Tag: accessibility

What Was Missing This Fall?

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The end of the year is often a time for reflection. Some of you may be ending the term and thinking about the project that got away–the manuscript you were meaning to finish or a class you want to improve. We hope you will have a look at the preliminary slate of Spring offerings from FDEV and find something that connects to a professional goal in your life. We are going to start fast in the Spring. Applications will be live for most programs on 1/18 with a due date of 1/30 so we wanted to preview the slate for you now. 

Chico Affordable Learning Solutions (CAL$)
Lead: Beth Shook 
Compensation: $500
Format: Asynchronous online

Want to decrease course costs for students? And at the same time provide students high quality and accessible course materials? Participate in an asynchronous Canvas training designed to help faculty identify and evaluate Open Educational Resources (OER) and other free or affordable course materials for your courses. Faculty who complete the online training, including developing a cost-savings plan to be implemented in a Fall 2024 or Spring 2025 course, will earn $500 in taxable income. 

Canvas modules will cover the following topics: OER and why they are important, finding and evaluating OER, Library resources, understanding copyright and Creative Commons licenses, ensuring accessibility, curating and adapting materials for your course, teaching with open resources, and the Zero Cost Course Materials (ZCCM) designation.

Advancing Hispanic/Latinx Student Success
Leads: Yvette Zuniga and Teresita Curiel
Compensation: TBD $500-$1000
Format: TBD

This project is partially funded by a generous U.S. Department of Education Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) grant from PI Ryan Patten, College of BSS. We are happy to collaborate on this important work. This FLC will feature connected workshops focused on better understanding Hispanic/Latinx university students and how Chico State can advance their success.

BIPoC Writing Community 
Leads: Stef Baldivia and Gloria Lopez
Compensation: TBD, at least $500
Format: TBD

The purpose of the Black, Indigenous, People of Color Faculty Writing Community (BIPoC-FWC) is to cultivate community and support for a diverse group of faculty to successfully navigate the retention, tenure, and promotion process, by developing scholarly and creative work, while strengthening a network of colleagues at the Chico State campus. The BIPoC-FWC is designed to create a space for BIPoC faculty to share their research ideas and publication goals, while supporting and motivating each other. All self-identified Black, Indigenous, or Faculty of Color, are encouraged to apply. Members will regularly meet in a set location for a total of ten 90-minute sessions and two community building events. During writing sessions, every writer works on their own project, with mutual support offered through fellowship both prior to and following the writing sessions. Faculty will be working in a large cohort led by two peer-mentors, Gloria Lopez and Stef Baldivia. There will be a mandatory kick-off meeting in early spring based on participants availability.

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Teaching (EDIT)
Leads: Alisa Wade and Allison McConnell
Compensation: $500 for attending the majority of the workshops
Format: FLEX

The Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Teaching (EDIT) Series includes six workshops, and is designed to offer faculty an introduction to basic concepts of equity, diversity, inclusion, and how they can be implemented in the classroom in order to create more equitable and accessible learning environments. Each workshop explores–and models–a different facet of student-centered and inclusive teaching through tools, resources, and strategies: positionality in the classroom, antiracist pedagogy, backward design, accessibility of course materials, culturally responsive teaching and the hidden curriculum, and practices of classroom community building. Workshops are each paired with a teaching guide (and other materials) and offer the opportunity for faculty to complete deliverables that they will be able to incorporate into their course(s) moving forward.

Grant Writing Support
In Development
Compensation: TBD

Leadership Development
Lead: Holly Nevarez
Compensation: $500
Format: TBD

The leadership development faculty learning community (FLC) will introduce leadership styles and strategies. This FLC is designed for you lead from wherever you are. Perhaps you are not a formal leader on campus, but find yourself leading other staff or students; perhaps you would like to be a formal leader someday and want to start to develop skills; or perhaps you are going to be a department Chair next year and want to start preparing. In any of those scenarios, this FLC is for you. We will talk about staffing, shared governance, facilitating meetings, managing difficult people, work to develop a leadership philosophy and more.

