WELCOME BACK IOWA STATE

START OF SEMESTER GUIDE

First time teaching? A seasoned instructor looking to enhance student success?

 

The Center for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT) offers powerful resources to empower educators to foster a culture of student-centered excellence at ISU. We support instructors across their career trajectories. From Canvas support to grant opportunities, to one-hour webinars and extended professional development opportunities, we promote, enhance, and recognize teaching excellence and student success regardless of modality.



As a new program this year, the Large Enrollment Learning Community is open to anyone who teaches a large enrollment course at Iowa State. In conjunction with the development of a Teaching Toolkit and through community, instructors will build connections across disciplines and share solutions for teaching large enrollment courses. 

Large Enrollment Learning Community meetings will occur monthly on the first Friday at 1:00 pm. The first meeting will be held Friday, September 1, at 1:00 pm.

Email Krista Klocke (klklocke@iastate.edu), CELT Instructor Development Coordinator, with interest or questions.

As a new program this year, the New Instructor Learning Community is open to anyone with a teaching role, regardless of whether or not they are a new instructor or new to Iowa State. Using the newly developed Teaching Toolkit and through community, instructors will build connection across disciplines and demystify the mechanics of teaching through the discussion of effective teaching and learning processes.

The first New Instructor Learning Community meeting will be held Monday, September 11, at 2:00 pm.

Email Krista Klocke (klklocke@iastate.edu), CELT Instructor Development Coordinator, with interest or questions.

The ISU Test Center has engaged with instructors on enhancements that could be made to our operations. We are excited to announce the use of RegisterBlast which adds efficiencies and creates a better user experience. To that end, we have also made some changes to our instructor use policies that we hope you will review before registering for your exams for this fall semester. 

Our new software, RegisterBlast, is now available and must be enabled in Canvas to use. This is where you will submit exam requests AND where students will go to schedule their appointment with the test center once an exam request is approved. Information on this process can be found at the following links:

Instructor Submission Guide

Student Appointment Guide

A few other changes to note:

• We are no longer proctoring low-stakes exams (weekly check-in quizzes, reading quizzes, etc) – please only register for mid/high-stakes exams.
• Exams can be open anywhere from 2-5 days. 
• Assessment length should be no longer than class length unless otherwise arranged.
• Assessment length should be appropriate for the exam with no added time built in.
• Exams are approved on a 1^st come, 1^st served basis
• Final exams can be submitted but will not be approved at this time as we navigate our new system
• Some exams may not be approved due to center capacity issues and/or non-conformity to the instructor use policies

Please visit our new website: testcenter.iastate.edu, for the information you or your students may need related to the Test Center.

Gradescope, a Canvas-integrated assessment feedback platform that includes automated bubble sheet scoring, is now available should you wish to continue to use bubble sheet assessments. 

Important Note: As with any technology, it is highly recommended instructors do a practice exam with their students before using it for high-stakes testing. 

What are the benefits of using Gradescope?

• Provide targeted and specific student feedback   
• Apply retroactive scoring adjustments to all submissions   
• Auto-grade late submissions  
• Recognize and grade bubble sheet forms that Scantron would reject (damaged, bent, folded, marking errors)  
• Digital file retention, no need to hold on to paper bubble sheets

Need more assistance? 

• Schedule a consultation with a CELT technology specialist to learn more. 
• Contact your department to identify scanning and printing resources.  
• For questions related to existing Scantron bubble sheet disposal, contact tes@iastate.edu.  

Iowa State University is investing in several Jumpstart Initiatives that align with the new ISU Strategic Plan. The second of two CFPs for the Affordability Jumpstart initiative, this call is focused on content. The overarching goal of this opportunity is to enhance the affordability of course materials across the university. 

This second round of funding will support the integration of no-cost course materials at Iowa State.

• Total allocation for content projects: $220,000 
• Timeline for content projects 
• CFP released: April 25, 2023 
• Proposals due: September 8, 2023 
• Funding decisions announced: October 9, 2023 
• Grant period: November 2023 - June 30, 2025

See the entire Affordable Course Materials Jumpstart Initiative Proposal, Part II: Content for Review Criteria and Guidelines for Submission.

Important Information

CONTACT US HERE



• celt-help@iastate.edu for submitting a ticket
• iowastateonline@iastate.edu for Iowa State Online inquiries
• celt@iastate.edu for general inquiries
• testcenterhelp@iastate.edu for testing center inquiries

Help is available for instructional design and learning technologies (Canvas, New Quizzes, and Top Hat) on demand. Send your request to celt-help@iastate.edu, and a team member will be in contact shortly.

24/7 Canvas Support

As always, Canvas support is available 24/7 for assistance while our offices are closed. Follow the "? Help" icon in your left navigation bar in Canvas for all the support options available.

Prefer a print version? Click below to view our Teaching Tip as a printable pdf.

CELT Teaching Tip for August 17, 2023

Stay connected by visiting our CELT website.