Events

eLearning Team provides Faculty Support for Digital Teaching at GVSU

GVSU’s eLearning and Emerging Technologies team provides a wealth of opportunities for faculty in support of digital teaching at Grand Valley State University.

Here are a few key areas of support and highlights offered to faculty in the remainder of the Fall semester and in Winter 2021.

  1. Faculty Learning Community Meetings – Tuesday, November 17, 1 to 2pm and Thursday, November 19, 10:30 to 11:30am
    Featuring faculty members who will share experiences with synchronous tools such as Blackboard Collaborate Ultra, Zoom, and Google Jamboard.
  2. eLearning Webinars 
    Over 40 sessions are available for the remainder of Fall and in Winter 2021. Featured sessions offered in November and December include leveraging Blackboard in teaching, using Respondus LockDown Browser and Monitor for assessments and exams, and more.
  3. Blackboard Default Layout for Winter 2021
    The refreshed Blackboard layout is sorted into functional categories with dividers, along with new “Begin Here” and “Weekly Content” menu items. Sample content (which is hidden from students) is also included to offer effective practice suggestions along with an “Instructor Guide”.
  4. 10 Effective Practices for Digital Teaching
    This NEW web page provides 10 effective practices for quality online, hybrid, and digital teaching. Practical examples of teaching and course design practices are combined with tools and technologies that are targeted to support student success at GVSU.
10 Tips | Effective Practices

The eLearning Team welcomes New Faculty at GVSU!

WELCOME NEW FACULTY!

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On, Wednesday, August 7, New Faculty Orientation kicks off with over 100 faculty participating in 2 days of sessions focused on equipping and preparing new faculty at Grand Valley State University.

From 1 to 3pm, the eLearning and Emerging Technologies team will share a wealth of tips and strategies to leverage technology in teaching through break out sessions,  #EDTECH demonstrations, and consultations.

Specific sessions by the eLearning team include:

This post features a variety of technologies and resources that are available to faculty at GVSU.

Who is the eLearning team and what do they do?

Our eLearning and Emerging Technologies team is on mission to supporting faculty pursuing innovation in teaching an learning.

Our team provides a wide array of services and resources designed to facilitate digital learning at GVSU through supporting faculty in delivering high quality, innovative teaching.

We support faculty, contribute to teaching excellence, and enhance student success through:

What enterprise technologies are available at GVSU?

Look no further then our Teaching and Learning with Technology Guide!

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New to Blackboard?

Here are a few resources to help you get started!

  1. Checklist for getting started with Blackboard
  2. Tips for teaching and learning with Blackboard
  3. Facilitating live office hours and video conferencing with Collaborate
  4. Checking accessibility of your course content with Ally

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Interested in kicking-it-up-a-notch with video?

Check out the Digital Studio, Lightboard, and get help with using Panopto, our streaming video solution at GVSU!

Need instructional design support in teaching online?

Join a growing movement in higher education by learning to teach an online or hybrid course. The eLearning and Emerging Technologies team includes instructional designers in IDeL focused on providing expert guidance in designing high quality courses.

We’re here to help!

Visit our eLearning and Emerging Technologies web page to connect with a plethora of possibilities in teaching and learning with technology at GVSU!

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18th Annual Symposium a Success!

The 18th Annual Teaching and Learning with Technology Symposium, held on May 1, was the largest symposium held at GVSU with over 160 attendees, a keynote by Provost Cimitile, recognition of the Julia VanderMolen who received the Pew FTLC Teaching with Technology Award, 5 Technology Test Kitchen “recipes”, and 25 ePoster sessions.

The Teaching and Learning with Technology Symposium was sponsored by eLearning and Emerging Technologies, Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center, and University Libraries.

If you missed attending this year, here are a few highlights:

  • WATCH the Symposium Keynote by Provost Cimitile

Save-the-date and see you next year in Allendale on Wednesday, April 29 for the 19th Annual Teaching and Learning with Technology Symposium!

eLearning supports “Teaching Thanksgiving” event with Blackboard Collaborate

Vince St. Germain, eLearning and Instructional Technology Specialist, assisted in facilitating a livestream with live captions using Blackboard Collaborate for the Multicultural Affairs department at GVSU.

This event was held as part of GVSU’s Native American Heritage Month on Monday, November 12 from 4 – 6 pm in the Kirkhof Center. Using Blackboard Collaborate, the event was streamed live to a variety of remote locations.

 

Session Title:

Teaching Thanksgiving: A Discussion on Reframing Representations of American Indians

Session Description: 

Where many people in the United States celebrate Thanksgiving and may perceive it as a harmless and apolitical holiday, it remains to be a complicated holiday and a painful reminder of colonial violence and indigenous erasure for American Indian communities. This panel will explore how the myths and lies of Thanksgiving are taught and reinforced in the school systems. Invited panelists will discuss how they educate about Thanksgiving and have a focused discussion on creating culturally-appropriate curriculum reflective of the contemporary experiences of American Indians.

