Grade Entry Time is Coming Soon

All courses must be graded electronically via the Banner grading form; official grades are not entered in Blackboard, so that means you need to learn how to use Banner if you haven't yet done so.  

The link to Banner 9 grading form can be found under Grade Entry Alert on the Teach/Advise tab in myWSU. Graduate teaching assistants who do not have the Teach/Advise tab can access grading via the Banner Self-Service links found on the Home tab. All CRNs will be viewable on the entry form. 

The Grade Entry Alert tab will have important dates regarding the open grading period. Also keep a look out for any important updates from the Registrar’s office by email or in the WSU Today. 

Starting in Fall 2019, additional options are available when an instructor submits a failing grade.

Instructors will see three failing grade options: FF, FN, FQ

• • FF = attended all term, earned F
• • FN = never attended the class
• • FQ = stopped attending at some point; only this grade will require last date of attendance or educationally-related activity (LDA)
• If you need assistance logging on to myWSU, please contact Help Desk at 316-978-HELP or helpdesk@wichita.edu. 
•  If you need assistance with the grade entry process, please contact the Registrar’s Office at 316-978-3090.

Friendly Audits are Wrapping Up

The 2018 – 2019 Friendly Audits are coming to a close for all Wichita State University online and hybrid courses. Friendly audits are conducted every three years based on Quality Matters (QM) principles; however, they are not full QM reviews. Each course is audited individually by a QM credentialed internal auditor, who looks at the syllabus, organization, design, links, media, interaction, and content of the course, in addition to accessibility of the course per the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 508. Upon completion of the audits, you will receive a letter detailing the results of your course’s audit including recommendations and resources. You can expect to receive your letters in January 2020.

Tell Your Students About Alternative Formats

Have you ever noticed the little “A with a down arrow” that appears to the right of your content in Blackboard? It is letting you know that Blackboard Ally has automatically created alternative formats of your content to meet the diverse learning styles and needs of your students.

Alternative Formats available may include:
• Tagged PDF: structured PDF for improved use with assistive technology
• HTML: for viewing in the browser and on mobile devices
• ePub: for reading as an e-book on an iPad or other e-book readers
• Electronic Braille: BRF version for consumption on electronic braille displays
• Audio: MP3 version for listening
• BeeLine Reader: enhanced version for easier and faster on-screen reading
• Translated Version: a machine translated version of the original document

Alternative formats benefit everyone and provide a greater opportunity for everyone to access the information they need in the way they need or want it. Many students do not know these options are available to them. Whether you teach online or face-to-face, let your students know that they can download alternative formats directly from your course in the way they need it.

Note-taking Type Doesn't Matter Much?

You may have read the 2014 Muller and Oppenheimer study that found that students do better with notes taken longhand than typed notes. This one study impacted classroom policies all over the country, but were the findings repeatable? 

Recently, Morelan, Dunlosky, and Rawson recreated the original 2014 work, and they were unable to reproduce the original findings. Is this an example of the "replication crisis" identified by the "Open Science Collaboration"? Maybe. The takeaway for all instructors is to emphasize main ideas in class lecture, and encourage students to take notes they will use.

Did you know Bb courses launch 30 days before the start of a term?

It is that time of year to wrap up fall semester courses and plan for courses in the spring. Courses always launch on blackboard a month before the first day of a semester. For example, spring 2020 classes begin on January 21^st, 2020, so courses you teach in the spring will show on your My Courses list on blackboard as of December 21^st.

Note: students will access courses they are enrolled in two weeks before the first day of the semester. However, you have the privilege to change the course availability day for students.

Need a Sandbox Shell?

If you wish to start building your course and make it ready backstage, we are here for you! Just send us a request for Sandbox shell at ida@wichita.edu. You can play around your course materials, assessments, and all aspects of your course behind scene. Once you are done, it only takes a few clicks to roll your contents from the sandbox shell to your actual course shell for the semester.

For any question you may have on blackboard and accessibility issues, you can reach us via our email listed above or vist our Open Lab that runs Tuesdays and Wednesdays 1-3PM at Ablah Library's C-Space.

Well Hello. Who Are You Again?

Are you noticing users in your Blackboard courses with roles you do not recognize such as: Embedded Librarian, Accessibility Advisor, SI Peer Leader, or Course Builder? These users are here to support you and your students in a variety of different and important ways.

Embedded Librarians are subject matter experts available to help users with research and library resources assistance. Accessibility Advisors are Representatives from the Office of Disability Services who are enrolled in courses with students that have accommodations that require audits of online materials. These Accessibility Advisors may show up as an "Instructor" in the course information, so please be clear with your students about whom they should contact with course questions.

SI Peer Leaders are Supplemental Instructors who have access to the course, but do not have access to view grades. Finally, Course Builders are Blackboard System Admins--much like your friendly, neighborhood IDA staff members--who are temporarily part of a course when working to assist a student or instructor.

