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January 2026 Tuesday Tips
20th January 2026
Tuesday Teaching Tip: First Days
Welcome back!
I love the rhythm of the start of the semester. When I am in the classroom, it is typically my favorite time full of new challenges and possibilities. However, we have all been guilty of falling into the same patterns each term. Take roll, bring up the syllabus to highlight a few areas, handle add/drop and call it a day. Every semester is a new opportunity to experiment and some different approaches, backed by research, are highlighted in a teaching guide we have for the first day.
There are many great ideas here, but one I want to highlight is on Student Learning Outcomes (SLOs). You could read these to your class, but a better approach, whether you are online or in person, is to take this as an opportunity to tell students why they are being asked to do things. Connections to future courses, job prospects, or ideas that will help improve their lives are often clear to us and opaque to students. Take a minute to help them understand why this particular STEM process will be critical if they want to work in a lab. Make the connection for them between GE content like public speaking or political science to the future of advocacy and representative government. Most of us are concerned about students outsourcing work to AI or taking work less seriously than we would like. It is not a solution for all problems, but starting with “why” in the form of Student Learning Outcomes will make a difference.
Zach Justus
Director of Faculty Development
Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences
Google Voice/Text: 530-487-4150
If you’d like to comment on this or any other Tuesday Tip, visit the FDEV Blog(opens in new window).
All past Tuesday Tips are curated on the FDEV website.
27th January 2026
Tuesday Teaching Tip: Reducing Barriers, Not Standards
The teaching tip this week comes to you from our Spring 2026 FDEV Fellow, Dr. Josie Blagrave. We are excited to be working with Josie this semester as she brings her expertise in neurodiversity and pedagogy to the campus. Be on the lookout for future offerings that showcase her talents.
The first two weeks of the semester are when students spend a surprising amount of cognitive energy not on learning content, but on figuring out how your course works. Where are the readings? What does “participation” mean here? Why does this assignment description feel written for someone who already knows the answer? This is normal—and fixable.
A Start-of-Term Friction Audit asks you to identify one predictable point of confusion and intentionally reduce it. Not a full redesign. One small, visible change. The kind that saves students time and saves you emails.
Common friction points (you will recognize at least one):
- Students can’t tell where to start in Canvas.
- Assignment instructions make sense to you but not to them.
- Students don’t know what “good” work looks like.
- Required tools or platforms feel harder than the learning itself.
- Students are unsure when or how to ask for help.
Based on these common points, here are some concrete ways to reduce friction:
- Show don’t tell: Record a 3–5 minute walkthrough of where to find materials or how to submit the first assignment. This often eliminates dozens of repetitive questions.
- Add one exemplar: A past student sample, an annotated paragraph, or even a “this is fine / this is better” comparison can dramatically clarify expectations.
- Create a first-week checklist: A short, scannable list of exactly what students should do and where to do it.
- Rewrite one assignment description for transparency: Explicitly state the purpose, the task, and the criteria for success.
- Surface help early: Build a required low-stakes action that shows students how to contact you or access course support before they are confused and stressed.
Fixing one small friction point won’t solve everything. But it will make your course feel more navigable, more humane, and more intentional—right when students need it most and help improve student retention and success.I've shared resource articles(opens in new window) if you are interested in additional reading.Zach Justus
Director of Faculty Development
Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences
Google Voice/Text: 530-487-4150If you’d like to comment on this or any other Tuesday Tip, visit the FDEV Blog(opens in new window).
All past Tuesday Tips are curated on the FDEV website.