News - Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning

African American female professor using laptop while doing a research at university library.

Your Blackboard course has a Federal accessibility deadline: UDL 3.0 can help you meet it

May 11, 2026 Linh Nguyen Best Practices, News, Teaching, Tips

You didn’t become a university instructor to think about compliance deadlines. But on April 26, 2027 (extended from April 24, 2026), every PDF you post,

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ACM awards: Departments recognized as leaders in course materials affordability

May 6, 2026 CITL News, Resources

This spring, NIU’s Course Materials Affordability Task Force (CMAT) presented the fourth annual Affordable Course Materials (ACM) Department Awards. These awards are part of the task force’s Leading Impact

Three hikers climb a rocky outcrop at sunrise, with one person at the top pulling another up while a third steadies them from below; all wear backpacks, and a wide mountain landscape with layered hills and clouds stretches into the distance under a colorful sky.

The system, not the students: Insights from the 2025 NASEM Report

May 4, 2026 Linh Nguyen Best Practices, News, Resources, Teaching, Tips, Workshops

I’ve spent years on various sides of the undergraduate STEM classroom—first as an underrepresented minority student navigating the hidden curricula of STEM language and culture,

A person wearing a bright yellow hoodie sits at a desk using a laptop, smiling and gesturing with their hands as if recording a spoken response to a video. They are wearing wireless earbuds. On the desk are papers, a calculator, a smartphone, a notebook, a coffee mug, and a small potted plant. The background shows a softly lit living space with shelves and decorative items.

When should you use VoiceThread? Choosing the right tool for media sharing and interaction

April 22, 2026 CITL Best Practices, News, Resources, Teaching, Technology Trends, Tips, Web Tools

Video content can be an integral part of any course, but especially asynchronous online classes. How you share that content—and to what end—matters. There are

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Online Learning Tool Review updates and announcements

April 13, 2026 CITL News, Teaching, Web Tools

The Online Learning Tool Review, which CITL launched last fall, is now complete. The final decisions reflect not only the data collected but also feedback

Young woman taking an online exam on a laptop with a webcam.

New feature: Respondus Monitor offers second camera option to improve exam security

April 6, 2026 Kevin Harris News, Teaching, Technology Trends, Web Tools

Respondus, the maker of LockDown Browser and Monitor, has recently released a new option that can require students to use a second camera to record

Promotional graphic for “NIU’s Annual Well-being Fair.” The text reads: “The Presidential Commission on Well-being Presents: NIU’s Annual Well-being Fair, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday, April 16, HSC Ballroom.” The lower portion shows colorful wellness-themed icons—such as a water bottle, bicycle, running shoe, yoga figure, dumbbells, fruit, trees, a heart with a heartbeat line, a speech bubble, and a first-aid kit—on a green gradient background. On the right side, text reads: “For more information: go.niu.edu/well-being-fair.”

Celebrate well-being at NIU’s annual Well‑being Fair on April 16!

March 19, 2026 Yvonne Johnson News, Newsletter, Resources

Mark your calendars, Huskies! The Presidential Commission on Well-being is thrilled to host one of NIU’s most energizing community events of the year: the Annual Well‑being

Colorful watercolor illustration of an open book centered on a white background, with vibrant splashes of red, orange, pink, blue, and teal paint flowing outward from the pages. Above the book, the words “Open Education Week” appear in a large, whimsical yet clear brush-style font with a blue-to-orange gradient, arched slightly over the book.

Open to change: Celebrating Open Education Week 2026

February 26, 2026 CITL News, Resources, Workshops

NIU is joining institutions around the world to celebrate Open Education Week, March 2-6, 2026, an annual event dedicated to promoting open educational resources (OER),

Department of Labor releases new AI Literacy Framework

February 19, 2026 Stephanie Richter News, Technology Trends

Artificial intelligence, especially generative AI, is reshaping how we work, learn, and communicate. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has just released an AI Literacy

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Alarmed but hopeful? What AAC&U’s new GenAI report tells us

February 3, 2026 Amanda Hirsch Best Practices, News, Teaching, Technology Trends

AAC&U’s new survey, The AI Challenge: Faculty Concerns About Generative AI in Higher Education, doesn’t just measure opinions about generative AI; it captures a moment