Articles about Instructional Design
Faculty to Faculty: Skype
I am not in the habit of promoting specific products, but once in a while I find something so useful that I can’t help spreading the word. Such is the case with Skype.
If you’ve been using the Internet for a significant period of time, you’ll recall that from the very start applications emerged that would allow individuals to talk to each other from computer to computer across the network. Over time, Voice over IP (VoIP) applications have evolved into what I think of as a Swiss knife of voice communications (although it will also do video). I can now not only talk computer to computer, but also computer to phone (landline) and vice versa, hold multi conferences, forward calls and more. Basically, you can think of this tool as bridging computers and landlines for voice communication. More »
In the CITT Tools & Techniques Toolbox: Skype
Skype is a free, downloadable software package that uses the internet to provide a real-time interactive environment designed for use in distance communication. Skype allows users to make telephone calls over the internet.
Workshops and Other Teaching Center News
This fall the AT Teaching Center and the Graduate School will once again offer our TA Development Workshops – a series of approximately 20 professional development sessions taught by professors from various UF departments and units – to help all UF Teaching Assistants improve their skills and classroom performance. More »
2009 Provost E-Learning Initiative Courses Selected
The Provost E-Learning Initiative seeks to further improve the quality of learning and the learning experience for students, as well as to facilitate the teaching process for faculty. To achieve this, the Provost envisioned a series of course offerings for undergraduate students using pedagogical best practice and transformation of education using information technology. More »
Faculty to Faculty: Mediasite
Have you ever thought how much money your department spends for keeping multiple lecturers in a large course whose job is to deliver the same lectures year after year in overcrowded lecture halls where the students cannot see, and cannot hear, and simply cannot catch up with the lecturer?
Have you been trying to teach an online course with all modern tools and software available and, yet, share with your students your own experience which they cannot receive anywhere else except from you? If you have answered “yes” for either of the questions, then you may be interested in what the AT folks offer to the Instructors called Mediasite video lectures.
In the CITT Tools & Techniques Toolbox: Mediasite
Mediasite is a presentation tool that allows instructors to make live digital recordings of lectures or presentations. Students can view the presentation over the internet in real-time and/or can access the presentation as a podcast or for viewing at a later date.
Faculty to Faculty: Elluminate
Teaching online is great, but how do you get that one-on-one, classroom feel when you and your students are scattered around the campus, state, or even globe? Elluminate offers a great solution.
Lauren Hertel, faculty from the Department of Telecommunication, has used it extensively for virtual classroom interaction and online office hours in three of her multimedia skills courses. What follows is her best advice for using Elluminate Live! Virtual Classroom
In the CITT Tools & Techniques Toolbox: In-Session Invitations using Elluminate Live!
An In-Session Invitation is a feature of Elluminate Live! which enables Moderators, from within a live session, to invite people into the session by sending them email invitations or pasting a generated link into a third-party chat client like AOL Instant Messenger or Yahoo Messenger.
More information on In-Session Invitations
Faculty to Faculty – Tips For Teaching Online
This new segment features online teaching tips from some of the UF’s finest faculty. This edition of “Faculty to Faculty” features tips from Dr. Rusti Brandman, Professor Emeritus from the College of Fine Arts. Dr. Brandman has just finished teaching the online pilot of Dance Appreciation for the 21st Century which was re-designed through the Provost’s E-learning Initiative. More »
Teaching Excellence Workshop in Review
The Teaching Excellence Workshop sponsored by The Center for Instructional Technology and Training & Academic Technology was held February 3rd. In attendance were more than 50 faculty members representing various colleges from the University of Florida. Both faculty and instructional designers shared creative solutions on how to fully engage students with course material. Watch video of the workshop More »
In the CITT Tools & Techniques Toolbox: Exams & Quizzes
An exam or quiz is a form of student assessment that measures knowledge, skills, and abilities. Generally, an exam is a culminating assessment that assesses a student over a large period of time and over a range of material. A quiz is generally short assessments that assess a student over a small amount of information and are given frequently. A quiz can also function as both an assessment and a formative feedback device. To find out more about exams, quizzes and free tools you can use, check out the toolbox. More information on Exams & Quizzes
Students Learn Spanish Language Pronunciation Using Online Learning Module
Every year, the Office of the Provost and the Office of Academic Technology fund faculty projects that enhance teaching and learning with technology at the University of Florida. For the 2007 grant cycle, AT funded four projects, including Gillian Lord’s “Tal Como Suena: Spanish Pronunciation” multimedia modules. More »
Crop View Web Modules Win Second Award
The Crop View project has recently received a second Educational Materials Award from the American Society of Agronomy. In May of 2007, Crop View received a Gold Image Award for Educational Materials from UF/IFAS External and Media Relations. In Crop View, students learn how to identify seeds, plants and their climate requirements through the web-based tutorials consisting of interactive games and explanatory modules. More »
RFP: Announcing the 2008 Provost E-Learning Initiative
The Provost E-learning Initiative seeks to further improve the quality of learning and the learning experience for students, as well as to facilitate the teaching process for faculty. This initiative will support the development of on-line course offerings for undergraduate students using pedagogical best practice and transformation of education using information technology.
Information Literacy Online Modules
Information Literacy Online is a web-based interactive group of modules that were developed by the Smathers Libraries and the Center for Instructional Technology and Training. Currently, the Research 101 module is available for student and faculty use. Research 101 includes five tutorials that introduce basic library research skills that are essential to every college student, regardless of interests or degree areas. In the tutorials, students learn a variety of useful skills including finding information, learning search techniques, and strategies for evaluating the quality and usability of sources. More »
Instructional Design Presentation
Marcela Piñeros gave a MediaSite presentation to the Distance Learning Council on instructional design.
Educational Objectives and Strategies
Check out some possible pedagogical strategies you may wish to consider when using online tools in your classes and for collaboration.
Tools & Techniques Toolbox
Familiarize yourself with the newest technology tools and techniques used for teaching and learning by checking out the Toolbox sponsored by The Center for Instructional Technology and Training. Clicking on the links will take you directly to a page with resources, definitions and suggestions.
Visit the Tools & Techniques Toolbox
Collaboration: An Overview of Online Tools
Collaboration in the technology sector refers to a wide variety of tools that enable groups of people to work together.
Millenial College Students
Jeanna Mastrodicasa, co-author of Connecting to the Net.Generation: What Higher Education Professionals Need to Know about Today’s Students speaks at the Distance Learning Council on why millenial students are different from previous generations and how this understanding can help faculty in teaching.