Skip to content
Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning

Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning

  • NIU Home
  • NIU Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
  • Home
  • News
  • Teaching
  • Technology Trends
  • Featured Faculty

Best Practices

School desks on laptop keyboard

Fostering a sense of belonging in online learning

October 11, 2021 Megan Holt Best Practices, Teaching, Tips

What is it about online courses? You spend hours developing interactive lesson plans, but there is a lingering suspicion that students are losing focus. As

Read more
student wearing hadphones and using a laptop

Improving course material accessibility: Scanned vs. OCRed PDFs

September 28, 2021 Stephanie Richter Best Practices

Scanned PDFs can be problematic for students with visual impairments because their screen reader may not be able to interpret the page. Optical Character Recognition (OCR) can solve that.

Read more
adding an image description in blackboard original course view

One small step for accessibility: Adding descriptions to images

August 29, 2021 Stephanie Richter Best Practices, Newsletter

Images can be a great way to engage your learners with different modes of learning, and can help communicate complex ideas to students. For students

Read more
Black woman writing in notebook near laptop computer at park

Getting students to read and respond to feedback

August 24, 2021 Amanda Hirsch Best Practices, Teaching, Tips

It’s a familiar story… A faculty member spends hours reading and commenting on student work only to have students turn right to the grade, often

Read more
Camera with microphone on tripod recording instructor in classroom for live streaming

HyFlex teaching: A flexible alternative

August 12, 2021 Amanda Hirsch Best Practices, Teaching, Technology Trends, Tips

What is HyFlex? HyFlex is a course model that allows students a flexible course structure. Students can attend class sessions in the physical classroom, participate

Read more
student relaxing in chair and using laptop on his lap

How to open your Blackboard course early (and 4 reasons why you should!)

August 9, 2021 Stephanie Richter Best Practices, Newsletter, Tips

Every semester, students wait until the first day of classes to find out what their courses will be like, what will be expected of them,

Read more
Collage of illustrated people in boxes

2021 Online Teaching Symposium keynote address promotes inclusive teaching

July 9, 2021 Dan Cabrera Best Practices, Conferences, Teaching, Tips

Attendees of the 2021 Online Teaching Symposium were fortunate to witness the Keynote address, which focused on promoting equity through Inclusive Teaching. The keynote speakers

Read more

Creating an accessible syllabus

June 9, 2021 Amanda Hirsch Best Practices, Resources, Teaching, Tips

The course syllabus is an essential component of your course. A syllabus is often the first means of communication between you and your students, so

Read more

7 do’s and don’ts for post-pandemic teaching with technology

May 10, 2021 CITL Best Practices, Newsletter, Tips

Here’s what students hope you’ll keep doing in the fall — and what they hope you’ll drop. By Flower Darby | May 5, 2021 “Truly

Read more
TEI 2021 professor with mask and student raising hand

Fall 2021 Teaching Effectiveness Institute: Save the date – August 13, 2021

April 20, 2021 Yvonne Johnson Best Practices, Conferences, News, Newsletter

Each year, the Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning (CITL) hosts a Teaching Effectiveness Institute (TEI) to inspire faculty for the upcoming semester. We are

Read more
Asian senior woman reading book drinking coffee in sunny park

Summer reading list to inspire and reenergize your teaching

April 19, 2021 Yvonne Johnson Best Practices, Resources, Teaching, Tips

The summer season is just around the corner. What’s on your “to do” list? Have you been dreaming about dipping your toes in the sand

Read more
Laptop screen with checklists and sticky notes

Setting up your gradebook early

April 15, 2021 CITL Best Practices, Teaching, Tips, Web Tools

Written by Michael Strunk and Megan Holt The anticipation of a new semester is an exciting time. Instructors can delve into lesson planning with renewed

Read more

Posts pagination

«Previous Posts 1 … 7 8 9 10 11 12 Next Posts»
Copyright © 2026 Board of Trustees of Northern Illinois University. All rights reserved.