Assembling Affordable and Accessible Course Materials Workshop

On January 17, 2019 the Faculty Library and Educational Technology Committee sponsored a half day workshop to help faculty build collections of course materials that are effective and affordable for students.

Jen Jacobs kicked off the workshop with an overview of Open Educational Resources and the issue of textbook affordability. She also shared the results from a Fall 2018 student survey on textbook use and affordability. Next, a panel of faculty members shared their strategies for assembling course readings using open educational resources, materials students can freely access through the library, and open materials on the web. Small groups of faculty then met to share ideas for future projects.

Interested in learning more? Check out Watzek's OER subject guide or sign up for the OER Deep Dive at the Faculty Technology Institute this May!

Faculty Technology Institute 2017

Assistant Professor Rebecca Lingafelter describes the use of
VR technology in a Thesis Theatre Festival project.

EdTech kicked off the summer in style with the 18th Annual Faculty Technology Institute. 

The program follows a conference format organized in themed tracks. Our 2017 tracks were Adding Value with Video, Foundations in Technology, Encouraging Engagement, and Tech to Transform Teaching and we had over 75 participant attend sessions.  A big thank you to the presenters from across campus who helped develop and deliver our oustanding 2017 program.

As in past years, faculty told us they appreciated the wide variety of sessions. Lunchtime conversation buzzed around new topics such as Copyright, Digital Literacy, Open Educational Resources, Accessibility and Universal Design, and Google Classroom. Faculty were also interested in hands-on sessions on our in-class polling software pilot, video production, web publishing, and classroom technology. Finally, there were several sessions and opportunities during meals and breaks for faculty to share ideas and discuss methods for engaging students. Over half of our participants came away with ideas for future collaborations - a big win for FTI 2017!