This section is full of timely and evidence-based practices to apply in your teaching.
- Neurodiversity and UDL: Neurodiversity is a term that has been around since the 1990’s, but it has recently resurged as a topic of interest, especially as educators consider strategies for reaching learners of various abilities. But what exactly is neurodiversity? Take a look at the A11Y Corner’s latest blog post about neurodiversity and UDL to learn more.
- Inclusive Teaching | Understanding our Blind Spots: PwC is a company that working to build trust in society and solve important problems. They have done the research to create the Blindspot video series. These videos are a resource to help with the examination of unconscious biases that narrow our vision and possibly influence our behaviors. These very short videos examine challenging assumptions, enhance objectivity, overcoming stereotypes and broadening our perspectives. There is a discussion aid available to help with self-reflection and group discussion.
- Mid-Semester Feedback: We are fast approaching mid-semester and it is a good time to review your course and solicit students’ views of how the course is going from their perspective. A comprehensive guide from Vanderbilt University walks you through the importance of evaluation and some best practices. It is important to remember these three steps:
- Solicitation of feedback: when soliciting views to make it quick and easy for the students to respond, for highest return give them time in class to complete any form. Try creating a Google Form – you can use this bank of questions to develop your own survey. Or try the four question model or the start-stop-continue model (also known as stop, keep, start). For something different look at how Jochen Wirz creatively applied business approaches to student feedback.
- Staying balanced. When you solicit feedback you will inevitably get positive and negative comments and not all constructive. It is important to process the feedback calmly and objectively.
- Response to feedback. The most important part of showing students that their feedback matters is picking some actionable feedback to address as quickly as is reasonable. Make time in class for a conversation and/or consider sending out a video for further details.