What does it mean to be a college student in 2023 when the global pandemic effects are lingering, the cost of higher education is increasing
Read moreReimagining accessibility in an online course
How do you know if your online course is truly accessible? Are there rules or guidelines in place to inform your course design? Maybe the
Read moreNew syllabus toolkit now available
Effective syllabi are learner-centered, meaning they move beyond the mechanics of a course (e.g., office hours, deadlines, and textbooks) to outline how students can be
Read moreHighlighting accessibility resources
Accessibility continues to be a high priority at NIU. Here are just a couple of our notable accessibility resources, as well as an exciting announcement!
Read moreThings you didn’t know Blackboard could do
Blackboard has many features that can help you enrich your students’ learning experience and improve your teaching experience, but you may not know they are
Read moreBlackboard Ally available in all courses on December 15
To support NIU’s commitment to being an inclusive institution, the Division of IT will be enabling Blackboard Ally in all courses on December 15. Ally provides your
Read moreImproving accessibility: Contrast issues
What’s the issue with contrast? In order for students to be able to follow your instructional materials, they must be able to read them. An
Read moreImproving course material accessibility: Scanned vs. OCRed PDFs
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 moreOne small step for accessibility: Adding descriptions to images
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 moreCreating an accessible syllabus
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 moreNew inclusive and innovative features in Microsoft Teams
Exciting New Features in Microsoft Teams Microsoft recently announced several innovations in features, capabilities, and accessibility for Microsoft Teams. Presenter mode further professionalizes Teams presentations,
Read moreZoom now has automatic captioning!
Whether teaching synchronous sessions online or hosting virtual meetings, inclusivity is key to creating a successful online environment. NIU Zoom users can now utilize a
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