Staff blog

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Sometimes our best ideas come from individual designers, faculty, multimedia specialists, and academic tech professionals. Our team is the best at what they do and they're bringing some of their insights, discoveries, and latest news direct to you.

Check back often for the latest news on our department and insights to help you teach more effectively, efficiently, and easily.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Artificial intelligence (AI) fall 2024 webinar series

Join us for an artificial intelligence (AI) webinar series held throughout the fall from September through December.

How to use AI for better image accessibility

This article gives examples of how to use AI tools to generate alternative text and text descriptions for images, making your course content accessible to all students.

Artificial intelligence (AI) spring webinar series

Join us for an artificial intelligence (AI) webinar series held throughout the spring f rom February through May.

Presentations & webinars

Free generative AI for education: Three tools to get started

This presentation features short demos of free tools using OpenAI's latest language model and a conversational AI-powered search engine.

Beyond Panopto: Crafting compelling educational videos

This presentation demonstrates the creation of engaging educational videos using Adobe Express, highlighting its features and the benefits of incorporating videos into teaching practices. 

The end or the beginning? Reframing the future of writing assignments in the age of AI

In this presentation, Kirk Wilkins offers a research-based framework to inspire instructors to renew their teaching practices in the age of AI.

Faculty spotlights

Faculty spotlight: Badri Adhikari

Learn more about UMSL faculty Badri Adhikari and the new educational tool he developed to help students understand why they excel or struggle in their writing and coding tasks.

Anandhi Upendran: BETA training program

Meet Anandhi Upendran, the program director for the Biomedical Entrepreneurship for Aging (BETA) program at the University of Missouri.

Amy Simons: Simulating newsroom meetings using VoiceThread

Missouri School of Journalism Professor Amy Simons shares an award-winning assignment she create called "Hold a Monthly Web Strategy Meeting," in which students analyze data and present strategies for growing...

Instructional design

The Instructional Design team is made up of 20+ professional Instructional Designers who specialize in helping faculty create quality courses. The Instructional Design team is part of the Program and Course Design Services (PCDS) department of Missouri Online. 

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What do you believe about digital accessibility?

Learn more about our commitment to digital accessibility, including misconceptions, the prevalence of disabilities among students, and the tools and support available to create accessible digital content.

Podcast: Teaching students with ADHD

Dr. Cathryn Friel, instructional designer at Missouri Online, was featured as a guest on Dr. Derek Bruff's Intentional Teaching podcast series.

Spring instructional design webinars

All faculty and staff are invited to attend our spring instructional design webinar series.

Experience Design

The Experience Design team is responsible for creating high-quality, engaging end-user experiences to ensure learner comprehension. Team members do this by using a variety of mediums including video and media production, course / web development (CSS, JS, HTML), course template development, branding, marketing and communications, graphic design, and interactive development. This team’s overall goal is to create superior online learning experiences for all learners. 

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New module organizer templates now available

Missouri Online is pleased to announce the availability of two new multi-week module organizer templates for your Canvas courses.

Student resource templates in Canvas Commons

Our latest templates include topics such as how to prepare for group projects, best practices for participating in discussion boards, and tips for succeeding in your online course.

Crafting authentic learning experiences with the LX Canvas

The LX Canvas is used to create improved learning experiences by breaking each one down into categories, including the people involved, the resources available, and the process used to arrive...

Academic technology

The Academic Technology department is made up of a large group of technology professionals who specialize in academic use of technology. They work directly with faculty and staff to ensure success while using any of our 15+ supported tools, while also sourcing and employing new technology tools. 

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Fall 2024 instructor bootcamp

Register today for the fall 2024 Missouri Online instructor bootcamp, which will take place from Monday, August 5, to Friday, August 9.

Digital accessibility is inclusive teaching — UDOIT can help!

UDOIT is a tool for scanning your Canvas site, finding and addressing accessibility barriers, and even providing alternate formats for your course materials.

Navigating online proctoring: Introducing HonorLock

At UM System, we value academic integrity and diverse student needs. We're excited to introduce HonorLock, a new online proctoring tool ensuring secure and fair assessments.

Operations

Spring 2024 Meet & Greets

Missouri Online is hosting meet & greet events throughout the month of April.

Annual report for academic year 2022-2023

We are pleased to share highlights of the past year that represent growth and change across the University of Missouri System (UM System) and its online portfolio.

On-campus meet & greet events in October

Missouri Online is hosting meet & greet events on all four campuses throughout the month of October!