Transform Your Teaching

In this episode, Rob and Jared discuss the accessibility of ChatGPT. They talk about the challenges that people may face accessing the platform, the cost associated with new tech, and the advantages that certain users will have based on their access to ChatGPT. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources. We would love to get your feedback! Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better.

ChatGPT can present concerns in terms of access because people’s varying circumstances will either help them or prevent them from utilizing it. Some students may have issues accessing the internet based on their location; therefore, they may not have the same access to ChatGPT as their peers. Larger corporations, however, larger corporations and technology companies can access new features such as Microsoft’s CoPilot because of the cost and computing power required. Though ChatGPT can be accessed from a browser as well as an app, certain devices may not be as compatible with the app.

The largest access gap concerns the versions of ChatGPT since there is a clear difference between ChatGPT 3.5 and ChatGPT 4.0. ChatGPT 3.5 is the free version, accessible to anyone who navigates to the site, while ChatGPT 4.0 is a paid subscription version. ChatGPT 4.0 has also released a beta that allows ChatGPT to search the web for up-to-date information. Ultimately, people who have access to more advanced versions will have greater opportunities to use it in their field.

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In this episode, Rob and Jared have a live conversation with ChatGPT. They ask it for its philosophy of education and discuss its responses. Jared also shares his plans for using ChatGPT in his course over the summer. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources. We would love to get your feedback! Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better.

Rob and Jared discovered that ChatGPT (version 3.5) presents a rather constructivist philosophy of education, focusing on being student-centered, developing critical thinking, and creating opportunities for collaboration and cooperation. When pressed for the origins of this philosophy, ChatGPT referenced several prominent theorists, including Piaget and Vygotsky. 

Overall, Jared and Rob were relatively impressed with the answers but felt that they were rather boilerplate and biased. It is important to remember that ChatGPT was programmed by individuals who come with their own biases, so there will always be some subjectivity, even though AI is perceived to be objective.

Jared plans on employing ChatGPT in his summer course, asking students to use ChatGPT as a tool during different stages of the writing process. He will give a report at the close of the series.

View the transcript of Rob’s questions and ChatGPT’s responses.

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In this episode, Rob and Jared explore the origins of AI and how they led to ChatGPT. They discuss how AI’s continued growth has led to innovative tools as well as potential challenges in education. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources. We would love to get your feedback!  Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better. 

This episode sets the stage for our summer series exploring ChatGPT. Our conversation begins with how the web has changed: Web 1.0, the internet's ”Stone Age,” featured static pages and one-sided conversations. Web 2.0, the ”Renaissance,” brought interactive pages; while Web 3.0 offered machine-readable, interoperable, and decentralized information.

AI's timeline began in 1950 with the Turing Test, measuring machine intelligence. In 1956, John McCarthy introduced the term "Artificial Intelligence" at the Dartmouth Conference. The "Golden Years" of AI (1957-1974) saw the first AI programs and labs. The first and second AI winters (1969, 1973-1980) were marked by decreased funding and interest due to criticism and failed machine translation, respectively. AI resurgence happened with the advent of expert systems (1980-1987), but another winter followed due to their market collapse (1987-1993). 

Important AI milestones include Deep Blue beating a world chess champion in 1997, IBM's Watson winning Jeopardy in 2011, chatbots passing the Turing Test in 2014, and the release of GPT-3 in 2020.

Educational AI has also made significant strides. An early example of ed-tech with AI capability is PLATO in 1963. That early technology has adapted to include automated essay grading. Tools like Gradescope and E-rater utilize algorithms to provide feedback on student essays, saving teachers’ time and giving students more immediate feedback. Personalized learning paths like OpenSimon use student data to provide real-time, personalized feedback based on student performance and behavior. Intelligent tutoring systems adapt to the learning needs of individual students based on their performance and behavior exemplified by Jill Watson, augmenting education through personalized, real-time feedback.

ChatGPT contributed to this description.

In this episode, Rob and Jared wrap up the "What, Why, How” series by discussing some of their favorite educational technology tools. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources. 

