OTAN Digest - August 2024
Digest #42
August 2024
Spotlight On...
OTAN negotiates the best free or reduced-cost special offers
for online curriculum licenses and PD resources. See current offers! External Link Icon opens in new window or tab
3 AI Tools for Making Choice Boards External Link Icon opens in new window or tab
Building Educator Digital Capacity External Link Icon opens in new window or tab
Discussions Redesign in Canvas
This redesign allows for “better peer-to-peer interaction through a modern discussion forum.” There are a variety of improved features for better usability and accessibility. See the comparison table below of legacy and redesigned features. For more information consult Instructure’s Discussions Redesign flyer. External Link Icon opens in new window or tab
- User Guides: Instructure created detailed “How-To” user guides for both the student External Link Icon opens in new window or taband teacher External Link Icon opens in new window or tabroles. You can find supplemental resources for those using the Canvas Student (iOS External Link Icon opens in new window or tab/Android External Link Icon opens in new window or tab) and Canvas Teacher (iOS External Link Icon opens in new window or tab/Android External Link Icon opens in new window or tab) apps as well.
- Instructional Video: This brief video provides an overview of the new features and changes that users can expect to see in the Discussions Redesign. You can watch it here External Link Icon opens in new window or tab.
Monthly, SMEs write an article about technology and how it correlates with teaching and learning. These articles become companions of each OTAN Tech Talk. While OTAN welcomes an article or Tech Talk from any adult educator in California, our SMEs without fail consistently write about the most innovative ideas for adult education classrooms.
August
Accessibility: Creating an Equitable Learning Environment – An Agency Approach
By Debbie Jensen, Subject Matter Expert, OTAN
Accessibility explained as the “ability to access for everyone.” When accessibility occurs for those with disabilities, access improves for everyone. This article encourages action for us to ensure our methods are equitable.
July
Enhance Adult Education Lessons with Online Video Using AI Tools
By Kristi Reyes, Subject Matter Expert, OTAN
Videos support enhancing background knowledge for our students. Culminate video viewing with a post-viewing activity such as a reflection, discussion or a writing assignment or project. Creating these materials can be time consuming. Luckily there are several AI options available. Two are detailed within this article.
June
Put A Little MagicSchool Into Your Classroom
By Audrey Dierdorff, Subject Matter Expert, OTAN
As large language models (LLMs) such as ChatGPT and Gemini are being utilized more and more in education, we, as adult educators, need to become prompt engineering aficionados, finessing prompts to get the results we want. But really, who has time for that? Here is where the rays of light come from the heavens and illuminates MagicSchool.AI . This tool was created to alleviate teacher burn-out by creating easy to use AI (Artificial Intelligence) tools for lesson planning, differentiation, assessments, and more.
This report External Link Icon opens in new window or tabis meant to capture both quantitative and qualitative evaluation and analysis from both OTAN and CASAS of how AE agencies serve their students with regards to tech access, distance, blended, and flex learning modalities.
Message from the Director
I love the Olympics and have been glued to them on TV since the opening ceremony in Paris. While I’m not particularly athletic, I am inspired by the dedication, discipline, and perseverance that the Olympics athletes demonstrate as they strive to reach their goals in their journeys toward personal growth and achievement. I see this same dedication, discipline, and perseverance in our adult education students who are often juggling multiple responsibilities, such as jobs and family, while pursuing their academic and career goals and demonstrating remarkable determination and resilience. Our students are not measuring success with medals and new records, but they have their own measures in the form of diplomas, certifications, and improved life opportunities. The dedication and hard work of our athletes and California adult education students is transforming lives and achieving dreams.
OTAN strives to help our students achieve their academic, vocational, and personal pursuits by arming our administrators, teachers, and support personnel with the digital knowledge and tools that allow our students to be prepared and compete in today’s job market. OTAN offers free curriculum pilots to agencies allowing them to “try before they buy”. Learning Upgrade External Link Icon opens in new window or tab, a smartphone-based program that teaches English, math, GED prep, digital literacy, and job skills, is one such pilot that will be offered in 2024-25. Northstar Digital Literacy External Link Icon opens in new window or tab, another pilot option, defines basic skills needed to perform tasks on computers and online in three areas: Essential Computer Skills, Essential Software Skills, and Using Technology in Daily Life. There are several other options listed on our website under Curriculum Offers External Link Icon opens in new window or tab.
Whether you partner with OTAN by enrolling in one of our curriculum pilots or by inviting us to engage with you in designing and delivering custom professional learning for your staff, we look forward to the achievements that l ahieead for our students. Don’t hesitate to reach out by emailing support@otan.us External Link Icon opens in new window or tab. I wish you a very good start to your new program year!
-Renee Collins
Director, Adult Education
OTAN August and September Events
OTAN training events are OPEN to Adult Education staff.
★ = CLOSED, In-Service Training
Professional Development - Plan Ahead!
Did you know OTAN provides FREE professional development workshops to help Adult Educators integrate technology?
Think about scheduling OTAN Professional Development in the 2024-2025 school year. With a wide variety of technology topics from which to choose, OTAN training staff can provide in-person workshops or presentations at any approved California adult education agency or professional development event, either online or face-to-face with a computer lab or devices connected to the Internet.
All OTAN's workshops are provided at no cost!
Each session is hands-on - everyone will learn new skills related to technology or using technology that they can use in their adult education class or program. And all OTAN online or face-to-face workshops can be tailored to fit the needs of the requesting program. Select the links to see a list of the current online or face-to-face workshops and descriptions. If you don't see a workshop that is exactly what you need, contact OTAN - we'll work together to create a training that's best for you and your staff!
Need more information? Contact OTAN training staff anytime by phone at (916) 228-2580 External Link Icon opens in new window or tab, or by email at support@otan.us External Link Icon opens in new window or tab.
To view workshops already scheduled, visit the California Adult Education Professional Development Calendar External Link Icon opens in new window or tab and search for workshops sponsored by OTAN. Don't miss out!