Academic Technology Solutions (ATS) Blog
The latest news on teaching with technology

Implement Student Accommodations in Canvas
Introduction The academic accommodations students can receive from Student Disability Services include course flexibility, exam accommodations, note-taking assistance, alternative format conversions, and interpreting and captioning services. Thankfully, Canvas offers...

New Features and Updates in Poll Everywhere
Poll Everywhere, UChicago’s supported polling software tool, has launched new features and updates to streamline the polling process and make it more user-friendly. The first feature is Auto Roster Sync, which enables faculty and instructors to synchronize course...

Assess Programming Assignments with Gradescope
Gradescope is a powerful online feedback and assessment tool that is integrated in UChicago Canvas and supports many types of assignments, from paper-based to digital. In this post, we’ll be taking a closer look at Programming Assignments. If you’re new to Gradescope,...

Use Commonplacing to Help Students Better Understand Difficult Texts: Habits of Mind Series, Part One
Image by StartupStockPhotos from Pixabay Many educators would agree on the value of close, careful reading, engaged discussions, and writing that thoughtfully incorporates primary sources, but it can be challenging to support students in achieving these goals. This is...

Text-to-Speech Is for Everyone
The academic life is filled with reading. Whether you are a student with copious amounts of coursework, or a professional academic balancing teaching, research, and keeping up with current literature, reading is central to success. While reading can be enjoyable,...

What’s New in Canvas-Summer 2024
The author wishes to thank his colleagues on the ATS Learning Design Team for their feedback, and Digital Pedagogy Fellow Kinley LaBerge for valuable assistance in the compilation of this post. Canvas has implemented features over the past months that can provide...

Use the Redesigned Canvas Discussions and Announcements
The author wishes to thank ATS instructional designers Michael Hernandez, Joe Olivier, and Cheryl Walker, whose suggestions improved this post. Canvas Discussions and Announcements have recently been redesigned. The new designs offer improved functionality and more...

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...