Publish and Flourish
Lead: Chris Fosen
Compensation: $500
Format: One online synchronous FLC and one in-person FLC

The Office of Faculty Development is bringing back faculty learning community (FLC) writing groups for the spring 2024 semester. After a survey was sent out in December 2023 to “Publish and Flourish” and “Write an Article in Twelve Weeks” participants about meeting preferences, we recognized the need for two distinct meeting patterns and goals for FLC participants. Faculty can select either option below:

  • Meeting one hour a week on Zoom for dedicated writing time with minimal interruption, for the purposes of getting words down on paper and providing mutual accountability.
  • Meeting two hours every other week in-person (flex possible) for time to reflect on their writing process, plan out benchmarks for completion, and share drafts in small groups of 2-4. These groups provide accountability and increased understanding of how writing time can mesh with other professional duties.

Participating faculty will receive $500 in taxable income for completing some significant portion of their writing goals, and attending all meetings (through week 13 or 14).

Teaching Climate Change & Resilience (TCCR)
Lead: Mark Stemen
Compensation: $500
Format: Online synchronous and asynchronous
Applications due on 12/15

Faculty participating in the TCCR FLC will learn from experts in the field about the science behind climate change, the solutions available to counter it, the need to incorporate justice into the conversation and the enormous anxiety all of this produces in our students. The five 90-minute sessions spread evenly throughout the semester will be held over Zoom, allowing faculty to form breakout rooms based on discipline for further discussion and curriculum development. In addition to changing their own courses, participating faculty will also become part of the systemwide network of colleagues focused on issues of climate change that formed after the first FLC, and learn how other faculty incorporate those issues across a wide spectrum of curricular disciplines.

Quality Learning and Teaching (QLT)
Lead: Allison McConnell
Compensation: $750
Format: Asynchronous online

The Quality Learning and Teaching (QLT) Program is an asynchronous, self-paced Canvas course structured around the QLT evaluation rubric. This QLT course is designed to meet core standards in the QLT instrument through the completion of eight modules with associated deliverables that guide you to fully redesign a course (or design a new course). Topics and deliverables focus on backwards design, student engagement, authentic assessment, inclusion and accessibility, and more. This QLT course requires a final course review. While focusing on online learning, QLT provides a framework that is applicable to all modes of instruction.

Finally, if you find yourself with time and an inclination toward professional development in the next few weeks, remember we have developed a 100% online and asynchronous course to help you redesign your classes in a world of generative AI. We also have our institutional subscription to the NCFDD with a variety of great resources. Or you could just get some rest–up to you!

Zach Justus
Director of Faculty Development
Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences
Google Voice/Text: 530-487-4150

Attend the CSU Symposium on Teaching and Learning

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The CSU symposium below is worth attending if you’re interested in gaining new student success strategies related to inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility. There are many great presentations on the schedule including a couple from Chico State faculty. The $50 Registration includes continental breakfast and lunch on both Friday and Saturday. If you’re only interested in the virtual sessions, registration is free.

Check it out!

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Registration for the 22nd Annual CSU Symposium on Teaching and Learning, at California State University Fullerton, on March 13-14, 2020, is open!

This year’s theme is “IDEAS: Inclusion, Diversity, Accessibility, and Student Success.” Hosted by CSU Fullerton’s Faculty Development Center in collaboration with the CSU Institute for Teaching and Learning, this year’s symposium provides an opportunity to explore IDEAS imperative to education in a state as diverse as California. All those committed to student success in higher education are welcome to attend.

The keynote speaker for the symposium on March 13 is Deborah Santiago, COO of Excelencia in Education, who will address ways for minority-enrolling institutions to become institutions that truly serve minoritized students.

There will be two pre-symposium workshops from 9:00 am – Noon on Friday, March 13. There is no additional fee to attend a workshop, but space is limited:

  • An Introduction to Inquiry-Based Learning
  • Supporting Disciplinary Learning through Deeper Reading and Metacognitive Conversation

New this year is a series of five virtual sessions, from 8:15 am-11:45 am on Friday, March 13. These sessions feature presentations on immersive and virtual reality, teaching and learning for social justice, and a sneak peek at an online teaching essentials course.

