Welcome to the Weekly UTLC Newsletter: Week of March 31, 2026 |
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Teaching Tips: The Power of Story |
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Humans are a storytelling people. The power of story enables us to connect to one another and a sense of belonging. The Student Experience Project notes that everyone experiences concerns about belonging. However, if we can reassure students that they do belong, students are more likely to maintain engagement, seek help, and persist (Student Experience Project, 2026).
When the UTLC interviewed students and conducted the VOISES panel last fall, students noted “We want to learn about our professor's stories.” Students want to know how you got to where you are, and what challenges you overcame to be in the position you're in today. There are many ways to share your story, depending on your comfort level:
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Talk about your career path and the challenges you've faced. Students look up to you and value hearing from you.
- Discuss a time when you felt uncertain about belonging and how you got past that.
- Share a time when you struggled with learning a concept in your field, but you were able to do so.
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Students appreciate hearing our stories, as much as you're comfortable. Belonging stories can help us frame our experiences with our students. Story can be a valuable way to connect with our students and help them realize that they can be successful.
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Open Office Hours with ITS |
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Open Office Hours with ITS: Learning Technology’s Instructional Design Team: Tuesdays 10am–12pm
Drop in for a conversation with an instructional designer! We can assist with course and assessment design, discuss teaching questions, and help with Canvas, Teams, and other learning technology.
No registration is needed; you can just join online.
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Tech Tips: How to Fix Heading Structure in Canvas Pages Using UDOIT |
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UNCG will be changing accessibility checkers in the fall, but in the meantime, UDOIT is still our accessibility checker of choice. You can use it to make Canvas content easier to navigate using screen readers or keyboards. UDOIT is built‑in to Canvas and can quickly identify heading issues and help you fix them in just a few steps. Here’s a quick step‑by‑step to get started. You can also explore additional guides from UDOIT for more support!
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- Open your Canvas course.
- Select UDOIT from the course navigation menu.
- Click Scan Course (or open previous scan results).
- In the results list, select Improper Heading Structure.
- Click Review to open the affected Canvas page.
- In the Rich Content Editor:
- Highlight the text you are using as a section title.
- Open the Paragraph drop‑down menu.
- Choose Heading 2 (or use Heading 3 for subsections).
- Click Save to apply the fix.
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The UTLC is now active on social media. Follow us on Instagram (@utlc.uncg), Facebook (UNCG UTLC), and LinkedIn (University Teaching & Learning Commons) to stay informed about weekly teaching tips, upcoming events, and resources that support teaching and learning at UNCG.
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Save the Date: Spring Biergarten |
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Please save the date for our Spring Biergarten,
Thursday, April 30, from 4 to 5pm! More details will be provided in the coming weeks.
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Save the Date: May Professional Development
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May will feature several professional development opportunities! We will have more details about these events in the coming weeks, including exact times and locations, but we'd love to get on your calendar! Please save the date (and register) for the following:
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Faculty Engagement & Development Opportunities |
Check out these upcoming opportunities from the UTLC and other partners on campus. Additionally, the university workshop calendar has opportunities.
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- Self-Paced Training Options| Online, research-based workshops cover a range of essential topics.
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UNCG Libraries Webinars | Research and Application Webinar Series (Spring 2024 recordings) | Zotero Webinar Series (recordings)
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New to Teaching | Access this Canvas site to learn about how students learn, preparing for class, grading, office hours, engagement, active learning, and more.
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Safe and Trans Zone Training on Canvas | Enroll in this self-paced online course to complete Safe Zone 1.0, 2.0, and Trans Zone if you cannot attend an in-person workshop.
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Web Accessibility 101 | This asynchronous, self-paced course focuses on the fundamentals of making online content accessible.
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