Regular and Substantive Interaction (RSI) in Online Courses

Regular and Substantive Interaction (RSI) in Online Courses

Regular and Substantive Interaction is a United States Department of Education regulation that outlines the requirements for instructor interaction in online courses. These requirements help distinguish online courses from correspondence courses. Learn more about RSI...

WesternOnline Presents Build Bits!

WesternOnline Presents Build Bits!

We know it’s difficult to balance daily work activities with finding the time to squeeze in professional development around online teaching and learning. That’s why WesternOnline is announcing Build Bits! Build Bits are 30-minute bite-sized trainings that combine...

Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL)

Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL)

The Institute for Global Engagement launched the Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) initiative for the 2023-2024 academic year with information sessions and a program to award grants to its first cohort of Western faculty fellows. What is COIL? COIL,...

Top Tips for Online Student Engagement

Top Tips for Online Student Engagement

by Meg Weber, Director of Community Engagement and Executive Education, Head Instructor, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program, WWU As faculty members, so often we can feel like our connection with students is less than it was in the past. We recall bustling days of...

Using Microsoft Teams in your Online or Hybrid Course

Using Microsoft Teams in your Online or Hybrid Course

Explore the ATUS page, Using Microsoft Teams in your Online or Hybrid Course, to learn how to use Microsoft Teams educators to schedule and conduct online class discussions and course lectures, conduct online office hours, securely record student presentations, and...

Learning: STC Online Workshops

Learning: STC Online Workshops

Members of the Western community may select “Join this Course” to join this self-enroll Canvas course by the WWU Student Technology Center, focused on teaching faculty, students, and staff about tech literacies, application support, and technology skills. STC Online...

WesternOnline: Online Best Practices

WesternOnline: Online Best Practices

WesternOnline is a resource created by WWU's Outreach and Continuing Education to help build online courses effectively. Learn more about online basics, student engagement, accessibility, and equity... Explore: Online Best Practices WesternOnline Resources for Online...

WesternOnline: Teaching and Learning Hub

WesternOnline: Teaching and Learning Hub

WesternOnline is a resource created by WWU's Outreach and Continuing Education to help build online courses effectively. In order to learn more about how to create high quality and engaging online courses, visit: Explore: Western Online Teaching and Learning Hub...

Online Office Hours in Canvas, Zoom, & Calendly

Online Office Hours in Canvas, Zoom, & Calendly

View the following videos to learn how to set up online office hours via Canvas, Zoom, and Calendly. First, learn how to create and share online office hours for your classes using the Calendar feature in Canvas. See also: How to Setup Online Office Hours (ATUS...

Pronoun Customization in Online Learning

Pronoun Customization in Online Learning

Anyone can share their pronouns with online learning platforms such as Canvas and Zoom. This can help prevent instructors and other students from unintentionally misgendering one another, helping to create a more inclusive and welcoming online community.  Explore...

WesternOnline: Student Engagement

WesternOnline: Student Engagement

WesternOnline is a resource created by WWU's Outreach and Continuing Education to help build online courses effectively. Learn more about strategies and methods that can help you increase student engagement in online courses--and with any course modality using online...

Best Practices for Creating Online Quizzes and Exams

Best Practices for Creating Online Quizzes and Exams

Explore Best Practices for Creating Online Quizzes and Exams for ideas for designing online quizzes and exams using the tools available at Western. This guide includes the following topics: How to Design a Quiz or Survey Accessibility & Moderating Quizzes...

WesternOnline: Using Canvas Course Templates

WesternOnline: Using Canvas Course Templates

Have you ever wished you had the basic framework all set up for a Canvas course so you could just fill in your course content? Created by WesternOnline designers in Outreach and Community Education, these templates were created in an effort to provide an organized and...

Preparing for a Successful Online Course: Preparing Strategically

Preparing for a Successful Online Course: Preparing Strategically

When creating an online course, there are some key details to keep in mind in order to ensure success for both you as an educator and your students. These include clearly communicating your intentions with your students from the start, being prepared technologically,...

Equity in an Online Classroom

Equity in an Online Classroom

Contributed to the TLCo-op by Emily Gaston, Graduate Research Assistant of the Center for Instructional Innovation and Assessment, 2021. COVID-19 drastically altered how society functions, and the education sphere is no exception. Educators have been forced to rewrite...

Utilizing Breakout Rooms and Online Tools for Student Engagement

Utilizing Breakout Rooms and Online Tools for Student Engagement

Reconstructing a successful class that was meant to be in-person to fit the new online format can be challenging and intimidating. Someone who has tackled this task and found great success, according to his students, is Dr. Charles Patterson, Professor of Spanish at...

Building Trust in an Online Environment

Building Trust in an Online Environment

  Contributed to the TLCo-op by Alina Holmes, Graduate Research Assistant of the Center for Instructional Innovation and Assessment, 2020. One of the many reasons that people decide to go into teaching is because they like working with learners who are often young...

Online Discussion Strategies

Online Discussion Strategies

Contributed to the TLCo-op by Alina Holmes, Graduate Research Assistant of the Center for Instructional Innovation and Assessment, 2020. Discussion looks very different online than it may look in your traditional classroom setting. However, that doesn't mean that the...

Netiquette and Best Practices for Online Learning

Netiquette and Best Practices for Online Learning

Incorporating the suggested etiquette for online learning can help everyone be more successful in online courses, in Zoom or Teams video conferencing, or with online collaborative work. DOs & DON’Ts for Online Learning - Suggestions for online learners, compiled...