Learning Technologies News

STEPUP2 Strengthening USC Upstate

It has been a busy time since our last newsletter! The first Title III funded Active Learning Classroom (Admin. 104) came online earlier this semester.

A group of 8 faculty applied and were selected to receive Active Learning Faculty Fellowships and be the first to teach in the room this semester:

• Amy Connolly, Informatics
• Shelia Counts, LLC
• Lisa Johnson, Women's & Gender Studies
• Celena Kusch, LLC
• Ben Myers, FACS
• LaTracey McDowell, LLC
• Allison Pingley, Political Science
• Desiree Rowe, FACS
  

The Faculty Fellows and their students have been hard at work all semester exploring the active learning classroom ecology and all of the classroom features, including:

• Interactive whiteboard functionalities
• Writeable table survaces
• Flexible furnishings
• Personal whiteboards

We also welcomed Michael Lampe as Instructional Designer to the project. His office is in Admin. 103.

Are you curious about active learning pedagogy? Would you like to try something new in your own class?
Contact Michael at #7352 or email mlampe@uscupstate.edu

Follow our Twitter hashtag - #su2sup - for sharing and conversations from the project faculty and students.

**The invitation to apply for the second group of Active Learning Faculty Fellowships is open until April 13**.

Click here to access the Application for Active Learning Faculty Fellowship

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Teaching Online Certification Course

We are pleased to open registration for the 2015 session of the Teaching Online Certification Course. We will again offer this course in partnership with the Office of Distance Education.

*Effective August 15, 2011, all newly hired faculty must receive this certification prior to teaching an online course.

This summer we will be offering Basic & Advanced tracks in the course.
Both tracks will run June 15 - July 20 (There will not be a Maymester session).

The Basic Track is designed for faculty with little to no experience with Blackboard and/or teaching online (or those faculty who prefer a more introductory experience). The course will include basics of effective online course design, Blackboard set up, getting started and course management.

The Advanced Track is designed for faculty with previous experience with Blackboard, teaching online and digital tools for instruction. The course includes exploration of interactive spaces in Blackboard, advanced course design, 'hacking' Blackboard and is open to faculty who may desire a deeper dive into using a variety of technologies for online teaching and learning.

Both tracks will also be customized based on needs and preferences of faculty who register.

**BOTH TRACKS ARE LIMITED TO 15 PARTICIPANTS**

Click here to Register for the Teaching Online Certification Course

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More Opportunities

As you wrap up this academic year and begin to consider possibilities for small changes or total redesigns we want to offer ideas and possibilities with the following activities and events for your consideration.

Technology Test Kitchens continue

The test kitchens offer an opportunity to drop by at your convenience to sample tools and activities and take home recipes for using technology in teaching and learning.

Tuesday, April 7, 2 - 3:30
CASB Lobby

Monday, May 4, 2 - 3:30
HPAC Lobby

Webinars

Attend Learning Technologies Webinars *live* by joining the Adobe Connect room using this link: LT Webinars Adobe Connect Meeting Room
Can't join the live session(s)? Each session will be recorded and archived for viewing at your convenience.

Blackboard Course Tours:

• Professor Celena Kusch - 4:00 pm, Thursday, April 9
  
• Professor Abe Goldberg - 11:30 am, Wednesday, April 15
• Professor Reid Toth - 2:00 pm, Thursday, April 23
  

Demos & Intros

• VoiceThread - 3:30 pm, Monday, April 13
• Customize Your Blackboard Course Shell - 9:00 am, Tuesday, April 21
• Echo360 Lecture Capture - TBA
  
• Adobe Connect - 2:00 pm, Monday, April 27
  
• SpartanGreenSky - 9:00 am, Thursday, April 30
  

As always, individual and group consultation and customized programming are available to meet your needs at your convenience. Contact Cindy Jennings for more information.

Our office is open all summer and we are happy to help faculty explore options for careful selection, adoption, testing and utilization of a variety of tools to enhance and enrich teaching and learning.

