Monthly Archives: February 2014

How to Apply for the 2014 Summer Technology Institute

Posted on by

By shopware AG [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia CommonsNote: To apply for the Summer Technology Institute, please fill out the application form.

The Summer Technology Institute, sponsored by the Office of the Provost and the Center for Teaching, Learning and Scholarship, is an opportunity for faculty to participate in a learning community of faculty across disciplines and schools engaged in an exploration of the effective uses of technology in teaching, learning, collaboration, and scholarship.

Faculty who consider themselves basic users or do not currently use technology in their courses are especially encouraged to apply.

A $500 stipend accompanies participation in the summer institute.

The program features a weeklong institute in June, held at Washburn Lounge on the Brattle Campus. Here, faculty will engage in a rich mix of dialogue, hands-on practice, project-based learning, reflection, and application to explore innovative ways technology can be integrated into their teaching. Regular gatherings over the course of the academic year will extend conversations and deepen learning begun at the Summer Institute.

Major topics addressed at the Summer Institute include:

  • Instructional Design
  • Technology-Enhanced Course Design Strategies
  • Use of Instructional Technology tools including myLesley (Blackboard, myLesley Voice Tools, Voicethread, Collaborate, and Blackboard Instant Messenger)

Expectations for Summer Technology Institute Participants

Faculty are expected to:

  • Participate in a 5-day training seminar: June 9-13, 2014
  • Develop a technology-enhanced learning activity for a 2014-2015 course
  • Attend at least 2 “brown bag” discussion workshops during the 2014-15 school year
  • Present a workshop or poster session at the 2015 eLearning Institute

Important Dates

March 7, 2014 Applications Due
March 31, 2014 Participants Announced
June 9-13, 2014 Summer Institute
January 2015 eLearning Institute

Application

To apply for the Summer Technology Institute, please fill out the application form.

Simple Ways to Save Time Using myLesley

Posted on by

It’s a busy and rapidly changing world. You need tools to help you keep the chaos under control and make sure you have time for the important things. Below are a few ways myLesley can help you simplify some of the course administration tasks, leaving you more time for teaching.

Send Email

Looking up email addresses and setting up contact groups for your students can take a lot of time. Stop doing it! Email your students directly from your myLesley course using the Send Email tool. Email the entire class, groups of students, or select individual students. A copy of the message will be sent to your email address for future reference.

send email select users

Are you better at speaking than typing? Try Voice Email instead. voice email icon

Many faculty find they can provide more information in the same amount of time by recording their message.

Announcements

The Announcements tool is a great way to share time sensitive information to the entire class.

announcement example

Use Announcements to kick off a new week, wrap up content and remind students about upcoming due dates. It’s a great way to summarize discussions and highlight key points for feedback to the whole class. Do you need to clarify information and clear up confusion that multiple students are having? Don’t send 15 emails. Send one announcement.

Announcements are visible on the home page of the myLesley course, but check ‘Send a copy of this announcement’ to also send an email to everyone. This will provide students two opportunities to receive important course information.

Create a Course Repository

Even if don’t teach online, having course content in myLesley can be incredibly helpful. Placing your syllabus, links to readings, and assignment information online allows students to easily find information when it’s needed, 24 hours a day/7 days a week. Clear organization and instructions translates to less frustration and confusion for students and fewer clarification emails for you.

Performance Dashboard

The Performance Dashboard provides a quick overall view of student activity in the course. The dashboard lists all the students and how long it has been since they last accessed the course. It is a quick way to identify students you may need to reach out to.

performance dashboard

The dashboard also shows students’ discussion board activity. Click on the number in the ‘Discussion Board’ column to access details on an individual student’s posts.

These are just a few easy to apply tips for using myLesley as a time-saving tool. Check out our Faculty Instructional Technology Resources to learn more about myLesley’s features.