11/22/2024

• Quick Tip - Display Your Syllabus
  
• What's New with Webcourses@UCF
• Video Tip - Make Your Course Materials Accessible
• UDOIT Update - Streamline Your Approach to Accessibility
• Zoom Progressive Web App - Now Required for Chromebook Users
• Faculty Multimedia Center - Panopto Orientation
• Webcourses@UCF Support Online Life Chat
• Design with Quality in Mind - Online Course Pre-Flight Checklist
• Kelvin's Corner - Syllabus: The Big Picture
  
• Fall Book Discussion Group - Connecting in the Online Classroom

The built-in Syllabus Tool in Webcourses@UCF has many useful benefits. There is a Course Summary at the bottom and a calendar on the sidebar. There is a Course Summary at the bottom and a calendar on the sidebar. Up top, the Syllabus description is a ‘free text’ area, which is ideal for posting high-level information about your class – things you want or need the students to know and that won’t change during the semester. For example, course title, description, meeting times, modality, contact information, etc. 

At UCF, we have a “Syllabus Preview” option in the Faculty Webcourse Manager (FWM). If a teacher opts to do so, content from the Syllabus Tool is made available to students in the Class Detail page. Note, your displayed syllabus is only visible to students who have signed into myUCF to use the Course Search tool.   

For more information, visit the Syllabus Knowledge Base article (KB0013623) in Service Now.

There is no production update for August, however, we found the following feature updates worth sharing.

Gradebook - Message Students Who Default Subject Line – When composing a message from the Message Student Who link in the Gradebook, a default subject line is automatically added. 

Rich Content Editor – Document Link Disable Preview Option – When uploading a document using the Rich Content Editor, users will be able to disable the preview of a document and force a download of the document instead.

>>View the August 2022 Canvas Release Notes

This video will show you the benefits of creating Pages in Webcourses@UCF. Pages are the preferred format to present content in Webcourses@UCF and are easily made accessible.

The Universal Design Online content Inspection Tool (UDOIT) has received a substantial update. When you scan your course this fall, you will find a new interface with a streamlined approach to resolving issues. Watch the new UDOIT introduction video to learn more.

Zoom ended support for the Zoom Chrome OS App. At UCF, Chromebook users must use the new Zoom Progressive Web Application (PWA) effective August 11, 2022. Refer to the Basic Zoom Troubleshooting Knowledge Base article (KB0013598) for more information. If you have questions or need help, contact Webcourses@UCF Support.

The Faculty Multimedia Center (FMC) is offering a Panopto Orientation/Workshop for faculty interested in using the platform on Monday, August 15th, 12-1 p.m.

Though we will be answering questions during the orientation, we will be available afterwards for personalized help you may need. If you would like to attend, simply email the Faculty Multimedia Center at fmc@ucf.edu.

As of August 1, Webcourses@UCF Support has expanded our online chat support! Visit any  Center for Distributed Learning web page and click on “Chat Support” in the lower right corner to be connected to Webcourses@UCF Support. 

We now have more team members responding to live chat requests, and will be offering live chat support during more of our operational hours. There may be a short wait depending on the number of chat requests in queue. 

Ever wish you had a checklist before the semester starts to make sure your online course has everything it needs to create a quality online learning experience for your students? We have one for you. The UCF Online Course Pre-Flight Checklist includes items online academic courses should provide, and each item includes a link to a corresponding Design with Quality in Mind article that provides tips and resources for implementing it in your course.

This month, Kelvin recommends “Syllabus, the Big Picture”, a 20-minute episode of the Let’s Talk Teaching podcast from Illinois State University featuring a conversation between hosts Claire Lamonica and Jim Gee in which they take a fresh look at the old syllabus. They propose that the syllabus is a piece of writing with an audience (the student) and a purpose (persuasion). This timely suggestion reframes the purpose and function of the ubiquitous course syllabus. 

Kelvin Thompson is the Executive Director for the Center for Distributed Learning. He is always finding, sharing, recommending interesting and insightful resources about teaching and learning.