{"id":8489,"date":"2023-06-27T15:25:10","date_gmt":"2023-06-27T19:25:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/design-center\/?page_id=8489"},"modified":"2026-02-26T12:21:36","modified_gmt":"2026-02-26T17:21:36","slug":"newsletter-archives","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/design-center\/newsletter-archives\/","title":{"rendered":"News Archives"},"content":{"rendered":"

Best Practices in Online Teaching and Learning<\/h2>\n \n \n \n \n
\n Using the Transparency in Learning and Teaching Framework (TILT)\n <\/div>\n\n \n \n <\/path>\n <\/svg>\n <\/span>\n <\/button>\n\n \n
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JUNE, 2023<\/h3>\n

Transparency in Course Design<\/h3>\n

College coursework can come with many unwritten rules, and failure to understand these rules or even know what they are can create the perception that students are not cut out for college. Transparency is a way to make academic expectations and the learning process more visible. Transparent pedagogy supports:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. Designing more intentional, equitable courses and assignments\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Engaging students in the thought behind those design choices<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Helping students think metacognitively about how and why they are learning what they are<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    One model that promotes transparency, the Transparency Framework, is an initiative led by Dr. Mary-Ann Winkelmes through\u00a0<\/span>TILT (Transparency in Learning and Teaching) Higher Ed<\/span><\/i><\/a>\u00a0that advocates for articulating three elements in assignments: purpose, task, and criteria for success<\/span>. A national study, conducted by\u00a0<\/span>TILT Higher Ed\u00a0<\/span><\/i>and the AAC&U, found that even a small teaching intervention, such as using the Transparency Framework on two assignments in a course, increases academic confidence, belonging, and motivation (Winkelmes et al., 2016).\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    These gains were even more pronounced with first-generation and historically underserved populations, as the intervention demystifies both the learning process and how the assignment would benefit students in the class and beyond. A later study connected these benefits to persistence: students who developed more academic confidence and sense of belonging in their first-year courses were also more likely to be retained (Recent findings, 2019).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Online students, who have less access to spontaneous discussion about assignments, may especially\u00a0<\/span>benefit<\/span>\u00a0from<\/span>\u00a0transparent course design when these methods are used throughout the course<\/span>.<\/span>\u00a0Transparent teaching methods, such explicitly communicating assignment\u00a0<\/span>expectations<\/span>, naming\u00a0<\/span>criteria for\u00a0<\/span>success,<\/span>\u00a0and encouraging<\/span><\/span>\u00a0\u201cinteractive transparency<\/span>,<\/span>\u201d where stud<\/span>ents have space to ask questions and converse with the instructor and other students<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>can<\/span>\u00a0reinforce understanding and\u00a0<\/span>improve outcomes<\/span>\u00a0(<\/span>Howard et al., 2020;\u00a0<\/span>Kir<\/span>sch<\/span>ner, 2021).<\/span>\u00a0Online instructors can invite this kind of<\/span>\u00a0transparent<\/span>\u00a0asynchronous conversation through open discussion boards or shared documents for ques<\/span>tions about the course.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    Applying the Transparency Framework<\/h3>\n

    The\u00a0<\/span>transparent assignment template<\/span><\/a>, developed by Dr. Winkelmes and TILT Higher Ed, focuses on explicitly articulating why students are doing an assignment, what they will do to complete it, and how they will be evaluated. Consider these questions when applying this framework to assignments:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n