About the MicroCourse
Join this one-week Facilitating Learning Online (FLO) MicroCourse and explore the intersection of Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) in the context of higher education.
Participants, including students, faculty members, and staff will explore various aspects of EI and GenAI, focusing on emotional growth, empathy development, and creating a more supportive and inclusive university environment.
Learning Outcomes
Understand the role of EI and GenAI in higher ed for self-awareness and communication by: 
- Developing empathy and communication through AI-driven activities.
- Learning conflict resolution and ethical leadership with GenAI support.
- Using GenAI tools for mental health and resilience, creating personal growth plans.
- Assessing ethical use of GenAI in enhancing EI for responsible communication and personal development.
The course will be delivered asynchronously online, with an estimated time commitment of 10-12 hours for the week. We have scheduled a kick-off synchronous session on Monday, October 28, 2024, from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. PT.
Register Now!
Registration closes October 25, 2024 at 1:00 PM PT.
Facilitators
Your FLO Facilitators for this course are Dr. Afsaneh Sharif, Dr. Mostafa Nazari, and Lucas Wright.
Afsaneh Sharif (she/her) has more than two decades’ experience in higher education and works as a senior project manager and faculty liaison at the University of British Columbia. Her expertise lies in project management and learning design, particularly within the sphere of online learning. Afsaneh holds a PhD in Knowledge Management, concentrating on enhancing the quality of online education programs. By applying research findings to develop effective educational strategies, she upholds the highest standards in digital and online learning and other modalities.
Additionally, Afsaneh is co-chair of the B.C. Digital Learning Advisory Committee in the Ministry of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills. Her interests include promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion; improving quality; ensuring accessibility; advancing online learning; fostering community practice; advocating for open education; and implementing UDL principles. Lately, her focus has shifted towards investigating the potential and challenges of GenAI in the educational sector, with an emphasis on accessibility and inclusion.
Dr. Mostafa Nazari (he/his) is an assistant professor in the Arts, Communications, and Social Sciences Department and is head of the English Department at University Canada West. He has recently co-authored a paper on artificial intelligence and higher education, titled “Developing effective prompts to improve communication with ChatGPT: a formula for higher education stakeholders.” Dr. Nazari has designed and conducted several workshops on technology and artificial intelligence for faculty members in Vancouver.
Lucas Wright (he/his) is a senior education consultant at the University of British Columbia (UBC). With more than 14 years’ experience, he specializes in learning technology and design, particularly in the application of GenAI. His background includes a Master of Arts in Adult Education from UBC and certifications in digital storytelling, instructional skills, and online learning. His goal is to enhance teaching and learning by integrating GenAI to foster dynamic and innovative learning environments.
About the Session
This interactive workshop is perfect for educators looking to harness the full potential of Canva, a free-to-use online graphic design tool. Whether you’re a Canva novice or a seasoned user, you will discover powerful design hacks to create engaging learning materials in minutes.
The workshop will cover:
- Exploring Magic Studio and other AI-driven tools to automate tasks and personalize your designs
- Understanding ethical considerations and data privacy to ensure responsible use of AI in the classroom
- Learning about the benefits of Canva for Education and Canva for Campus, including how they can support collaboration and streamline design workflows
- Discussing how Canva’s AI aligns (or doesn’t) with UNESCO’s Guidance for generative AI in education and research and the B.C. Post-Secondary Digital Literacy Framework
By the end of this workshop, you will be a Canva pro, ready to create useful learning materials and leverage the latest features for a more visually stimulating classroom experience.
Register Now!
This session will be recorded, archived, and made available publicly on BCcampus.ca. By participating in this session, you acknowledge you are aware your participation will be recorded and the recording will be openly available.
About the Facilitator:
Prabhjot Bhamra (she/her) is a dedicated instructional designer with over four years’ experience educating, tutoring, and training adults in various settings. Currently pursuing a master of education in curriculum and pedagogy at the University of Toronto, Prabhjot is committed to developing innovative learning solutions that enhance teaching and student success. In her role at BC Emergency Health Services, she has played a key role in revamping educational courses using cutting-edge tools to improve learner engagement and outcomes.
About the Series
Discover the BCcampus EdTech Sandbox Series, workshops empowering educators, learning designers, and graduate students in B.C.’s post-secondary institutions to explore, experiment with, and evaluate cutting-edge tools for enhancing teaching excellence and student success. Aligned with the B.C. Post-Secondary Digital Literacy Framework, this program emphasizes a support technology perspective, encouraging open-mindedness, curiosity, troubleshooting skills, and the selection of appropriate tools for work and study.
Focus Areas for 2024-2025:
- The AI Sandbox: A space dedicated to experimenting with, and reviewing, artificial intelligence (AI)-based learning technologies.
- The No-Go EdTech Sandbox: A space aimed at examining learning technologies educators, students, and staff should avoid using in teaching and learning, and why.
In these two-hour live streamed webinars, expert leaders will introduce and demonstrate cutting-edge, open, and free, or low-cost educational technology tools.
