Teaching and learning news

Mathematica, from Wolfram Research, is a powerful computational software used for mathematical modeling and data visualization.  McGill IT Services has been providing Mathematica to Faculty & Staff, and in computer labs across the University for the past few years.  Now it is also available to students via the McGill Software site (www.mcgill.ca/software).

If you ride the inter-campus shuttle bus, you've probably found yourself waiting at the stop and wondering when it will arrive -- especially in these frigid January temperatures.  Now you don't have to guess... The McGill Shuttle Bus Tracker is a mobile-friendly website that uses Google Maps to show you the location of each bus along its route, and how fast it's moving.

McGill faculty and staff members now have FREE access to Office 365 ProPlus, which includes the latest versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and other Office apps. The service allows you to install the Office suite on up to 5 personal devices*, including PCs, Macs, and 5 iPad and Windows tablets.

For information about the required components of course outlines, the regulations governing student assessments (including multiple-choice examinations and midterm and final examinations) and University examination regulations,  please see the following websites: Required Components of Course Outlines www.mcgill.ca/tls/teaching/course-design/outline

Have you been wishing for more file storage space? Based on feedback from the IT Services 2014 student survey, you’re not alone. Well, you’ll be happy to receive this early holiday gift from IT Services.

Default Period: Wednesday, November 12 to Sunday, December 21, 2014 Condensed Period: Wednesday, November 12 to Sunday, December 7, 2014 (click here to view units that are following the condensed period) Click here to complete your course evaluations in Minerva

Starting in December 2014*, Microsoft will begin offering McGill faculty and staff members FREE access to Office 365 ProPlus. This offering includes the Office 2013 versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and other Office apps, and will replace the current Microsoft Work at Home program.

McGill’s initial experiment with Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs, has been a success and the first offering, Food for Thought, will be repeated next year. More than 32,000 people from 160 countries, with an average age of 35 (a bit younger than normal) signed up for the MOOC. Almost 1,800 people completed all elements of the course, and another 7,000 people completed at least one assignment or test.

In April, we emailed you about the Heartbleed vulnerability and its potential impact on McGill. All of McGill’s central IT systems have been evaluated, and updates were applied where needed. As a final precaution, we strongly encourage you to change your McGill Password without delay.  If you are a McGill staff member, you are required to change your password.

As of December 28th, McGill’s license of Virus Barrier X will expire. Replacing it is Trend Micro’s Smart Surfing for Mac. Its features include antivirus, antispyware and web threat protection; additionally, it has built in parental controls, a spam blocker and a two-way firewall.

Find the latest issue of the Focus on Teaching info-bulletin here: https://www.mcgill.ca/tls/teaching/focus

Would you like to design or redesign one of your courses and enhance your teaching skills? Join a group of fellow faculty members led by facilitators from Teaching and Learning Services to discuss strategies for course design and teaching that focus on enhancing student learning.

Connect with Us! What's new at McGill? The Connect blog features musings on the latest information about everything from residence life to academic advising.

Education 627 and Burnside 511 are two Active Learning Classrooms recently built at McGill. These classrooms help foster student-faculty interaction, active and collaborative learning, and a supportive campus environment.

The Principal's Prize for Excellence in Teaching, established to recognize excellence in teaching and its importance to the academic experience of students at McGill University, is traditionally awarded at Fall Convocation at the Faculty Lecturer, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor and Full Professor ranks.