizzes with its question bank functionality. You likely have one of two parameters that will almost make your decision for you.

Last week, Anna Limanni, the ETO's Senior Instructional Technologist, led a session that was intended to help support your decision process as you decide which assessment tool to use (see blog post review with recording and session slide deck) and then how to build your online assessments (see select your assessment tool). During the session, there was extensive talk about the general functionality (and the limitations) of each assessment tool, but we didn't get into specifics. If you'd like some help to pick a tool, or if you've decided and are looking for some help to build an assessment, you can schedule a consultation and we'll get started.

Watch the Recording:

Upcoming Session: How are you?

You've read all the articles and you've made it to the Thanksgiving break - but how are things really going? What is working and what had completely unintended side effects (positive or negative)? As we reflect on the past few weeks and look towards future weeks (terms?) online, how are you doing?

Join us for a 1-hour, informal session where we can check-in, share our experiences, and work together to design and implement thoughtful and beneficial online learning experiences, while acknowledging that this has been a lot and that we might need to take a moment, too.

This session is "sponsored"  by the FASE's TEAL Community of Practice but is absolutely open to all who are interested in participating in the conversation. Whether this is your first conversation about your teaching (or your 1000th), we'd love for you to join.

The session is scheduled for October 19, 2020 from 10 - 11 am (Please note that it will not be recorded, since it will largely be conversational). If you'll be joining us, please register to access the online meeting information.

EDTECH OFFICE BLOG
Recent blog posts

TRAINING AND SUPPORT
This week's top EdTech questions

1. How do I use Piazza? (For Students) This article provides instructions on accessing Piazza in your Quercus course, creating a Piazza account, and modifying your account settings.  
2. How do I use Piazza in my course? Piazza Q&A is an online discussion tool that allows students to post questions and collaborate to edit responses to these questions. Instructors can also answer questions, endorse student answers, and edit or delete any posted content.
3. How do I create a truly anonymous survey form? In order to get a truly anonymous response, we recommend Microsoft Forms with the below settings selected since Quercus surveys can be de-anonymized by members of the teaching team.
4. What are my options for video captioning? This guide provides an overview of your responsibilities as an instructor to provide accessible content within your course. It also includes technical "how to" instructions to enable you to add captions to your video content (using automatic tools and processes for commonly used video hosting tools as well as options for captioning services).
5. What Quercus Quiz analytics can I see? Once a quiz has at least one submission, you can obtain quiz reports. There are a variety of reports and data available in Quercus to make it easy to see what is happening in your course. Reports can help you to better understand the effectiveness of quiz questions, through quiz logs, statistics, analysis reports and question breakdowns.

EDTECH SERVICES
How else can the EdTech Office help?

1. Schedule a consultation - We're happy to meet with you to discuss any element of your course (related to technology, of course!).
2. Request a new Quercus course - We can create courses for both academic and administrative purposes (so no, it doesn't need to be a course, phew!). If you're running a program, committee, group (especially one that has students), this might be a great hub for your work.
3. Request guest Quercus Accounts - These can be used to provide access to external guests or to be used in testing.
4. Participate in the Remote Editing Process - We've designed a remote editing process that you allows the Education Technology Office to provide editing services for your self-captured video content. This program will only be offered during the Fall 2020 and Winter 2021 terms.
5. Book in-studio filming - Coming soon! While this service is not currently up and running due to access restrictions, we do hope to offer this soon. In the meantime, please fill out this form to let us know your interest.