Insights
10 Excellent Publications, Podcasts, and Websites to Keep Educators Informed
In my daily work as the lead faculty trainer for enrichment across all 2U programs, I am often asked what I read to keep informed about online education. While the following list is in no way exhaustive, it is a good place to start. I have listed my 10 favorite industry publications, podcasts, and websites in order of what I like and use the most.
Industry Publication Newsletters
Industry Publication Newsletters
This free newsletter and website is produced by Magna Publications and comes to my inbox three times a week. Content is written by “instructors, teachers, instructional designers, and others from around the world, where they provide insight into what’s working (and what’s not) in the classroom and online.” Articles are relatively short, usually no more than 1,000 words, and focus on practical advice rather than theory. The search feature on the website is especially helpful when I find myself researching a particular topic.
Another free newsletter I enjoy is EdSurge. They state: “EdSurge covers and connects the people, ideas, and technologies that shape the future of learning. We are an independent news and research initiative of the International Society for Technology in Education.” Their higher ed newsletter is delivered to my inbox once a week. Articles are no more than 900 words and are often written by faculty or industry leaders; although, they do also employ staff writers.
One of the industry standards in higher education, this publication is also available via an email newsletter. The free subscription allows access to five articles per month. It is more a news source about higher education rather than articles written about teaching practices, but some commentaries can be found that contain practical advice under Teaching and Learning. I also enjoy their sections on Diversity and Student Voice. This newsletter provides excellent summaries of research in the field, usually with links to the original study, plus it lists current jobs in the industry.
Another industry standard, the Chronicle also provides free newsletters by topic with valuable article summaries that come to your inbox a few times a week. However, they are also a paid subscription service and therefore have limited access to the amount of articles you can view in a month. The good news is, if you have a university email address, you can usually access the Chronicle through your university library.
Podcasts
Podcasts
This podcast is specific to online teaching and learning. Lecture Breakers “is the place where college professors, instructors, and educators share innovative teaching strategies to inspire you to break up your lecture (or sometimes break away from it completely!), energize your classroom, increase student engagement, and improve learning.”
This weekly podcast “focuses on topics such as excellence in teaching, instructional design, open education, diversity and inclusion, productivity, creativity in teaching, educational technology, and blended learning.”
The Teaching Online Podcast is sponsored by the University of Central Florida and “is a monthly podcast for online and blended learning professionals conducted over a shared cup of coffee.” ☕️
Websites
Websites
This website is a paid non-profit service for educators. Their mission is “to advance higher education through the use of information technology.” Outside their paid memberships, they do have some interesting articles under the Educause Review and in the topical guide under Teaching and Learning.
Another non-profit organization, this org is partially funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation with a mission to “help institutions use new technology to innovate teaching and learning, with the ultimate goal of improving student outcomes for Black, Latinx, and Indigenous students, poverty-affected students, and first-generation students.” What I like about this website are the faculty toolkits they provide under Resources.
This website is jam-packed with resources and information on conferences and live webinars. I like their open source, peer-reviewed journal the Online Learning Journal and their OLC Insights blog for practical advice on teaching and learning specifically online. They also have a variety of White Papers featuring research topics about online education.
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This article was originally published in 2U’s The Faculty Advocate.
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