The audience will leave this lively discussion with an understanding of how the Thanksgiving myth does harm and receive resources, strategies, and best practices on how to intervene on inaccurate representations about American Indians in the school systems and our communities.

Panel:

  • Andrea Riley Mukavetz, Liberal Studies Department, Chippewa of Thames First Nations
  • Steve Perry, artist, educator, and philanthropist, LTBB and Garden River Ojibwe
  • Hunter Genia, Resilience Counseling and Consultation, Gun Lake
  • Levi Rickert, Native News Online, Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation
  • Jannan Cotto, Director of Niigaandiwin Education Department for LTBB, LTBB
  • Amanda Weinert, Curriculum Specialist for Niigaandiwin Education Department for LTBB, LTBB

About Blackboard Collaborate

Blackboard Collaborate™ is a simple, convenient, and reliable online collaborative learning solution. Collaborate delivers a level of engagement that makes learners feel like they’re together in the same room via collaboration and conference tools.

Collaborate provides opportunities for:

  • Live Class Sessions
  • Online Office Hours
  • Online Guest Speakers
  • Interviews
  • Advising
  • Study Sessions
  • Small Group Projects
  • and more!

Learn more about using Blackboard Collaborate for live events and to support teaching and learning at GVSU.

Technology Showcase Celebrates 5 Years of Emerging Technology at GVSU

REFLECT | REMEMBER | CELEBRATE | INNOVATE

On Friday, September 14, the eLearning and Emerging Technologies team in Information Technology, along with staff from the University Libraries celebrated the opening of the Atomic Object Technology Showcase 5 years ago.  The event provided an opportunity to reflect back, remember the past, and to celebrate achievements and success, while also allowing room to innovate and to pioneer the future together!

See also: 

Photo of an empty room with no chairs, tables, and white walls.The journey began on August 1, 2013 in a small empty room in the Mary Idema Pew Library Learning and Information Commons.  This empty room quickly became a distinctive initiative of the Information Technology department, University Libraries, and GVSU itself. Transitioning from an empty room into an exciting space, the showcase is full of over 35+ emerging and innovative technologies that intersect with teaching and learning. Since being open, over 62,000 visitors (and counting) have experienced the mission of the showcase which is:

“To provide faculty, staff, and students with an immersive and engaging environment to:  interact, discover, learn, and share how innovative emerging technologies can enhance teaching and improve student learning at GVSU.”

Over 250 visits were tracked during the 3 hour 5 Year Celebration Open House and attendees experimented with emerging technologies, entered a prize drawing, and enjoyed snacks and conversations.

Here are a few highlights of the celebration!

  • Atomic Object Visit – Staff from Atomic Object, a software design and development company in Grand Rapids, visited the showcase.

Photo of staff from Atomic Object and eLearning and Emerging Technologies

Mike Marsiglia and Jeff Williams from Atomic Object are pictured with Eric Kunnen and Hunter Bridwell from eLearning and Emerging Technologies

  • Photos from Event – Visitors and guests enjoyed an open house full of emerging technology, prizes, #edtech conversations, and refreshments. Visitors could also view our birthday cake in augmented reality through the Microsoft HoloLens which was baked, 3D scanned, and placed into a hologram by our own and very skilled digital media developer, Hunter Bridwell!

A Technology Showcase thank you to all of the students, faculty, and staff
that celebrated our 5 year open house with us!

Photo of the room of the technology showcase with 3 banners hanging in the window saying technology, innovation, education.

Technology Showcase Celebrates 5 Years of Education, Technology, and Innovation @GVSU

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The Atomic Object TECHNOLOGY SHOWCASE is 5 YEARS old! Come to our 5 YEAR CELEBRATION OPEN HOUSE on Friday, September 14, 3 – 6 PM.

As part of the eLearning and Emerging Technologies department, the Atomic Object Technology Showcase has been focused at the intersection of education, technology and innovation. In celebration of 5 years of the showcase being open, we are hosting a 5 YEAR CELEBRATION OPEN HOUSE on Friday, September 14, from 3 to 6 PM.

Join us to remember the past – and to pioneer the future together…

WHAT – 5 Year Celebration Open House

WHEN – Friday, September 14 , 3 – 6 PM

WHERE – Atomic Object Technology Showcase @GVSU

RSVP

ACCESS EVENT PAGE

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eLearning and Technology Showcase participates in Fall Teaching Conference

The eLearning and Emerging Technologies team, along with student Emerging Technology Specialists from the Atomic Object Technology Showcase participated in the Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center resource fair, which was part of the Fall Teaching Conference.

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Ron and Sam, student Emerging Technology Specialists from the Atomic Object Technology Showcase brought innovative emerging technologies to demo for faculty attending the Fall Teaching Conference at GVSU.

