Academic Technology Solutions (ATS) Blog
The latest news on teaching with technology
Build Proficiency for Language Learners by Assessing AI Outputs: Insights from a UChicago Instructor’s Experimentation
While much of the discourse on generative AI in higher education has concerned student use to circumvent learning goals, particularly for writing assignments like essays and reading responses, learning activities and concerns from disciplines involving other artifacts...
Implement Universal Design for Learning with Assignments
This post is the second installment in a series on Universal Design for Learning. For more information, please see previous installments in this series. When you are designing assignments to help your class practice new concepts, you can set up your students for...
Make the Most of Ed Discussion
If you're looking for ways to boost active learning and meaningful discussion in your course, Ed Discussion is a powerful tool worth exploring. During a workshop hosted by ATS last quarter, Borja Sotomayor, Senior Instructional Professor in the Department of Computer...
Create Accessible Instructional Videos
To learn more about how to make your materials accessible, please see our other posts on digital accessibility. The author wishes to thank ATS instructional designers Joe Olivier and Cheryl Walker and Emily Baker of the Center for Digital Accessibility for valuable...
Digitize Paper-Based Assignments with Gradescope
“Grading is my favorite part of being a professor,” said no professor ever. While the principles and practices of “un-grading” have received attention recently, most teachers–and institutions for that matter–require grades as a means of evaluating student learning and...
Evaluate Different Lenses for Looking at AI in Teaching – Part Two
Regardless of your stated approach to AI in your class, there are still trends and attitudes in the larger world or simply in other educational settings that stand to have an impact on the environment you want to cultivate. Norms from other classes regarding AI and...
Digital Tools and Critical Pedagogy: Design Your Course Materials with Neurodivergence in Mind
This post is the fourth installment in a series on how to implement the principles of critical pedagogy with digital tools. For more information, please see previous installments in this series. The author wishes to thank instructional designers Michael Hernandez and...
Evaluate Different Lenses for Looking at AI in Teaching: Part One
Regardless of your stated approach to AI in your class, there are still trends and attitudes in other classes or in the world outside higher education that stand to have an impact on the environment you want to cultivate. Norms from other classes regarding AI and even...
Improve Your Videos’ Accessibility with New Panopto Updates
Accessibility (commonly abbreviated as a11y) is a vital consideration that should be at the forefront of all your course materials. As of April 9, 2024, Panopto, the University of Chicago’s video management system, has introduced updates that make it easier for you to...
Optimize Your Canvas Course Structure for Seamless Navigation
Tired of your students not being able to find assignments or submission links in Canvas? Using the same format since you started teaching? Here are some suggestions on how you can make your Canvas courses more streamlined, efficient, and interesting, to make life...
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