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| Furman University, SRFIDC 2012 Host |
The consortium gathers for an intense 2½-day conference that begins around 8 in the morning and runs steady until 5 p.m. (sometimes including breakfast, lunch and dinner). In part the “intensity” is designed to build community and collegiality between members; however it is mostly because there is so much to do!
This was my first SRFIDC conference and although I was exhausted from a long weekend in south Florida, I thoroughly enjoyed the conference and its attendees. What a great group of instructors! I also gleaned a lot from the presentations. I would like to share some of the highlights here.
- Graduate Student Orientation
Although not a direct result of the presentation, Building a Bigger Boat: Redefining the Context of Graduate Student Development, by Western Carolina University (WCU), the presentation and other conversations during the conference inspired me to create an orientation program and packet for new GAs in the distance learning department.
I've already started a list of items to include in an orientation program and other need-to-know information. I have asked my current Graduate students to add to my list with their own wish list for GA orientation. As graduate students in the I.O. psych department they will have a lot of insight into best practices in new job orientation and training. We will develop the program together, but I have asked them to take the lead.
Elements I intend to include in the orientation based on WCU’s presentation:
- Book on teaching/ learning
- Research projects
- Reflective writing (perhaps in the form of the UTC Online Blog
- Course Delivery Decisions
Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) presented a method to aid faculty in their course delivery decisions (online, hybrid, face-to-face). The simple chart they created is the basis of that method which takes faculty through a pragmatic process of elimination by assigning delivery methods based on content and activity. The delivery method that is the best fit as well as the most frequently used to meet course objectives is the method that should (ideally) be used for a course's delivery.
I believe the chart linked to above may also aid faculty in course design. It presents the design process linearly – from development of objectives to identifying content and activities and finally assessment.
- Polleverywhere.com – a neat (free) tool with the potential to increase student engagement in the classroom. Robert Crow, also of WCU, shared this web-based tool with the conference. Polleverywhere allows instructors to insert polls into a slide or other presentation in the classroom or incorporate a poll into an online/hybrid course. Students can use their cell phones (via text messaging) or their computers to participate in a poll. This service is free for faculty and students up to a certain amount of participation.
I have already used Polleverywhere with my book club – we are trying to decide on a location for our next meeting ☺
- Online Teaching Certification
Finally, the folks at Kennesaw State University must have read my mind … they have developed a 2-week long, hybrid, online teaching certification program. Although I am looking to develop a slightly longer course, they have given me an excellent framework to work with. I am considering offering a replica of their program to UTC faculty as my faculty development and Blackboard seminars for fall 2012.
Kennesaw also has a 15-week program in online instruction. The program is facilitated by experienced online faculty. I have yet to follow up on this program with the faculty at Kennesaw, but hope to learn from their successes and find an effective structure for my own extended course in online learning for faculty.
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