Students – Two-minute Tech Tips

Tip #14: Use Intelligent Agents in D2L Brightspace

Intelligent agents are a quick way to automate some types of emails to students. Some emails need to be personally written and sent to students, but not all of them. If you are looking for a way to remind students about missing assignments or discussion posts, congratulate them for doing well on a quiz, or ask them to look at the feedback you left them on D2L, intelligent agents might be for you. Intelligent agents use a customized email template and {strings} to personalize it for each student. D2L checks for specific criteria that you set (similar to release conditions)…

March 13, 2023D2L, Efficiency, organization, StudentsAutomation, Intelligent Agents, Work smarter not harder

Apps Audio Students

Tip #12: Use Google Voice to text and call your students

No need to give your cell phone number to students. Giving your students your cell phone number can be risky. Once they have it, they have it forever. I get it; you want a quick and convenient way for your students to contact you and to get a hold of them. I generally use email to get a hold of students, but some students don't check their email regularly. They do, however, always have their phones on them. Google Voice is a free service that allows you to register a new phone number that you can use to contact your students, work…

February 6, 2023Apps, Audio, StudentsCommunication, Google Voice, Texting

Students Video YouTube

Tip #11: Increase the size of your closed captioning

It's hard to see closed captioning (CC) from the back of the room. A simple way to ensure that all students get the same message from YouTube videos you're showing them in class is to turn on closed captioning and use the (+) key to make it large enough for everyone to see. Consider moving the CC around on the screen by clicking and dragging it. Sometimes, the default location at the bottom of the screen could be better depending on the video you're showing. Watch Tip #11

January 27, 2023Students, Video, YouTubeClassroom, Closed Captioning

H5P Microsoft Excel organization Students

Tip #10: Create a timeline of class projects for your students

Gantt charts can be helpful for students. Businesses often use Gantt charts for project management, but I also use them in my classroom. A Gantt chart gives the students a higher-level view of the semester for your course. It shows the start and end dates and the overlap of projects. I used H5P to create my chart for my course. I've embedded the chart in my welcome page and content pages throughout the semester. I aim to continually communicate with students about past, current, and future projects. If dates need to be changed, I can quickly change them on the…

January 20, 2023H5P, Microsoft Excel, organization, StudentsGantt Charts, Semester Timeline

Apps Microsoft Outlook Students

Tip #8: Use Polls in Outlook

Microsoft Polls allows students to answer questions without ever leaving their email. The survey tool inside D2L works fine to collect answers from students in a single course. Microsoft Polls provides similar functionality but doesn't require you to use D2L. Polls stores each response in Microsoft Forms. You can access the answers using Sharepoint. To start using Polls, create a new email in Outlook, choose Insert, and select Polls from the top menu. Next, you'll see the default question and a couple of options. In my example, I asked the students where they would return their equipment at the end…

January 9, 2023Apps, Microsoft Outlook, StudentsE-mail, Outlook, Polls, Quick Polls

Students Video

Tip #6: Show your students how to use Kaltura MediaSpace

Instructors and students both have "creator" accounts on Kaltura MediaSpace. If you are looking for a way to have students record themselves doing an assignment, whether it's a remote presentation, a screen recording, a speech, or a hands-on activity, and then submit the video, have your students use MediaSpace. You can set up an assignment folder on D2L that accepts text submissions or have them post the link on a discussion board. Either way, they won't have to try and email you a giant file that likely will fail. The first time I asked students to create introduction videos and post…

December 27, 2022Students, VideoKaltura, MediaSpace, Video