How to use Xerte 360° image viewer: Advent Calendar #16

Xerte Toolkits has a number of different types of pages and interactivities to include in learning resources. The new 360 Image Viewer combines the immersion and interactivity of virtual tours with the power and versatility of Xerte Online Toolkits. Virtual tours created on commercial platforms are often standalone objects but, because 360 Image Viewer is …

Universal Design for Learning: Advent Calendar #15

Universal Design is a well-known principle in, for example, the built environment. One example is where buildings that have been designed for wheelchair access are also more accessible to older people with mobility issues, people with pushchairs or bikes, or the person who fell off their bike yesterday and temporarily injured their knee. It tends …

A pile of Advent ‘gifts’: Advent Calendar #13

A reminder of some of the ‘gifts’ that were on offer last year in our 2021 Advent Calendar. If you missed out – or just forgot about them, you may find just what you need this year! Games The Learning Technologies Crossword A Xerte Toolkits-based game to play at Christmas Christmas Mix and Match: memory …

Student Engagement Cards resource: Advent Calendar #11

For those looking for new ideas and a way of coming up with them that is in itself engaging, printable cards are a popular way to share and sort ideas.  For some ideas on student engagement, both in the classroom and online, here is a tried and tested set of Learner Engagement cards.  Colleagues at …

Timed Moodle Forum posts: Advent Calendar #4

Did you know that there’s a feature in Moodle forums that allows you to set a time that a post will be released? This is really handy for limited-time semi-synchronous discussions, or for scheduling Announcements at a particular time and/or date later on, so that you don’t have to log into Moodle at that particular …

Using video for formative assessment

We have been seeing an increasing number of video assignments being used with students. Having students submit video has a number of advantages including:  Can be used in the context of peer review.   May be a more authentic method of assessment.  Can be included in a career-facing e-portfolio.  Many students really enjoy creating videos. Video …

Three simple ways to engage students in lectures

A common question that we get asked is about are the best ways to poll students in face-to-face lectures, or seek short one-word or short-phrase answers. There are many third-party tools out there but to use those, you will need to evaluate them with regard to data protection, security, accessibility, sustainability, archivability and suitability. It’s …

The Courtyard

The painting “A Courtyard in Chernihiv”, by Victor Onyschchenko, shows what I’d probably call a back alley. It’s that space behind the house (or beside the house) where you park your bike, play with the dog, kick a ball around, do a bit of experimental “gardening”. This courtyard is in a city far away, but …

Hybrid Teaching and Learning in HE: a futuristic model or a realistic model for the future? Summary and Reflection

‘Hybrid Teaching and Learning in HE: a futuristic model or a realistic model for the future?’ was a question addressed at a workshop held by the University of Nottingham in early 2022, when universities were ready to turn the pandemic corner. More than 150 participants from around the globe were brought together to share their …

Word games and learning – make your own Wordle!

So have you caught the Wordle bug yet?  I have. And of course there’s a group of colleagues sharing our scores… It’s taught me a few things that I hope to apply to my digital learning design, particularly perhaps for revision and key learning points: Make it a small activity: Wordle takes a few minutes …