The following material serves as an extension to the Center for Teaching and Learning’s Transforming Teaching Toolkit. You are encouraged to examine those resources as well.
Introduction: Engineering is an inherently visual discipline. Providing a variety of engaging and relevant visual content for students is useful. The ETLT is skilled at creating efffective multimedia to support learners, and instructors are encouraged to reach out and brainstorm their ideas with a member of the ETLT staff.
| Recommended Action | Why | How | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| Find Open Educational Resources (OERs) that are freely available and that can be reused in your courses. | Good quality resources do exist, and if they are relevant to your course, you can save time by referencing pre-existing material. This can be especially helpful to provide your students with multiple perspectives. | Contact the ETLT or Queen’s Librarians for ideas on how to find OERs that are related to your discipline. | Queen’s Library: Getting Started with OERs Open Science MOOC OER Commons - Canadian Engineering Education Association Open Textbook Library ISU: Open Educational Resources MIT: Open Courseware eCampus Ontario: Open Library Ontario |
| Procure the right hardware/software for use in the delivery of your course. | Online and blended teaching may require different hardware/software than you already have available. | The ETLT staff can help guide you through the process of investing in new gear/technology that meets your specific needs. Faculty IT can help you with procurement and initial configuration of the chosen technologies. The ETLT also has a lending library. See more information in the last row below. |
Category 1: Touch Pen/ Input for Voice Over with Annotating Recommended configurations for iPad, Pencil and Keyboard Option: iPad Pro, Apple Pencil, Apple Keyboard Folio. Recommended configuration for Windows Laptop with en Input and Keyboard Option: Surface Pro 6, Surface Keyboard, Blue Yeti Nano Microphone. Category 2: Standard Computer Setup for Voice Over. Recommended configurations for Mac Laptop, non-touch input: MacBook Air, Blue Yeti Nano Microphone. Recommended configurations for Windows Laptop, non-touch input: Lenovo E14, Blue Yeti Nano Microphone. |
| Create customized, engaging video presentations for your students. | Video in itself is not a panacea to learning. High quality video that is cognitively engaging and promotes learning can be purposefully designed to suit your specific course material. | The ETLT can advise you on a customized workflow that meets your needs. Pre-production templates, tutorial documents and individual training are available to assist you in the planning and creation of these learning objects. Queen's University offers an In Classroom Video Recording Service that might work well for some instructors. |
Video: Purpose-Built Video (8:31) Video: Voice-over PowerPoint Best Practices (12:04) |
| Create good instructions for students when using AppsAnywhere. | Help students quickly find the software Apps they are looking for by creating a list that applies specifically to your course. | Queen's University uses the AppsAnywhere platform as a repository for commonly-used applications. In AppsAnywhere, you can generate a link directly to an app. You create those by finding any app, hovering over it, and clicking the "share" icon in the upper right. You can also create app lists, groups of apps that go together - for example, all the apps needed for a class. To do that, click your name in the upper right corner of the screen and choose "App Lists". Click "Add a new list" and give it a name (perhaps the course code). When prompted, hover over any apps on the system and choose "Add to list". When you're done click "Save" and then "Share List" to get a link. |
Here's an example. |
| Set up an environment conducive to recording. | Setting up an environment that is conducive to recording will ensure you record the best possible quality recordings, and will also help you maximize your time in the process. | Spend some time preparing your computer and your remote studio before recording. See Rick Sellens's 'How To' videos in the examples column for specific recommendations. It is also possible to book time in the ETLT recording room. |
Prepare your computer and remote studio Techniques for individual communication with students |
| Edit your videos. | Performing basic editing to your videos will create a better user experience for your students, and can reduce your recording time as you don't need to start again each time you make a mistake or want to start again | Queen's has a institutional licence to Camtasia, a screen recording and editing software. Click here for instructions on how to download it. See Rick Sellens's 'How To' videos in the examples column for specific recommendations. | Basic Camtasia workflow for instructors |
| Borrow available equipment from our lending library to be used in the development of online and blended course material. We offer an assortment of microphones, webcams, laptops, and tablets. | Using quality equipment can increase the level of production value in your recordings. This makes it easier for students to follow along, and prevents time consuming issues in the editing process. | Let a member of the ETLT know what type of equipment you need, and how long it is needed at etlt@queensu.ca. We can then check to see what's available, and provide the best options for your project. |
|
At any time, you can reach the Engineering Teaching and Learning Team at ETLT@queensu.ca or via the LiveChat widget found at the bottom of this page with any questions you may have. We are here to help.