By actively participating in these sandbox sessions, participants will experiment with tools, work with fellow educators to review features of the tools, gain insights into teaching activities, and discover ways to integrate these tools into courses.
Recordings of the presentations and reviews of the tools will be available on our website following the event.
EdTech Sandbox Series Sessions:
- September 18, 2024 — Beyond Surveillance: The Case Against AI Detection and AI Proctoring, Ian Linkletter, BCIT
- October 16, 2024 — Learning Design with ChatGPT: Implications for AI Literacy, Hajime Kataoka, University of Victoria
- November 6, 2024 — Design Smarter: Harnessing Canva’s AI for Enhanced Educational Outcomes, Prabhjot (Prab) Bhamra, University of Toronto
- January 22, 2025 — Exploratory Learning: Effectively Integrating AI with Hypothesis, Julia Grav and Emily Schudel, Camosun College
- February 26, 2025 — Exploring Animaker for Teaching and Learning, Maryam Safa Schneider
About the Session
In this hands-on sandbox session, you will create a hypothes.is account and trial public, group and review LMS embedded activities. We will discuss how hypothes.is helps engage students in exploratory reading, provides informal opportunities for sharing personal experience, and highlights misinformation. We will demonstration how AI can be used to enhance and generate social interaction prompts.
In this Sandbox workshop, we will explore how to:
- enhance a sense of belonging for students in online and in-person courses
- develop effective writing prompts using AI
- annotate videos and images
- show examples of co-create knowledge through annotated readings
- use hypothes.is in multiple use-cases
- discuss rubrics for assessing student work
Register Now!
This session will be recorded, archived, and made available publicly on BCcampus.ca. By participating in this session, you acknowledge you are aware your participation may be recorded and the recording will be openly available.
About the Facilitators
Julia Grav (she/her) is an entrepreneur in the Victoria technology sector, managing a web development and design business for over 10 years. She actively consults with small businesses, not-for-profits, and NGOs to improve their branding, optimization, increase their web presence, and build customized website applications.
She began teaching at Camosun College in 2014 in the Department of Computer Science and is now a new faculty instructor in the School of Business, Applied Business Technology. She received her Bachelor of Arts from Concordia University and spent three years teaching in Turkey. In 2017, Julia graduated from Simon Fraser University with a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction.
Julia’s teaching philosophy aligns with the principles of Universal Design for Learning, bringing learning science and inclusivity into the forefront of her classroom. She emphasizes choice and autonomy, along with multiple, reiterative low-stakes assignments, to enhance her students’ learning experience. By offering timely feedback highlighting effort, and including positive strategies for future success, Julia encourages her students to build and develop their mastery in technology.
Emily Schudel (she/her) is an instructional designer in the eLearning unit of the Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Camosun College and has over 25 years’ experience. She has worked with faculty to enhance their courses with technology, taught blended courses combining face-to-face with online technologies, and delivered distance education using synchronous technologies (such as narrow-cast satellite, web-conferencing, audio-conferencing, and tele-conferencing) and asynchronous technologies (like D2L). Recently, Emily became Creative Commons certified and now collaborates with faculty on open education projects, using WordPress, Pressbooks, H5P and other open platforms.
In her spare time, Emily enjoys hanging out with husband, Kevin, and their many kitties, as well as photography, blogging, walking, meditation, and creative writing.
About the Series
Discover the BCcampus EdTech Sandbox Series, workshops empowering educators, learning designers, and graduate students in B.C.’s post-secondary institutions to explore, experiment with, and evaluate cutting-edge tools for enhancing teaching excellence and student success. Aligned with the B.C. Post-Secondary Digital Literacy Framework, this program emphasizes a support technology perspective, encouraging open-mindedness, curiosity, troubleshooting skills, and the selection of appropriate tools for work and study.
Focus Areas for 2024-2025:
- The AI Sandbox: A space dedicated to experimenting with, and reviewing, artificial intelligence (AI)-based learning technologies.
- The No-Go EdTech Sandbox: A space aimed at examining learning technologies educators, students, and staff should avoid using in teaching and learning, and why.
In these two-hour live streamed webinars, expert leaders will introduce and demonstrate cutting-edge, open, and free, or low-cost educational technology tools.
By actively participating in these sandbox sessions, participants will experiment with tools, work with fellow educators to review features of the tools, gain insights into teaching activities, and discover ways to integrate these tools into courses.
Recordings of the presentations and reviews of the tools will be available on our website following the event.
