“Quality is not an act, it is a habit.” - Aristotle
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Dr. Harold "Harry" Young
Assistant Professor
Department of Political Science & Public Management
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The Department of Distance Education would like to recognize Dr. Harold “Harry” Young for his dedication to creating engaging instructional content for his courses. Dr. Young is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science & Public Management and had this to say to anyone who is considering creating instructional videos for their course(s).
“Connecting with students in an online class can be particularly challenging. Many students are not in an immediate area or even in the country. Using materials like instructional videos in online and F2F courses can have a positive impact on the learner experience in three major ways. First, it brings the instructor into view for the students. Second, these videos bring a real world feel to the class. Finally, both demonstrate the instructor’s commitment to a quality learning experience. I look forward to developing more instructional video to enhance both the online and F2F learning experience for every student.”
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Do you know a faculty member who has taken strides to improve their online courses? Nominate them for our next Faculty Spotlight!
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A LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR
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DISTANCE EDUCATION
MOVING AWAY FROM KALTURA
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EXCITING NEW TOOLS IN D2L!
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Distance Education is excited to announce the introduction of some new features to our D2L toolbox as part of the January 2020 update!
- Quiz Builder – Opt-In: Instructors can opt-in to the new Quiz Builder quiz creation experience. Quiz Builder will become the default in May 2020, so check it out ahead of time by opting in.
- Rubric Creation experience – Opt-In: Instructors can opt-in to the new Rubric creation experience. The new experience will become the default in November 2020.
- New Dropbox Assignments List Page: For several months, instructors have been able to opt-in to the new Dropbox assignments list page. With the January 2020 update, this new page will become the default.
- Awards: The Awards tool can be used to create Badges to reflect the achievement of different milestones within a course offering. In the Awards tool, instructors can design badges and link them to release conditions to allow automatic awarding. Learners can see the awards that they have already earned, as well as those that they have yet to earn, in the associated My Awards tool.
- Notifications: Notifications will help you and your students control how you receive notifications about activity in your courses. You can receive a periodic summary of activity, or receive instant notifications as things happen.
Please see the links below for short guides on opting in (or out) of the new
Contact the Distance Education Support Desk with any questions: (931) 221-6625 or
online@apsu.edu
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KEYS TO SUCCESS WITH EXAMITY
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In 2019, Examity student usage increased by 27% which was a great opportunity for Distance Education to learn more about how faculty are using Examity and any pain points students might experience. What we learned is that
communication is the key
to success. We have taken this to heart and updated our Examity website so that it contains more resources on all the Examity level options especially Level 1 Automated Proctoring. Usage of Automated Proctoring had previously been low but increased by 6.4 times in 2019!
Now with even more resources at your fingertips, here are the top three things you can do to improve success in 2020:
- Communicate with Us - Remember Distance Education is here to support you! Please contact us at online@apsu.edu to set up a consultation even if you have used Examity before. We would love to show you the ins and outs of the tool, its relation to D2L, and how to set up Examity to best fit your needs.
- Communicate Level Expectations to your Students – There are three different exam levels in Examity. When students take their exam, they cannot tell in Examity what level of exam they are about to take which means they have no idea what to expect! Include information about your exam level and what students can expect in your course syllabus, support resources, and when you introduce the exam. Learn more about these levels on our website including sample syllabus statements and student resources.
- Communicate Environmental Expectations to your Students – Regardless of exam level, students must be in a quiet location where they can take their exam alone that does not contain any unapproved materials. The exam space could be a room in their/family/friend home, office, private study room, etc. Students will be asked to show a 360 degree view of their work-space to the proctor so they can check for unapproved items. The proctor does not know the content of your exam so they may ask students to remove or cover up papers/items.
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A MESSAGE FROM OUR
INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN TEAM
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WHAT'S GOING ON IN DISTANCE EDUCATION
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INSTRUCTIONAL TECHNOLOGY CORNER
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D2L – Adobe Flash End of Life
Adobe has announced that Flash will no longer be a distributed and supported product as of the end of 2020. D2L will also be ending support for Flash at the end of the year.
D2L users should prepare themselves for the removal of Flash ahead of the End of Life date. Any objects that were created using Flash should be converted to a different format such as MP4. There are many options available for this type of conversion.
D2L recommends validating that no Flash objects remain in active courses moving forward to avoid any disruption to users. Materials such as SCORM objects, Video Recordings, and Links within Content Files are potential areas where Flash could have been used. The upcoming Spring and Summer semesters are a great time to evaluate your courses to ensure they are using the most up-to-date technologies.
If you have any questions about converting Flash objects to other formats, please contact Dr. Tim Oneal at (931) 221-6484 or
onealt@apsu.edu
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WINTER TERM SHOWS RECORD GROWTH!
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Consistent enrollment trends in WT indicate students have continued interest in the term
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Enrollments in WT 2020 show an increase from 2019, and the 2020 headcount and enrollments are trending significant increases from previous years. According to the WT 2020 Data Report, the 2020 headcount (685) is up 5% from 2019 (653), and 2020 enrollments (883) increased by 9% from 2019 (803). Overall, enrollments grew 49% from 2012 (449) to 2020 (883).
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*
Headcount is the individual number of students enrolled for Winter Term (not duplicated)
**Enrollment is the total count of students enrolled in each course for the term (duplicated –students that enrolled in more than one course is counted twice)
Data retrieved from ARGOS on 1/15/2020.
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Juniors and seniors continue to fill more than 50% of the seats in WT. During 2020, the number of seats filled by sophomores significantly increased, as sophomores averaged 152 seats in WT from 2017 to 2019. In 2020, the number of seats filled by sophomores reached a high of 190. The increase in seats filled by sophomores could be an indication of the group’s rising interest in the term. Over time, we may find that juniors and seniors will no longer comprise of the majority of seats filled in WT.
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Data retrieved from ARGOS on 1/15/2020.
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As a reminder, Distance Education offers department-wide training sessions! We can come to you, or you can come to us. We offer training in many different subjects including accessible documents, D2L, course design, and more. Request department-wide training by emailing
online@apsu.edu
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