So many tech and AI tools: what's achievable for you as a teacher?

VU offers workshops, how-to's, and even philosophical lectures on AI and tech in education. Also, during the VU EdTech Day on 18 April 2024, teachers once again learned a lot. For those who couldn't attend: below are the key lessons summarized.

1. Make Canvas student-friendly: three tips 
2. Use tools to motivate and prepare students for your lecture 
3. Develop students' communication skills with Avatar AI bots 
4. The future of knowledge clips? Make a copy of yourself!

1. Make Canvas student-friendly: three tips
“I feel like every teacher uses Canvas differently, causing students to get lost within a tool that should remain straightforward”, says Hanna ten Harmsen van der Beek, programme manager at UvA, during the workshop. And according to VU Process Manager Supporting Teaching and Learning Arjen Heijstek: “In the culture of higher education, rightly, the teacher has a lot of freedom within the framework of the course, which leads to variation in the setup of Canvas Courses. Sometimes students rightly complain that it's difficult to find their way around. For each course, you have to start over, trying to understand the teacher's approach.” A challenge to which many teachers don't always have the answer: how do you actually make this student-friendly?

Here are three tips to start with:

1. Minimize menu options: limit yourself to essential components such as Home, Announcements, and Modules to prevent confusion.
2. Centralize information: keep all course materials in one place, such as in Modules, so that students can quickly find what they need.
3. Structure logically: organize information chronologically and ensure clear naming of files and links.

Want more tips? The VU Education Lab offers instructional material, support, and workshops to consistently and student-friendly set up Canvas courses. 

2. Use tools to motivate students to come prepared to your lecture
Feedback Fruits and Perusall are well-known digital VU tools that integrate with Canvas LMS. Students can annotate documents, course materials, and videos. This creates an interactive learning environment where students can communicate with each other within course materials, significantly improving engagement and understanding of the subject.

Tips for effectively using interactive course materials for your students:

1. Set clear expectations: define for your students what high-quality annotations are, specify the required level of detail and critical thinking, and communicate minimal annotation requirements. Seven annotations within a document are recommended for good engagement.
2. Promote group collaboration: divide students into small groups to encourage collaboration and discussion focused on specific parts of the material.
3. Minimize intervention as a teacher: avoid intervention with incorrect answers. Encourage self-discovery and collaboration among students, and use ‘upvotes’ to gain insight into student perspectives. Incorrect answers are useful for interaction during the lecture.

3. Develop students' communication skills with Avatar AI bots
Teaching collaboration skills in higher education can be challenging, especially when you have two hundred students in your lecture. Digital tools, such as AI-powered avatars, can contribute to this skill development. An approach that can prepare students for the complex dynamics of teamwork. “By linking avatars to generative AI, realistic interactions arise that can train students' communication skills at their own pace. The use of avatars provides an accessible and realistic way for students to receive feedback and further develop”, says Esther Schagen, communication science lecturer. Try it out yourself!

4. The future of knowledge clips? Make a copy of yourself!
With the avatar app HeyGen, as a teacher you can create a realistic digital version of yourself. Just like Geert Buijtenweg, a movement sciences teacher, did. An avatar is useful for producing dozens of knowledge clips and delivering lectures. Also, it's valuable for distance learning as it eliminates the need for frequent studio visits. With ChatGPT and HeyGen, you can quickly generate interactive case studies, videos, and other course materials. This saves time and increases student engagement. “Thanks to generative AI, we can develop engaging learning materials, with students experiencing it as an interesting and fun addition, while learning about complex topics like brain anatomy, as in Geert's knowledge clips”, says Stephan Eltink, education specialist.

Interested in making an avatar? Contact the VU Centre for Teaching and Learning.