EdTech Sandbox Series Sessions
- September 18, 2024 — Beyond Surveillance: The Case Against AI Detection and AI Proctoring, Ian Linkletter, BCIT
- October 16, 2024 — Learning Design with ChatGPT: Implications for AI Literacy, Hajime Kataoka, University of Victoria
- November 6, 2024 — Design Smarter: Harnessing Canva’s AI for Enhanced Educational Outcomes, Prabhjot (Prab) Bhamra, University of Toronto
- January 22, 2025 — Exploratory Learning: Effectively Integrating AI with Hypothesis, Julia Grav and Emily Schudel, Camosun College
- February 26, 2025 — Exploring Animaker for Teaching and Learning, Maryam Safa Schneider
About the Session
A dynamic and interactive two-hour webinar is designed to introduce educators to Animaker, a free and intuitive tool for creating engaging animations. In this session, you will learn everything you need to get started with Animaker, from signing up to create your first animation, to exploring its key features. The session includes a fun scavenger hunt to explore Animaker’s functionality, opportunities to collaborate with peers and share animation ideas, and hands-on practice building animations to foster a dynamic learning community. Whether you are a seasoned tech user or a complete novice, this webinar will provide the skills and confidence needed to bring animations into your classroom.
Register Now!
This session will be recorded, archived, and made available publicly on BCcampus.ca. By participating in this session, you acknowledge you are aware your participation will be recorded and the recording will be openly available.
About the Facilitator
Maryam Safa Schneider (she/her) is an educator with over 16 years’ teaching experience, and a dedicated researcher and learning designer for the past four years. Her research focuses on the intersection of communication technology and mental health, exploring how technological advancements influence well-being and i
nterpersonal dynamics. She holds a bachelor of fine arts in visual arts from the University of British Columbia, a master of liberal arts in psychology from Harvard Extension School, and several specialized educational certificates, blending her passions for art, education, and mental health.
She serves an assistant professor at University Canada West, where she teaches general psychology and communication to undergraduate students. In her role as an educational consultant and learning designer, she develops dynamic, learner-centered experiences tailored to diverse educational and corporate settings. She provides personalized consultation and training that aligns teaching practices with emerging trends and best practices in education.
About the Series
Discover the BCcampus EdTech Sandbox Series, workshops empowering educators, learning designers, and graduate students in B.C.’s post-secondary institutions to explore, experiment with, and evaluate cutting-edge tools for enhancing teaching excellence and student success. Aligned with the B.C. Post-Secondary Digital Literacy Framework, this program emphasizes a support technology perspective, encouraging open-mindedness, curiosity, troubleshooting skills, and the selection of appropriate tools for work and study.
Focus Areas for 2024-2025:
- The AI Sandbox: A space dedicated to experimenting with, and reviewing, artificial intelligence (AI)-based learning technologies.
- The No-Go EdTech Sandbox: A space aimed at examining learning technologies educators, students, and staff should avoid using in teaching and learning, and why.
In these two-hour live streamed webinars, expert leaders will introduce and demonstrate cutting-edge, open, and free, or low-cost educational technology tools.
By actively participating in these sandbox sessions, participants will experiment with tools, work with fellow educators to review features of the tools, gain insights into teaching activities, and discover ways to integrate these tools into courses.
Recordings of the presentations and reviews of the tools will be available on our website following the event.
EdTech Sandbox Series Sessions:
- September 18, 2024 — Beyond Surveillance: The Case Against AI Detection and AI Proctoring, Ian Linkletter, BCIT
- October 16, 2024 — Learning Design with ChatGPT: Implications for AI Literacy, Hajime Kataoka, UVic
- November 6, 2024 — Design Smarter: Harnessing Canva’s AI for Enhanced Educational Outcomes, Prabhjot (Prab) Bhamra, University of Toronto
- January 22, 2025 — Exploratory Learning: Effectively Integrating AI with Hypothesis, Julia Grav and Emily Schudel, Camosun College
- February 26, 2025 — Exploring Animaker for Teaching and Learning, Maryam Safa Schneider
About the Session
In this FLO Friday session, participants will formulate “ShouldAI, CouldAI, WouldAI?” questions to discuss the use of AI in their classes and assessments.
Recognizing that learning outcomes inform pedagogical practices; participants will explore how AI could be used to support achievement and to enhance student success. Generative AI has not only underscored the need for curricular innovation but also highlighted the necessity for support and training to manage this complex task.
Participants will collaborate on the future of education with an “AI perspective.” They will analyze their assessment strategies in the context of their learning outcomes and AI use among students. They will collaborate on developing a curriculum considering current and future AI use.
Register Now!
This notice is to inform you that this session will be recorded, archived, and made available publicly on BCcampus.ca. By participating in this session, you acknowledge that your participation in this session may be recorded and the recording will be made available openly.
About the Facilitator
Your FLO Facilitator for this session is Jenny Fitzgerald.
Jenny Fitzgerald (she/her) is an instructor of university success strategies, communications, and English upgrading at Capilano University. As an educator and curriculum developer, she sees the promises and challenges presented by AI in a post-secondary context. For the past two years, she has engaged in research and curriculum projects to support her students and colleagues around the ethical use of AI, focusing on adapting her courses and teaching practices to support student success. Jenny takes every opportunity to geek out with other educators and strives for collaborative innovation to mitigate the challenges posed by the rapid advancement of technology.