If you have submitted a Blackboard-related OneStop ticket, it is possible you will see one of us pop up in your class. Still seeing us in your course after your request has been answered? Not to worry, we may have skipped the last step by mistake. Just email the Course Builder user and they will unenroll with no impact to your Blackboard course.

Panopto Saves the "Snow" Day!

Cold weather is here and with it comes vacation plans, last minute illness, and potential bad-weather days. Suddenly that lecture schedule is not quite on track! No need to fret. Avoid this problem and give Panopto a try. Panopto is an audio/video lecture capture tool that allows you to record your lecture from your own device and post it to Blackboard for your students to review outside of the classroom. Panopto lectures are also great for students who may have missed a class or want a refresher on the content that was discussed.

Explore the Getting Started with Panopto training tutorial video today and email IDA if you have any questions. Want more hands-on training with a member of our IDA staff, stop by the IDA Labs in the C-Space of Ablah Library on Tuesdays or Wednesdays from 1:00 to 3:00 and a member of our team will be happy to assist you with your Panopto or Blackboard needs.

Need a Key, or Want to Learn about Training?

Glenn Gunnels provides orientation on the use of media features in campus classrooms, checks out required keys, and recommends adapters and cables to instructors of any rank (including GTA's).  In his role as faculty liaison, Glenn also provides an introduction to the resources and training opportunities provided to all instructors by Instructional Design and Access that ensure success in face-to-face, online, and hybrid classes.  

Online Learning Gaining Acceptance

According to Inside Higher Ed's 2019 survey of Faculty Attitudes on Technology, there continues to be an increase in the number of faculty who have taught online, and nearly 40% of surveyed instructors sayy they "fully support" the increase in the use of educational technologies.  Skeptical? On board? Either way, you will find their survey results intersting. You can read the report here after filling out a short request form.

Research Support

Did you know that Faculty Development provides information about research support?  Check out their research support webpage for resources and curated information!

About Our Textbook Collection

The textbook collection was started through a gift from Mrs. Marge Page, a longtime supporter of the Wichita State University Libraries. Her decision to make the donation was based on the difficulty she and her husband faced in purchasing all their textbooks while attending college.

The aim of the collection is to assist students who may not be able to afford. textbooks or who may be delayed in purchasing them. Textbooks purchased for this collection are ones that generally cost $100 or more, and are required for classes with high enrollment. We are unable to purchase textbooks for every course at WSU. If you have a spare copy of your course's textbook, please consider placing it on course reserve for your students to use. 

Have You Signed Up for CIM Yet?

CourseLeaf Curriculum (CIM) is the new online curriculum change system that replaced the paper curriculum change forms. It is the complementary system to our existing online catalog (CAT).  Any faculty, staff and administrators involved in the curriculum change process, submitting and approving curriculum change forms, etc., are encouraged to attend training.  

Training sessions and Open labs for CourseLeaf Curriculum (CIM) are now available in myTraining.

A link to the new CIM Misc Admin Form has also been added to the CourseLeaf links in myWSU. Use this new form for various proposals requiring governance including policy changes and requests for online major codes or new subject codes. Each request will have its own electronic workflow.

For assistance with curriculum questions contact: Sally Fiscus, Registrar's Office, 978-7279, sally.fiscus@wichita.edu
For CIM system, workflow or form support contact:  Michelle Haetten, Registrar's Office, 978-6096, michelle.haetten@wichita.edu
For CAT system or catalog support contact:  Lisa Fleetwood, Registrar’s Office, 978-5309, lisa.fleetwood@wichita.edu

Tips for Optimizing Charts

Do you create charts for work or pleasure? Getting charts right can be very challenging. Luckily, ITS Applications Training Lead, Ali Levine had you covered.  In her blog "Office Bytes," she covers all kinds of Microsoft-related tips and tricks.  In this October article, you'll find Five Tips for Optimizing Charts. For more ITS training, check out myTraining's course listing in the myWSU portal.

Welcome to Shocker Nation

Dr. Mark Porcaro, Executive Directory of Online Learning, reflects on the future of online learning at Wichita State University and the evolving idea of the traditional student. "I recently was invited to present to the President’s Innovation Council about where Online Learning has been and where it is headed. Knowing my audience, I wanted to focus on the future of online learning at WSU. [...]". For more, visit the full article online.

Eric Wilson Attended the ACT Enrollment Management Summit

Eric Wilson, Associate Educator in the Elliott School and Academic Affairs Trends in Higher Education Fellow, attended the 34th Annual ACT Enrollment Managment Summit this summer.  Here are some hilights from that event:

• Gen Z is here! Students born (roughly) between 1996-2012 are now coming to college, and they are not like the Millennials who came before them.
• Gen Z are more likely to be "homebodies" who enjoy spending time with their parents.
• Gen Z value face-to-face interactions, even though they are very comfortable with digital communication as well.
• Gen Z students are likely reading the email you send to them, but they are less likely to respond than earlier generations.