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Jared’s favorite tech tools: 

1. Flip – asynchronous video discussion 
2. Kami – annotation tool 
3. Mentimeter – slide presenter with interaction 
4. Canva – free graphic design tool 
5. Adobe Podcast – cleans up audio regardless of ambience or mic quality 
6. Pear Deck (Google Slides extension) - Great for introducing new content  
7. Print Friendly & PDF (Google Chrome extension) - cleans up ads and distractions from websites 

Rob’s favorite tech tools: 

1. Grammarly - AI writing assistant 
2. Parallel Plus – online bible study tool 
3. MindNode – mind mapping tool 
4. Microsoft Teams – classroom file management and communication 
5. Canvas Quizzes - great for formative assessment 
6. ChatGPT-4 - great for research 

From Jared’s Boise friends: 

1. Padlet - it has so many applications and makes crowd sourced activities easy  
2. Edpuzzle - it provides accountability for watching videos  
3. Hypothes.is - PDF annotation tool, but has a pay wall 
4. Formative - It's a one-stop-shop for kids and allows for tons of customization on the teacher end. It's my go to for everything 
5. GoReact - Video-based assessments. You can give time-stamped feedback at specific parts of the video (Presentations, etc) 
6. Wakelet – useful for sharing resources

In this episode, Rob and Jared discuss using mental models so instructors can think through best practices for educational technology. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources. We would love to get your feedback!  Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better. 

Building mental models can help educators approach using technology in their courses. One such mental model is “the planning cycle” which begins with identifying needs and determining whether they are real needs or felt needs. Once the real needs are identified, SMART goals can be created based on those real needs. After goals are established, it's important to create an evaluation to determine if you met those goals.

In education, the Backward Design approach illustrates these principles well. With this approach, an instructor starts by identifying their objective. To create appropriate objectives, an instructor must understand students’ current knowledge and ability levels. Objectives need to be measurable to be effective, and determining how students can prove they meet the objectives can be challenging. However, colleagues can be a help in this endeavor.

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Resources 

Understanding by Design: Wiggins and McTighe 

Understanding by Design: Ryan Bowen 

In this episode, Rob McDole and Jared Pyles welcome Dr. Chris Miller, Senior Professor of Biblical Studies at Cedarville University, onto the podcast. Dr. Miller has been integrating technology into his teaching for decades. He discusses the results he sees from his students because of integrating technology as well as the shifting landscape of student needs and learning habits. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources.

We would love to get your feedback! Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better. 

From his years of teaching, Dr. Miller recognizes that his students’ needs change from year to year and from class to class and adapts his teaching based on his observations of his students. He recognizes that students are still reeling from the effects of the pandemic on their habits and learning practices.

Dr. Miller has always tried to be “on the bleeding edge” of using technology in his teaching. He believes that technology can allow for clear communication between student and instructor. Technology also keeps him organized and ensures he fully understands what he’s teaching. Dr. Miller also provides his slides and his screen recordings for students who cannot attend class due to things such as sickness or athletic events, seeing it as making his content accessible to students. He realizes that making his content available and accessible can provide an avenue for students to not attend class. However, that pushes him to put more effort into his teaching and make sure his love for the content is visible to incentivize students to still attend.   

In this episode Rob and Jared continue to talk about the “how” of tech integration, but they discuss it from the perspective of accessibility with Lauren Eissler--User Experience Designer and Editor for the Center for Teaching and Learning at Cedarville University. In their conversation, they define accessibility and discuss best practices for making more content accessible to students. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources.

We would love to get your feedback!  Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better. 

Before digging into how to effectively make content accessible, it’s important to ask: “what is accessibility?” A basic definition of accessibility is to ensure that the course is accessible to all students, regardless of disability or challenge. 

It is also important to understand why instructors should make their content more accessible. We need to make sure our content is readable for tools like screen readers that help create opportunities for learning for all students. Accessibility also helps remove roadblocks so that students can access content. For example, video captions can help students focus and make it so that students can easily watch videos in noisy areas or without headphones.

Pay attention to how you style or structure your content. Here are some pointers: 

• Use headers instead of increasing size and stylizing paragraph text 
• Include transcriptions/closed captioning when possible. 
• Avoid colored text 
• Use alternative text for images – keep it simple and specific (ideally under 120 characters) 

There is an easy-to-use accessibility checker in Canvas. Use it to check your existing content or before you publish something new.

We would love to get your feedback!  Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better.

