LessonUp Everybody

• Sociology
• Higher Education (degree)

LessonUp Everybody

Overview

• Context
• What is LessonUp?
• What can I do with it?
• Why use it?
• General thoughts.
• How do I get started? 
• Basic UI Tour
• Live demo

Context

• I generally like embedding tools in my teaching and learning, especially if it's easy to use and students enjoy using it.
• For me, half of the job is getting students to engage because I know if they are engaging they are learning and their knowledge is being embedded.
• That's why tools like Canvas have been widely enjoyed and supported by students who enjoy additional elements (besides posted readings and PowerPoint slides aka 'the repository method').  

Context

• Back in May, along with a few other course leaders, were invited to a briefing and training session with some people from LessonUp.
• We also had a briefing and a Q&A from the owners of LessonUp in the Netherlands, via video call.
• Subsequently, I was asked to put something together for today to present some information about it from a lecturers perspective.
• At the end of these slides, I've put some honest takes on LessonUp based on my use so far.  

What is LessonUp?

• LessonUp is an online platform that allows teachers to easily: create lessons, find and edit lessons created by others, and deliver interactive lessons in the classroom or remotely. 
• It also embeds into Canvas.

What can you do with it?

• With LessonUp, you can easily add interactive elements to your (existing) lesson. 
• Create a new lesson or upload your PowerPoint lessons and effortlessly incorporate interaction, such as interactive videos or a spinner. 
• Additionally, LessonUp components can assist you in managing your classroom with features like a timer and a traffic light.
  

What can you do with it?

• If you currently use tools like PollEverywhere, Kahoot, Mentimeter, timers, wheels or any other interactive elements such as videos or audio - LessonUp effectively and simply embeds all of that into one easy-to-use tool.  
• There are less restrictions and far more options with LessonUp than other tools. For example, there's no student number caps.
• Additionally, there's no need to open up new tabs or boot up other software. 

What can you do with it?

• There are several other features, including the ability to create assessments, track student progress and so on. 

Why use it?

• Trinidad et al (2020, p1) studied student engagement and found that "Practices they felt engaging and effective were those high in personal involvement".
• Therefore, it is good teaching and learning practice to embed activities that require students to be personally involved in their learning.
• This helps to reduce student passivity and increases engagement.
• LessonUp is a resource that makes including these elements easier.
• Who doesn't like making things easier?

General Thoughts

• The idea of compiling various engaging and interactive tools in one place is, for me, really good.
• It's really easy to use - if you've built a PowerPoint, you can easily build a LessonUp lesson.
• Currently, you can import PowerPoint slides but once inside LessonUp you cannot edit them. 
• However, we were assured during the briefing that by early September, we should be able to import PowerPoint slides and then edit them with the additional LessonUp tools. 

General Thoughts

• Several aspects of LessonUp is that it are predominantly aimed at school teachers, rather than HE lecturers. 
• For example, there's a lot of surveillance tools included that monitor and track student activity and progress, particularly on independent tasks.
• As a HE lecturer, I'm really not interested in that level of scrutiny.
• However, the functionality of LessonUp has a lot of potential to sit alongside Canvas as our primary VLE tools.

How do I get started?

• Email Pete and he will send you log-in instructions.
• [e-mail]
• If you're familiar with PowerPoint, LessonUp is easy to play with. 
• However, there's a tab at the top called 'Channels' and beneath this 'LessonUp Academy' with a series of instructional content.
• Additionally, look out for more on-site training on LessonUp in September.

I almost forgot

LessonUp has an AI feature.

LessonUp AI

"Maia"

Summary

• LessonUp is a new teaching tool that we have access to.
• It's somewhat of a blend between PowerPoint, Interactive tools such as Kahoot, PollEverywhere and Mentimeter and Canvas.
• It's really easy to use. If you can use PowerPoint, you can use LessonUp.
• Embeds in Canvas
• Further training will be available in September

References

Trinidad, J. E., Ngo, G. R., Nevada, A. M., & Morales, J. A. (2020). Engaging and/or effective? Students’ evaluation of pedagogical practices in higher education. College Teaching, 68(4), 161-171.