Top Hat
The University of Texas at Dallas has partnered with Top Hat to offer a student engagement platform that enables instructors to incorporate active learning into various areas of their course. Instructors can use Top Hat’s student engagement platform during class to drive discussions, conduct live polls, and give students real-time feedback on how well they understand course concepts. The platform also allows asynchronous engagement through personalized interactive content, assignments, and assessments.
Watch a video overview of Top Hat HERE.
Cost
At UTD, the use of student engagement systems and choice of software is entirely the faculty's decision.
The use of Top Hat’s student engagement platform involves an additional cost to students, which is not included in tuition. Considering recent legislature impacting undergraduate academic costs, we request faculty to review Provost Musselman’s memorandum dated Oct. 2, 2023, before incorporating this tool in undergraduate courses.
There are many student engagement solutions available in the market, with comparable functionality and features. Several are available for low or zero cost but may be unsuitable for academic use owing to data security concerns. Top Hat's student engagement platform has been vetted by UT Dallas Info Sec and is compatible with FERPA and the University’s data security standards. The tool is integrated with the learning management system (eLearning), and results can be synced with the eLearning grade center.
Getting Started
Instructors who wish to use Top Hat in their courses can contact the vendor directly by emailing support@TopHat.com. The Top Hat team can help with initial setup, training, as well as individual consultation and instructional design support to achieve desired course outcomes.
How-to Guides
Faculty how-to guides
- Quick-start guide for instructors
- How to create and manage your Top Hat instructor account
- How to locate the Top Hat tool link in your eLearning courses
- How to connect a course from eLearning to Top Hat
- How to disconnect a course from Top Hat
- How to automatically sync your roster
- How to manually sync your roster
- Suggested syllabus wording for the use of Top Hat
- How to manage students in Top Hat
- How to deep link content from Top Hat into your eLearning course
- How to automatically sync grades for Deep-Linked Content
- How to manually sync grades
- When are grades released in Top Hat?
Student Guides
- System requirements
- How to create your account and enroll in your course
- How to record your attendance
- How to answer in-class questions
- How to participate in discussions
- How to view and complete assigned course material
- How to check your grades
- Getting assistance with technical issues
Support
Faculty Support
Instructors needing assistance with Top Hat can email support@TopHat.com, or use the in-app support button, or call 1-888-663-5491.
Student Support
Students needing assistance with Top Hat can email support@TopHat.com, or call 1-888-663-5491 between 8am and 8pm CST.