Academic advising is right around the corner
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
...And it’s not too late to add a digital sign-up sheet to your advising organization. Why not try having your students sign up for an advising appointment from the comfort of their own computer (or other mobile device with wireless capability)?!
View Creating an Advising Wiki to learn how to set up a sign-up sheet in your KnightVision organization.
If you still have questions after viewing the tutorial, please contact one of the T&L team members or stop by the Digital Studio - Hekman Library 121 (M-F 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.)
Additional instructions for creating a wiki using the code featured in the above tutorial to create your wiki.
Posted in: Best Practices: Technology Tips
Six-hundred ninety-five
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
As of Wednesday, September 30, six-hundred and ninety-five clickers have been registered in KnightVision for Fall semester. They are being used by fourteen instructors in seventeen courses.
Biology professor, David Koetje, who has been using the clickers in his Biology 141 classes for the last four years, has shared with us a couple of thoughts. “Clickers have greatly facilitated collaborative learning in Biology 141. Through the reporting features of the clicker software, student teams are able to compare answers to questions on formative quizzes, turning their attention to the rationale of different responses instead of simply obsessing about ‘right answers.’ Improvements in individual preparedness, critical thinking, and classroom engagement are three noteworthy benefits of our use of clicker technology.”
What does this mean? There is a powerful assessment tool being used on campus just waiting for you to tap into its potential. Just ask your students how many of them already have their own clicker in which they’ve enrolled in other course(s). In many cases, you might be surprised by the response.
How do the clickers work?
- Students purchase a clicker at the Campus Store for around $23.00. (Calvin College will subsidize the cost of enrolling the clicker, which will remain active for the duration of their time here at Calvin.)
- Instructors register their course(s) in KnightVision.
- Students register/enroll their clicker in your course(s) in KnightVision. (Students may register their clickers in multiple courses per semester.)
- You can use your clickers anytime in a variety of ways with results available right at your fingertips! Grades and data gathered from any class session can then be uploaded into your KnightVision grade center.
Posted in: Academic Software: Best Practices
Doug Blomberg: On curriculum and technology
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
In his book, Wisdom and Curriculum: Christian Schooling After Postmodernity, Doug Blomberg talks about the integral role of “play” during the formation of knowledge and wisdom. He uses the World Wide Web as a metaphor for learning, stating that learning, like the internet, offers “connections [that] are not prescribed, there is no one sequence set..it puts control into the hands of learners themselves, to determine their own running—currere (learning process).”(p. 190)
He goes on to describe how “play” is important when learning new software. “Similarly, the best way to learn to use new software is to play around, to experiment with it in a disciplined context. Complete a few of the tutorial sessions, certainly, and then get on with the work one would normally be doing—a meaningful task, not a rote activity—and refer to the online help facility or the manual when problems arise. Learning as play is situated and shared with the tools one is using; understanding is in the hands as well as in the head…Even as I write, the words speak back to me and ask me questions, and the words I ponder pull me in different directions—which one will I follow?” (p. 190)
So when it comes to learning and/or implementing new software or technology, take Blomberg’s advice. Don’t wait until you have mastered it before you use it…Mastery comes with play!
Five strategies for learning new technology
(adapted from Doug Blomberg’s Wisdom and Curriculum, 2008)
- Play around with it.
- Experiment with it in a disciplined context rather than doing a rote activity.
- Complete a few tutorial sessions.
- Use the technology to complete a meaningful task.
- Use the online help or other available help resources when problems arise.
Posted in: Best Practices: Faculty Highlights
