TEU Update 30 October 2025

Join us on Monday, November 10, at 12pm for our next Sipping Point conversation, exploring the theme “Teaching with Presence: Curiosity, Care, and the Courage to Slow Down.” We are delighted to welcome Ian Cook (SALIS) and Ruth McManus (School of History and Geography), who will share their experiences of teaching with attentiveness and care - from fostering curiosity in a university outreach programme for refugees to embracing slowness in fast-paced learning environments.

Find out more about this Sipping Point session

Register for this online Sipping Point session

If you want to research your teaching practice with a view to a potential conference, book and/or journal publication in the near future, then join us for some or ideally all of these upcoming introductory workshops. Click the following links to find out more and register for sessions of interest.

Workshop 1: Introducing Educational Research/SoTL

Thurs Nov 6, 11-12 (online). Please register for Workshop 1
 

Workshop 2: Locating a suitable research project from your teaching practice
Dates/Times

• St Pats - Tues Dec 2, 2-4 pm (in-person)

• Glasnevin - Weds Dec 3, 10-12 pm (in-person) 

Please register for whichever Workshop 2 session suits you best
 

Workshop 3: Writing educational research for publication

Wed Dec 10, 2-3 pm (online)  Please register for Workshop 3

Focus on assessment and feedback

In last week’s TEU update we introduced you to two grading methods within the Loop Assignment activity: ‘Standard’ Rubrics and Ranged Rubrics.

There is another grading method known as the Marking Guide. The marking guide is akin to an electronic feedback form, where certain criteria are set for an assignment, a score is attributable to each one, and feedback can be composed for the student. The Marking Guide therefore allows for consistency and structure in grading students’ submissions, as well as flexibility in what scores to award and what feedback to give. The Marking Guide also supports ‘Frequently-used Comments’, which can be inserted into students’ feedback and help speed up the process. 

Learn more about using Marking Guides in this resource from the Loop Staff Support Page.

Quiz Tip: Scaffold Learning with Quiz Attempts and Review Options

Loop quizzes offer you many options for formative assessment. For low-stakes quizzes, you can allow students multiple attempts to promote learning through repetition. You can also set Loop to take the highest grade or an average of all attempts. Pairing this with meaningful feedback on incorrect responses helps students reflect on their mistakes and gradually improve. Additionally, you can use the Quiz’s "Review Options” to determine exactly what students see after they complete the quiz. For low-stakes quizzes, allowing students to review the correct answers and their own responses allows them to reflect on where they need improvement. For high-stakes quizzes, you might limit feedback to scores only to ensure academic integrity is maintained. These options allow you to be strategic as to when and how quiz feedback is released. For more information on these Quiz settings, visit the Loop Staff Support Page. 

Check your Turnitin Similarity text-matching settings

If you want student submissions to Loop Assignments to be text-matched, you must ensure these settings are applied before students start submitting.

 Please also access a recording and slides from a recent Turnitin Similarity training session.

Engage students on important topics with Zoom Notes

Did you know Zoom comes built in with its own notes feature? Zoom Notes can be created before, during or after a Zoom online class (or meeting). They can act as continuous, collaborative spaces to support your online teaching.

As the semester marches on, Zoom Notes can be a useful tool to capture student questions and inputs on important topics, such as assessment.

Consider using Zoom Notes during your online classes for:

• Gathering questions from students on assessment issues which can be addressed afterwards/at the next class;

• Summarising some verbal discussions or verbal Q&A in written format for consultation afterwards;

• Exit tickets - quickly gathering the top things on students’ minds;

• Feedback suggestions - elicit suggestions form students around areas on which they would like feedback, which you can follow up on later;

• Plus more!

Learn more about Zoom Notes in this resource from the Loop Staff Support Page.

DCU Seminar facilitated by PHELC and TEU

If you wish to submit an abstract for the above event, the deadline is tomorrow Friday October 31. Staff wishing to present should submit an extended abstract using this template, as an attachment to this Google Form.  A worked example of an extended abstract is provided.  All abstracts will be peer reviewed and accepted abstracts will be published as previously described.
 
 

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

Contacts:  Ann Marie Farrell (PHELC)   Martina Crehan (TEU)

The Digital Badge on GenAI for Teaching and Learning will commence November 10 (Week 10). The Course is divided into two parts: 

• Part 1 from Nov 10th to Dec 5th (Week 10 to Week 13 in Semester 1)

• Part 2 from Jan 12th to Jan 30th (Week 1 to Week 3 in Semester 2). 

The total time commitment is approximately 25 hours. Please click here to read more details about the Course Schedule.

If you are interested in participating in this digital badge course, please click here to fill out a 'Confirmation of Intent to Participate' form.

Please contact samantha.xu@dcu.ie if you have any questions.

Submit a request at DCU Help for Loop queries
More complex query or prefer to chat? Join a Loop drop in clinic
Find comprehensive resources on our Loop Staff Support Page - enrolment key is 'staff'
 

For advice on teaching practice, including on the use of technology, email teaching.enhancement@dcu.ie
Request a workshop or extended consultation

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