  • Attend these FREE sessions from the office, from home, or while at the symposium.
  • Those not attending the symposium in Fullerton should register, and select “virtual only.”

The symposium features presentations by California State University and California Community College faculty related to empowering first-generation students; supporting students in first-year writing, math, and quantitative reasoning; equity, inclusion, accessibility and strength-based pedagogies; assessment for improvement; technology, innovation, and online and blended learning; and the incorporation of mindfulness and wellness.

For the schedule, list of presenters, travel information, and more, visit the symposium website, or contact The Faculty Development Center at Fullerton.

 

Mobile Devices in Class?

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Should students be allowed to use smartphones and laptops in class? If so, they might get distracted and check e-mail or browse Facebook, although they could just as easily doodle on paper or daydream if mobile devices weren’t allowed. Technology is rarely the sole cause for students being disengaged. In fact, laptops and smartphones can increase student engagement and enhance the learning environment if leveraged properly. Here are five reasons to allow (and even encourage) mobile devices in your class…

  • Using iClickers Cloud, students can engage with you and their peers by responding electronically to questions (TLP can help you set this up).
  • Students can supplement lecture by following along with Blackboard content or searching the web to learn more about concepts presented in class.
  • Some students have illegible handwriting and laptops can create typed, well-organized, and searchable notes. Microsoft OneNote is a good example of this which also facilitates in-class collaboration.
  • Students with accessibility needs often rely on laptops and don’t want to be singled out by a classroom ban on mobile devices.
  • If you approve students to record lectures, they can replay them while driving or working out if that’s their preferred method of learning.

If you allow laptops but not cell phones, the Pocket Points app might benefit both you and your students. When a student locks up and puts away their phone during class, they earn rewards that are redeemable at local stores.

Whatever your policy, there is real value in educating students about mobile device etiquette both in and out of the classroom.

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As a reminder, please complete the 8-minute survey about the professional development programming you want from the FDEV office. Thank-you!

New Developments

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Teaching with video has been important for a long time, but we have come a long way from wheeling a TV cart or projector into the classroom to the sound of cheers from students. In recent years many professors have shifted from videos produced by others to self-recorded segments in support of a flipped classroom model or other alternative teaching formats reliant on students viewing content outside the classroom. This process can be time consuming and frustrating.

Two new developments on our campus are having a positive impact on video and are attractive enough they may convert even the most technically challenged faculty member.

  • Kaltura for uploading and/or recording videos.
  • Video Captioning is available now for all faculty members at no cost.

Kaltura for uploading and/or recording videos

Kaltura has been part of the suite of campus programs for seveHomepage New Logo.pngral years, but a recent renegotiation is providing us with increased functionality that makes using video in your courses easier. It is a Blackboard integrated hosting space for your video content, meaning you can upload a video and share it to as many classes as you would like. It is advertisement free and you have maximum control over the privacy settings. There are also analytical capacities to let you track video views and usage far exceeding our abilities with YouTube or Vimeo. Overall it is an easier way to manage your video content for your courses and make sure you have access in future semesters without publishing it on the open internet. Kaltura also has a feature which transitions to the second development, auto-caption.

 Video Captioning is available now for all faculty members at no cost

AutomaticSync is a new program for our campus and it works with Kaltura beautifully. AutomaticSync allows the Office of Accessible Technology and Services to provide you with captions for any video; it works especially well with Kaltura, but they can make almost any video work. The service is free of charge to you and brings accessibility to your courses in a way that benefits all students, not just those with audio impairments. The turnaround time is quick at 72 hours and the reliability is very high. A new video player which should roll out to campus soon will provide even more features including searchable transcripts that sync with video. There is no excuse not to get captions done.

Individually these are marvelous developments that open up different options in your courses. Together, they make high quality accessible videos a reality for the first time on our campus.

The CELT Conference preliminary program and registration link are now available. See you on October 6-7!

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