Every year brings a new learning curve, and 2026 will undoubtedly have expected and surprising changes that will impact online teaching and learning. Digital literacy skills are a foundational start that can help to navigate the digital landscape, but advances in technology and resulting pedagogical shifts demand something deeper: intentional application and ethical judgment.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Here are three essential mindsets for you and your online learners to cultivate, helping you thrive amidst digital evolution in the year ahead and beyond.<\/span><\/p>\n This is the human element of proactively judging the suitable use of AI and reviewing its resulting output. As educators, we can determine what is appropriate AI use for a particular assignment and actively incorporate its use as part of the learning process. By setting clear guardrails for each activity and explicitly teaching learners how to critically analyze AI outputs, we help them form constructive habits and AI literacies while reducing academic anxiety.<\/span><\/p>\n In practice: <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n This is about supporting all our learners\u2019 needs and modeling such practices for our learners to understand and apply. We know that<\/span> ADA Title II updates<\/a> in April 2026 will require accessible course content from the start, shifting workflows from a reactive to a proactive approach to accessible digital content. By applying<\/span> Universal Design for Learning<\/a> principles to the overall course design, such as providing information in multiple formats and applying structured formatting, our instructional content becomes accessible and supportive by default. When we model these practices and teach learners how to make their own shared work accessible, we empower them to communicate effectively with the widest possible audience.<\/span><\/p>\n In practice: <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n This refers to the higher-order ability to troubleshoot, explore, and adapt when the tools inevitably change. It means being open to exploring a new platform, the patience to solve technical snags using search or help guides, and the strategic thinking to pivot to an alternative tool when necessary. By modeling this process of exploration (or experimentation!) and guiding online learners on how to troubleshoot or pivot, we help them build resilience and confidence to engage in the ever-changing digital environment.<\/span><\/p>\n In practice: <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n The digital landscape of 2026 will certainly bring new challenges, but these three mindsets remind us that we can adapt to them. By prioritizing intentionality and human impact, we ensure that technology serves our goals and enriches the learning experience. <\/span><\/p>\n Which of these mindsets do you feel will be the most impactful for you and your online learners in the year to come?<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Every year brings a new learning curve, and 2026 will undoubtedly have expected and surprising changes that will impact online teaching and learning. Digital literacy skills are a foundational start that can help to navigate the digital landscape, but advances in technology and resulting pedagogical shifts demand something deeper: intentional application and ethical judgment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8299,"featured_media":11662,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[602,319,179],"tags":[324,547,87],"class_list":["post-11661","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","category-instructional-design","category-teaching-online","tag-accessibility","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-instructional-design-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11661"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8299"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11661"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11661\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11666,"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11661\/revisions\/11666"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11662"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11661"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11661"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/online.suny.edu\/onlineteaching\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11661"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Hold AI Accountable:<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n
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Incorporate Inclusive Design:<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n
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Develop Digital Resourcefulness:<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n
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