Volume 3, Issue 3--Published: Wednesday, October 4th, 2023

Getting to Know the Center:

Collaboration–at the Center for Teaching Excellence, this is one of our favorite words! The Center not only provides collaborative support to instructors when they need it, but we also actively create opportunities for faculty to collaborate and learn from one another. We incorporate collaboration and a growth mindset into our approach to professional learning, our offerings, and our supportive coaching communities. If you are looking for opportunities to collaborate with your colleagues, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We have some great opportunities to collaborate coming up in October!

Our Work--The Center and You!

 
Achieving the Dream Conference Opportunity!
The Center for Teaching Excellence has an opportunity for you to attend the Achieving the Dream two-day virtual Teaching and Learning Summit, “Advancing Equitable Student Learning in Times of Accelerating Change.”  The Center will cover the cost of the Summit ($329 per person); after attending, each selected participant will create and facilitate a workshop on equitable teaching and learning for our MATC colleagues. Our current moment—a time of accelerated change in higher education—calls for us to be agile educators, implementing equity-minded strategies such as culturally responsive practices, open educational resources, and high-impact professional learning to sustain and scale our classroom innovations. For consideration, please complete the brief application no later than October 15, 2023.

MATC Professional Development Opportunities:

MATC offers a wide-range of professional development courses in a variety of delivery modes and durations as part of our efforts to design meaningful professional development that provides just-in-time training opportunities for you to explore what you need when you need it. All of our offerings are free to MATC faculty and eligible for FQAS hours, so that you can plan and develop your own professional development goals and outcomes.  

Upcoming FQAS Workshops

FQAS Workshops entail identifying what activities qualify for Currency in the Field and Student Success/Teaching Excellence.  A hands on demonstration of the FQAS system website and downloadable forms (which are used to claim FQAS hours) is provided. Faculty have the opportunity to ask questions and to troubleshoot navigation concerns. Other activities involve:

  • Navigating the FQAS site
  • TAP development and submission
  • Timeliness
  • Cycle Start & End Dates
  • FQAS Technical Assistance provided by The Center’s Coordinators
  • Other FQAS related technical assistance

Want “Just-in-Time” support for Ultra?

In October,  the Center for Teaching Excellence continues our support sessions in the use of Blackboard Ultra, which are designed to enhance your familiarity and proficiency with this platform.  These sessions aim to provide you with assistance with the features and capabilities of Blackboard Ultra, which can greatly enhance your teaching and engagement with students. Sessions include:

  • Navigating the Blackboard Ultra interface
  • Creating and managing course content
  • Facilitating online discussions and collaboration
  • Assessing student work and providing feedback
  • Utilizing interactive tools for a more engaging learning experience.

Whether you are new to Blackboard Ultra or looking to refresh your skills, these sessions will provide you with practical knowledge and hands-on experience. 

Training for Blackboard Ultra - Don’t Miss Out!

If you haven't attended Blackboard Ultra training yet, don't worry! The Online Learning department is offering sections of ZERD-190 'Introduction to Blackboard Ultra. In this free 1-credit professional development class, you will master navigation, content creation, assessments, gradebook management, and best practices for delivering high-quality instruction using Ultra.

Seats are available for all upcoming sections, including evenings and weekends. Register in Self-Service now to secure your spot! A video demonstration is available to guide you. If you have trouble registering, contact register@matc.edu for assistance.

Other Upcoming ZERD Courses
As part of our state's Faculty Quality Assurance System (FQAS) requirements, faculty are asked to focus on improving the success of their students through development of teaching excellence. MATC supports that work by offering free Professional Learning (ZERD) courses. Consider enrolling in an 8-week online (asynchronous) course by registering in Self-Service using these instructions.

Collaboration Connection:

Don't Forget to Sign-up for MATC Day Breakout Sessions in Sum Total!

On MATC Day, The Center is hosting the breakout session entitled, "Innovation, Research, Conferences, and You! How To Be a Changemaker and Increase Student Voice and Representation"

Your MATC colleagues have been helping to increase the representation of our students through creating innovative student-centered initiatives, conducting research, and presenting at conferences. At this interactive breakout session, you will have the opportunity to hear what several of your MATC colleagues have done and how they’ve helped to increase the voice of our students in college-wide, state-wide, national, and international discussions, where the experiences of our students are often underrepresented. You’ll also  have an opportunity to discuss with your colleagues their motivations, challenges, and rewards in this type of work, as well as opportunities to collaborate on your own ideas and insights. Come get inspired to take your next change-making step or simply learn more about the good work of your MATC colleagues! Presenters include: Heidi Katte,  Brenda Wingard-Haynes, Kami Hall, Tom Vollman, Jenn Medved, Jacqueline Robinson, Anna Varley, Traci Clark, Goldhmong Vang, Thomas Kalluvila, and Julie Ashlock.