On Wednesday, August 22, around 250-300 faculty arrived at the Eberhard Center to participate in the 24th Annual Fall Conference on Teaching & Learning. This year’s focus was on the importance of storytelling.

How are GVSU faculty, staff and students telling our stories of purpose, transformation, innovation, and accomplishment? This year’s Fall Conference theme was chosen with the intent of shedding light on the powerful stories we all have to tell and providing a space where we can reflect on the ways in which we use narrative in our teaching. Whether analog or digital, oral or written, the crafting of impactful stories requires intentionality, skill, and practice – hence, the focus of this event.

At this event, and throughout the morning and over lunch, faculty attendees had the opportunity to engage with a variety of departments offering services and support to faculty. GVSU’s eLearning and Emerging Technologies team provided demonstrations of emerging technology through the showcase, while highlighting the resources offered through the IDeL, Digital Studio, and support for using #edtech in teaching at the university.

If you missed seeing us at the event, here are some key support and services that are provided by the eLearning team:

Celebrating Faculty Innovation at the Teaching and Learning with Technology Symposium

In partnership with the Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center and University Libraries, eLearning and Emerging Technologies hosted the 17th Annual Teaching and Learning with Technology Symposium. 

Held on Wednesday, May 2, 2018, this event brought together more than 120 faculty, staff, and students from GVSU, including guests from Cornerstone University, Davenport University, Western Michigan University, and Grand Rapids Community College.

Put simply, this event was all about celebrating faculty innovation at the intersection of teaching, learning, and technology!

For 17 years, the Teaching & Learning with Technology Symposium has provided an  outstanding opportunity for faculty to showcase how they’re putting technology to use in their teaching to support student success and retention.

technology_test_kitchen_logoThis year,  in addition to ePosters, a brand new “Technology Test Kitchen” was offered, full of tasty #edtech recipes.

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TEACHING AND LEARNING WITH TECHNOLOGY AWARD

Always a highlight at this event is the presentation of the Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center’s Teaching and Learning with Technology Award. Congratulations to Rosemary Cleveland, senior affiliate faculty of education, and Andrew Korich, associate professor of chemistry, as this year’s award recipients!

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Pictured on the left, Rosemary Cleveland, senior affiliate faculty of education, and the left, Andrew Korich, associate professor of chemistry, 2018 Pew Teaching with Technology Award Recipients.

OER @ GVSU

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IMG_8469At the symposium, Dean Annie Bélanger shared how GVSU University Libraries support the adoption and creation of open educational resources (OER) through advocacy, education, curation, and library publishing services. Further, she provided insight as to the importance of OER as a critical component of liberal education.

THANK YOU

Thank you to all of the presenters and attendees for an awesome afternoon of connecting, learning, and sharing – all focused on enhancing teaching practices and the effective use of technology to support student success.

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SAVE THE DATE

See you next year for another great symposium to be held on Wednesday, May 1 in the Mary Idema Pew Library Learning and Information Commons!

eLearning at the Occupational Science and Therapy Hybrid Faculty Retreat

The eLearning team at GVSU recently participated in an Occupational Science and Therapy (OST) Retreat that was held on Saturday, February 24 at the University Club, on the downtown DeVos Campus.

Glenna Decker, Matt Roberts, Kim Kenward, Sherry Barricklow, Hunter Bridwell, and Eric Kunnen provided learning experiences for hybrid faculty teaching in OST.

Topics that were shared included:

  • Introductio, to the Community of Inquiry Framework
  • ‘Bored-Free’ Discussions and Strategies beyond the Discussion Board
  • Good Practices in Facilitating Group Work Online
  • Virtual Advising, Office Hours, Guest Speakers, Interviews, Meetings etc. with Blackboard Collaborate Ultra
  • eLearning and Emerging Technologies #EdTech Resources and Support
  • Emerging Technologies in the Atomic Object Technology Showcase
  • Quality Benchmarks and Student Orientation / Readiness
  • Creating Quality Online Courses with:
    • Online/Hybrid Peer Review Rubric
    • Blackboard Exemplary Course Award Rubric
  • Using Blackboard/Word/PowerPoint to Create Accessible Materials

Materials were provided to faculty through a Blackboard organization site:

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Shape the Future of Education at hackGVSU!

Join us on Saturday, April 14 from 9am to 6pm!

Grand Valley State University is hosting its first-ever hackGVSU event. Inspired by other college hackathons (like hackPSU https://hackpsu.org), we’re inviting students and staff from area high schools, colleges, and universities to come to Grand Valley and envision how technology can shape the future of education.

The focus for this year’s event is Blackboard’s learning management system. Participants can attend training sessions lead by Blackboard employees and then work together in teams to build projects that extend Blackboard’s capabilities.

We’re planning a full day of food, beverages, and prizes for the best projects. Individuals of all experience levels are welcome, from experienced coders to first time hackers. If you know of anyone that might be interested in attending, they can find details at:

“IDEAS WORTH CODING!”