Resources 

Using the Accessibility Checker in Canvas 

W3C’s Web Accessibility Institute 

Universal Design for Learning 

Heading Accessibility in Word
WebAIM Contrast Checker

FOCUS BLOG: 

• Three Tips to Improve Accessibility in Your Course 
• Introduction to Accessibility Series 
• Accessibility Best Practices: Captioning, Graphics, and Alt Text 
• Accessibility Best Practices: Color and Text 

In this episode, Rob and Jared discuss the “how” of technology integration and the practical framework SAMR. They talk about how instructors can utilize this framework to integrate technology with their courses. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources.

We would love to get your feedback!  Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better. 

SAMR, an acronym for the four levels of technology integration, was created by Ruben Puentedura and is a practical framework for technology integration. 

• Substitution: technology is a direct tool substitute with no functional change. 
• Augmentation: technology acts as a direct tool substitute with functional improvement. 
• Modification: technology allows for significant task redesign. 
• Redefinition: technology allows for the creation of new tasks previously inconceivable. 

According to Puentedura, substitution is the lowest level of integration; redefinition is the highest. Substitution and augmentation are seen as methods of improving learning tasks. Modification and redefinition can lead to transformed learning tasks. 

Research has shown that educators integrate technology at the substitution and augmentation level, so how do we push ourselves into the complex levels? Here are some tips:  

• Schedule time to try it out. Put it on your calendar and hold to it. Create an opportunity to try. 
• Be willing to fail (yeah, I know that’s hard to read). Remember that failure isn’t failure; it’s feedback. 
• Build a network of other educators. Maybe they failed already, and you can learn from them! 

Questions to ask (from 3plearning.org) 

• What am I hoping to achieve by using this technology? 
• How will it make a difference to my students’ learning? 
• Why is it preferable to not using technology? 
• How equipped are my students and I to use this technology? 
• How much time do I have to invest in making it work? 

What are your thoughts? Send us an email at [email protected]. We would love to hear from you! Please consider filling out our survey to help us improve. 

Resources 

SAMR: A Brief Introduction (slideshow) 

How to Apply the SAMR Model with Ruben Puentedura (video) 

How to Use Technology in the Classroom: Benefits and Effects  

Applying the SAMR model to aid your digital transformation 

In this episode, Rob and Jared discuss the “why” of technology integration and how it relates to servant teaching. They talk about how effective technology integration can improve student engagement and help students understand content better. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources. We would love to get your feedback! Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better.

Technology integration directly relates to servant teaching—it’s a great way for us to prepare our students for their future. We can demonstrate proper technology usage and practice through our instruction. Our goal should be to impart wisdom and to help students work through the proper use of technology and develop 21st Century skills. Using technology effectively serves students because it can meet their immediate needs. It can bridge learning gaps and help students understand content better. Technology can also improve student engagement by personalizing instruction and giving students a voice and choice. 

Learn how to use the technology that fits best with your content so you can teach others. Technology integration comes with a caveat: make sure you’re using the right tools for the job. Don’t pick technology for technology integration’s sake. Consider using technology that complements your instruction and your content and helps meet your students’ needs. 

What are your thoughts? Send us an email at [email protected]. We would love to hear from you! Please consider filling out our survey to help us improve. 

Resources 

Why do we need technology integration? 

In this episode, Rob and Jared discuss the “what” of technology integration. They delve into the definition of technology integration and best practices, using ChatGPT as their co-pilot. Contact us at [email protected] with any questions. You can also visit our blog at cedarville.edu/focusblog for additional resources. 

We would love to get your feedback!  Please fill out our survey to help improve our podcast and serve you better. 

Webster’s definition of technology is expansive. For the sake of our series, we will be limiting our discussion to the use of electronic hardware or software in educational settings that enhance the learning experience. It is important that we as instructors consider integrating technology that fits the needs of our students, our goals, and our instruction.  
 

Technology can be used before, during, and after instruction. Consider how it can help you plan and deliver your content as well as assess your students. Consider using technology for facilitating interaction or collaboration purposes. Because of advances in technology, students can engage with your content anytime and anywhere. 

We can enhance teaching and learning through appropriate technology integration. However, this does take time and consideration. We can also help students learn the ethics and responsibility of using technology. Every time we ask students to use technology, we are allowing them to practice technical, responsible, and safe usage of technology. This can help them as they engage in your course and throughout their lives.  

What are your thoughts? Send us an email at [email protected]. We would love to hear from you! Please consider filling out our survey to help us improve.

Resources 

What is successful technology integration?