 

Student Voices:

"A Helping Hand" by Isaiah Shaw
MATC student, Community and Human Services Pathway 

Mental health issues among students is a growing issue. If high schools and colleges informed them about how to get in contact with therapists and counselors, this may help fight against that. There are students who spend a majority of their week at school and doing coursework. If schools become more involved with the well-being of their students, this can help with their health and productivity.

Know of student work that would be a great add to the Student Voices section? Email The Center for more details and submission guidelines.

Keeping You Posted:

Our goal with Center Connections is to keep you informed, not only about Center’s work, but to help you navigate other college-wide initiatives that directly impact faculty.

How to Help Students Establish Peer Study Partners

Students benefit from peer interactions but may not know how to find a study partner. The "Study Buddies" feature on the Navigate Student platform lets students connect with other students in their class sections who are interested in studying together outside of class. Your promotion of this feature encourages student engagement--the more students that sign up for it, the more they will feel connected to each other and the content.

If you want to learn more about the student view, a document with screenshots is available in the EAB Navigate Resources page under the Faculty Specific heading.

Banned Book Week: October 1-7, 2023
During Banned Book Week, which runs through Saturday, October 7, the MATC Libraries will celebrate everyone’s right to read with displays of frequently challenged and banned books. Join us by checking out a book or picking up a custom-made button you can wear in solidarity. Each campus library has a different design, so stop by each library to collect them all!

Friendly Reminders:

8 Week sections (2nd set)  begin soon!
The second-set of 8-week classes begins on Sunday, 10/ 15 for many of us. If you are teaching an 8 week section, thanks for supporting this important initiative that is key to many of our students’ success!

OER Updates & Resources

Have you checked out MATC's OER website? It is full of OER resources, including the OER's team's semester newsletter, and now includes an OER page for students as well!
 
The third annual WI Open Education Symposium will be held online on Friday, October 27, 2023 from 9am to 4pm. This Symposium is a space for inclusive and open sharing and conversation, and creating meaningful collaborations to advance OER work. All are welcome to attend and contribute. REGISTER HERE
Exciting news is coming regarding the $125,000 from the state of Wisconsin to support OER at MATC, so stay tuned!

Additional Professional Development Opportunities:

Discover the Roadmap to Accessibility
and Quality in Course Design
 
Free webinar: Thursday, October 12 at noon CST

 

All students benefit when accessibility and excellent online course design go hand in hand. Learn how two education experts make it happen by leveraging QM Standards and ReadSpeaker’s text-to-speech tools in concert.

Join Beth Mulhollon and Mary Beth Graham for a free webinar, A Peer's Perspective: How Galen College of Nursing and Indiana Tech Use Quality Matters and ReadSpeaker to Address Accessibility and Good Course Design.

With real-world examples and practical tips, this webinar will help you: 
  • Leverage QM Standards as your reliable roadmap to good course design
  • Learn how ReadSpeaker tools can assist in meeting QM Standards
  • Empower all learners with enhanced text-to-speech technology

Accessibility is for everyone. Join us on October 12 to discover the tools you need to support student success.
Thursday, October 26, 2023
 
These unique offerings are designed to increase educators' capacity for co-creating belonging in all learning spaces. The Institutes support inclusive learning for authentic self-reflection and engagement while exploring the application of "difficult conversations" about race, equity, inclusion, and systemic oppression. Participants are challenged to understand the dynamics of race and racism in education and other forms of exclusion/oppression and transform their educational practices.

Inspiration, Research, and Best Practices

Part of The Center’s mission is to keep you informed about current best practices and pedagogical approaches. Each issue of Center Connections includes links that are meant to be engaging, thought-provoking, and applicable to various classroom environments. For information on MATC's free access to Magna Commons publications, please see The Center's website.   Enjoy the rabbit hole!

Formative assessments support the learning process, while summative assessments validate the appropriateness of formative assessment.
Faculty attitudes make a vast difference.
Through these efforts, educators can embrace the opportunities provided by technology and create dynamic and effective learning environments for all students.

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