Welcome to the session on enhancing the classroom learning experience with technology and software. Let us go ahead and jump into it right now.
What's an instructor to do in the traditional face-to-face or otherwise known as land-based classroom? How do you take it beyond the lecture and PowerPoint mode?
First of all, learn that you are click away. Become comfortable with exploring your topic further by doing Internet research. Do this with your students in the classroom as well. Remember, you are the model, you are the guide. I use this to help my students to understand what is credible and reliable. Second, take the trainings provided by your staff development and IT departments. Know what your CMS is.
My university uses Moodle and I have used Blackboard as an instructor and student at other institutions. Third, become a blogger. Many colleges now have blogs for each department and each faculty member within each department. Also create a class blog and have students take turns in blogging, contributing, managing, and of course it is all under your management. That means you are the administrator and all posts must be posted with your approval. Yes, it does take time, but it really makes sure that students sign up for your class the next semester. Students love this, they love the instructors that utilize this technology.
iTunes U is a new site that you may send your students to watch for free a professor instructor at another institution giving a lecture on a topic related to your subject. You can use this as a resource or as an assignment. As well, you can post a lecture on iTunes U and other students would be watching you.
Five, in our points to cover is Facebook, MySpace and other societal networks. Facebook is the most recognized on college campuses. It allows you insight into your students and they do enjoy your being part of the network. If they do not want to be your friend, they have that option. And yes, I will admit, I did have to block a student at one point, but that is an ability that you have with Facebook. I have found that if I have an announcement for my students, more students respond if I post on Facebook as opposed to regular campus email.
Point six: e-portfolios. These are a very valuable file keeper and they are available on many campuses for students and faculty to use. They are actual files where a student can compile work, pieces of evidence, even resumes that are important to job applications as well as to senior projects and they can maintain these after they leave the institution for a small fee on their own. Podcasts and vodcasts are audio and video recordings of class sessions that students may download onto their iPods or MP3 players and listen to the session while they drive, workout, study in the library and it does not necessarily mean that they will not come to class, but if a student happens to be ill, that means they are hearing the same lecture and the class interaction that has happened.
Wikis are simply little information areas with quick and easy access, thus Wikipedia. The concern with Wikis is the issue of credibility as well as the issue of reliability. Wikis maybe edited by anyone. I have used a wiki much like a blog, except the students put on information about a specific topic and kept adding to the body of knowledge under my direction. It became a source for that class.
Second Life or avatars are a likeness of someone, usually instructor, and this enhances the lecture or class session because the students are actually looking at a likeness as well as the background of PowerPoint or slides. I have used this once for a pre-semester introduction to a mythology course. It was fun to put together as the avatar had characteristics that matched me and the voice was mine.
Lastly, SIDs are Student Interactive Devices and are commonly referred to as clickers. I have used these for attendance, pop quizzes with multiple choice answers and questions that would become graphs, pie charts, for class discussion. They can be set for anonymous answering, so sensitive subjects can be used for graphs or charts in your class discussions. An example would be to ask a human relationship class, how many students have had multiple sex partners? The students would click on their answers and a graph would be formed and then put into the projector instantaneously. How does this look in a land-based classroom?
You do not have to use everything that we have mentioned. The list is overwhelming, but it is invaluable as a backup to the soft copy syllabi and paper handouts. Do use it as management for your attendance, grades and resources as well as text ordering for yourself. And remember, those millennials that want to know what their grade is, and if you have scored their last assignment, we mentioned that earlier, well, having online access solves this problem of these Millennial students.
All of the information in this session again seems overwhelming, but we really wanted you to know what is happening in the classrooms across our country right now. Remember, you do not have to use everything all at one time, but you should become aware and savvy to the tools out there to enhance your learning environment and don't be afraid to find a partner. I am starting an experience this coming semester in the spring, where I am partnering with a music teacher to teach speech and media communication. We are developing a course where we are using our strengths and her expertise in music technology, my expertise in regular classroom instructional technology to put together a new course using our strengths. As Bob, in the 'What About Bob' movie was told, take baby steps, that is the best advice we can give you.