On April 4, 2025, two members of ID&D presented at the Maryland Distance Learning Association (MDLA) Conference to support the use of distance education in Maryland. Dr. Haley Cristea presented on behalf of herself, Melissa Thomas and Dr. Janice Orcutt on Soaring with the Cs: Canvas, Catalog, and Credentials, to discuss the redesign of the Soaring with Online Learning program. This session discussed how flexible and on-demand learning can be supported through various Instructure platforms that work together to support enrollment, course completion, and microcredentials to verify skills and knowledge acquired. Karen Silverstrim presented on Leveraging AI to Streamline Course Development, which provided an introduction to and real-world examples of course content such as podcasts, schematics, and interactive chatbots (Chat with the queen of England, anyone?) and games, developed with the help of AI to support students in Silverstrim's History class. In this well- attended session, Silverstrim focused on AI tools that have free versions available and provided a variety of ways to create activities that engage students in studying, self-checks, and thinking critically about historical connections to modern systems and structures in our daily lives. |