Virtual Field Trips & Guest Speakers

Before COVID, instructors and teachers were beginning to incorporate virtual field trips and guest speakers more readily in their classes. During the pandemic, these opportunities became very common and a welcome addition for students to engage with course material in interactive ways. Thankfully there are many exciting resources available for instructors to incorporate a virtual field trip and invite guest speakers to their courses. For students, the more interactive and real-world applicable the content, the more they are eager to participate in the course.

Who:

This week we have curated resources about virtual field trips and incorporating a guest speaker for your courses. When designing a field trip or choosing a guest speaker, think about how the immersive experience can spark conversations, and provide background knowledge about a particular topic or event. Students enjoy investigating and are used to having the ‘world at their fingertips’. When given the opportunity to bring the world to them, they are more likely to be interested in the content connections. The wonderful thing about virtual field trips and guest speakers is that they can be applied across many social science disciplines and the humanities. Have fun incorporating trips, creating your own field trips, and guest speakers into your courses to enhance learning engagement.

How:

In this edition learn how:

To create a virtual field trip or have your students make one.
Virtual field trips and guest speakers enhance engagement in your courses.
You can find virtual field trips.

You:

Our goal for you is to:

Create assessments after students participate in virtual field trips or guest speakers.
Incorporate field trips and guest speakers into your coursework.
Offer students real-world connections.

Take a Virtual Field Trip!
🎧 Listen to Podcast
“There’s nothing quite like a field trip…Although virtual field trips don’t physically bring kids to new locations, they make use of the web and video to amplify online learning in an experiential way.”

Leveraging Virtual Field Trips to Engage Students in Authentic Learning
🎧 Listen to Podcast
“…bring a new level of magic into the learning experience that can inspire and enrich our students at an even higher level. Research has shown that when we can provide real-world learning—like field trips and guest speakers—to our students, they gain academically as well as socially and emotionally.”

	Playing the Field: How Virtual Field Trips Can Benefit Student Learning Now and in the Future –Times Higher Education
	Virtual Field Trips, Educational Games & Additional Resources –College of Education, Rowen University
	Are You Successfully Using Your Guest Speakers? –Faculty Focus
	Integrating Guest Speakers and Panelists in Online Courses –Faculty Focus

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Instructional Development works with faculty to…

Explore, design, and experiment with different teaching and learning modes.
Research and integrate technologies that can enhance teaching and learning.
Design and develop online courses and programs.
Write learning outcomes, design assessments, craft activities, and develop content.
Utilize best practices for using instructional technologies.

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