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From the Office of Distance Education:

Teaching Learning & Technology Group (TLT Group) Archive Access

We are so pleased to share the following from David McCurry, our new director of distance education:

Faculty can now access an Alliance Subscription/institutional membership to the Teaching Learning and Technology Group (TLT Group). With this institutional membership, anyone with an @uscupstate.edu domain address can create a Subscribing Institution Individual Member account and access the 5 years’ worth of archived session recordings, covering a huge number of topics, demonstrations and discussions on issues related to online teaching and learning and technology in education in general.

Membership also allows individuals to register for all upcoming Friday Live! And Members Exchange events. Here is the current lineup: http://tltgroup.roundtablelive.org/FridayLive

These sessions are not the usual, professionally produced info only sessions, but rather very home-grown, informal interactive sessions with presenters and participating faculty and staff from across North America and the world. Discussion and questions often focus on practical implications related to online teaching, learning and technology best practices.

We encourage any and all interested faculty and staff to sign up, attend upcoming sessions and/or access the archives. Feel free to contact David with any questions.

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QEP Opportunities

The Department of Learning Technologies is closely involved with implementation of our SACS Quality Enhancement Plan - the Student Technology Enrighment Program.

QEP Faculty Development Institute-Intivation to Apply

The invitation to apply to join the 4th faculty group and participate in the QEP Faculty Development Institute remains open.

The 2015 FDI is scheduled for Monday, May 18 - Friday, May 22 – 8:30 – 5:00 each day.

The Faculty Development Institute offers an exciting immersion experience for participants that focuses on tools and skills to design Technology Intensive Courses to then be offered as a part of the QEP. The experience includes time for critical reflection, hands-on practice, and collaboration with colleagues in guided course re-design. Participants will develop technology intensive (TI) courses during the institute and over summer for offering during the 2015 - 2016 academic year.

Applications are still being accepted.

Faculty accepted into the QEP STEP-UP Faculty Development Institute will receive a $1500 stipend and funds to purchase technology for course development and implementation.

Please note that participation in the QEP STEP-UP is a commitment through the life of the project – until 2017.
QEP faculty cohort members are expected to:

• Participate fully in the complete summer FDI workshop.
• Research, design and develop course and instructional enhancements and enrichments including any relevant disciplinary and/or cross-disciplinary connections.
• Share design work with fellow cohort members and to the project toolkit database and online repository.
• Reflect upon all work and write regularly to explicate ongoing course development and implementation processes for other participants.
• Mentor colleagues in the subsequent project years.
• Participate fully in the ongoing process documentation, student learning assessment, and program evaluation process throughout the QEP process

The invitation is open and submissions are online at the Application for QEP Faculty Development Institute & Third QEP Cohort.

You will be prompted to log in. Use your campus network user ID and password to proceed.

QEP Spring Salon

April 10-2:00-4:00, Admin. 104

Join us to hear from QEP faculty and students as they share their experience & practical advice from their work using emerging technology and digital experiences in teaching and learning.

The salon event is designed as a set of lightening talks with new speakers rotating every 15 minutes.

Feel free to drop in even for just a few minutes!

QEP faculty & students scheduled to share include:

• Tasha Thomas & Devyn Bloom
• Maria Monteso
• Allison Pingley
• John Long
• Ruth Ann Pitt
• Nur Tanyel
• Darlene Amendolair
  

QEP Technology Symposium

Bridging Technology Into Instruction

May 13 & 14 - 9:00 - 4:00
CLC Ballroom & CASB

Keynote Speakers Include

May 13 - Phil Yanov
Technologist, Columnist, & Public Radio Commentator
Phil is well known to many in the Upstate as founder of Tech After Five and as founder and President of the GSA Technology Council.
Visit Phil's ThinkHammer blog, or follow him on Twitter: @thinkhammer

May 14 - Richard Byrne (Virtual Keynote)
Teacher, Author, Speaker
Many follow Richard's work on his Free Technology for Teachers blog, or follow him on Twitter @rmbyrne

And by special arrangement & via live stream from Virginia Commonwealth University
May 13 - Mimi Ito (Via live stream from the VCU ALTfest)
Research Director of the MacArthur Foundation funded Digital Media & Learning Hub at UC Irvine
Follow her on Twitter @mizuko

For more details, visit the symposium website.