Distance Learning & Instructional Design: Benefits & Pitfalls

This session will focus on some of the common benefits and pitfalls of distance learning as well as a discussion of the current Instructional Design resources available at the College. Attention will be given to the benefits of using proper Instructional Design resources and some of the pitfalls that have to be overcome to achieve quality instruction. This workshop will examine successful and "less than successful" online assignments and teaching methods.

SESSION 2 - Room L2.81

Adam S. Wandt
Department of Public Management
&
Chandra Hanke
Instructional Design Program

From Traditional to Blended Hybrid Learning: Why & How?

Many higher education institutions are transitioning to blended learning as an alternative instructional modality.  However, why should instructors even consider teaching a blended course? How can it facilitate greater student learning? How do we start?  In this workshop, we will discuss how a traditional course can be redesigned blending online and face-to-face delivery effectively.

SESSION 1 Room L2.72.05

Nancy Velazquez-Torres
Percy Ellis Sutton SEEK Department

Ten Library technology tools to enhance your teaching!
Highlights include streaming video, library subject guides, the mobile library, and linking these and other library e-resources into Blackboard.

SESSION1 Room L2.82

Marta Bladek
Kathleen Collins
Nancy Egan
Library

Library Tech Tools to Support Your Research!

Highlights include new ebook collections, creating alerts, citation analysis, and using Illiad for interlibrary loan.

SESSION 2 Room L2.72.06

Organize your work & home life with cloud-based apps. 

An introduction to some of the free or low-cost tools (e.g., Evernote, Remember the Milk, DropBox etc.) that you can use to manage your time and organize your life. Depending on the background of the group, this can be a slow-paced introduction to a few cloud-based services, or a general sharing about those tools favored by the group. 

SESSION 3 Room L2.81

Analyzing Data With R: The Basics

R is a freely available implementation of the S language for statistical data analysis. R is simple enough to be used in undergraduate statistics courses and powerful enough to be used by statistical researchers developing new statistical methods. This session assumes no prior experience with R, but some prior experience with data analysis. The session will introduce the basics of the R environment including obtaining help, reading and writing data files, using script files, and using the most common sorts of R objects (e.g., data frames, vectors, and lists). The session will demonstrate handling of missing data, sorting data, and selecting subsets of data.

Session 2 Room L2.72.03

Podcasting & the Written Medium

This workshop will introduce podcasting and how to apply this technology in creating unique writing assignments.  Instructors will learn what a podcast is, how to create an effective script for a podcast, and how to record and place it on line. 

Session 2 Room L2.82

Getting Started with Blackboard/The Basics

Blackboard is a Learning Management System that enables instructors to improve accessibility and management of their courses as well as enhancing collaboration with their students. At the end of the workshop, participants will be able to: 1. Add files to a course content area 2. Create course folders 3. Add Announcements in the course and 4. Manage students and Teaching Assistants

Session 1 Room L2.72.06

Blackboard 9.1 Sneak Peek

This sneak peek will be a brief demonstration of the new interface and features introduced in Blackboard 9.1.
Learning Outcomes:
At the end of the sneak peek, participants will be familiar with:
· Blackboard 9.1 course menu, featuring drag and drop editing.
· Blackboard 9.1 course files area.
· Blackboard 9.1 new features – new timed assessment options, interactive rubrics, and needs grading feature.
· Blackboard 9.1 help options, including the On Demand training site.

Session 2 Room L2.72.03

Blackboard: Tests and Quizzes

Workshop Description: Tests and quizzes are important parts of teaching a course, whether they are weighted in the final grade or not. This workshop will teach participants how they can create a test, deploy it, and have the test automatically display the score in the Grade Center.  At the end of the workshop, participants will be able to: 1. Create a Test 2.  Choose which Question Types to use 3.  Add a Question to the Test 4.  How to make a Test available and 5. Check results in the Grade Center. 

Blackboard The Basics

This workshop will introduce the Grade Center feature to faculty members who use Blackboard. Grade Center is a valuable tool that minimizes the time an instructor dedicates to adding, editing, and organizing students’ grades. At the end of the workshop, participants will be able to: 1.  Explore My Grades as a Student 2.  Add and remove Grade Center columns 3.  Add a category in the Grade Center 4.  Sort and reorder Grade Center columns 5.  Enter grades in the Grade Center table

Session 1 Room L2.72.04

Turnitin.Com – Not Just A Gotcha Tool!

Turnitin.com has gained a reputation as a powerful anti-plagiarism tool, But it is actually so much more.  In this hands-on workshop, you will set up your Turnitin.com account.Workshop participants will learn about providing feedback to students using Grademark, track students’ performances, and create a paperless class, as well as other features to enhance the class experience for both the instructor and students. 

Session 3 Room L2.82 

See Them Grow: ePortfolios in the College Classroom

This workshop will introduce faculty members to electronic portfolios, or collections of academic work and professional documents that students curate and house on the internet over the course of their college careers. Drawing from the recent experiences of students and faculty in the First Year Experience ePortfolio pilot program, we will address the benefits and challenges of using ePortfolios to inspire students, encourage reflection, enhance class discussions, manage assignments and assess more efficiently. Participants will have the opportunity to view examples of ePortfolios at John Jay and generate ideas about how they might incorporate ePortfolios into future classes. Please bring a copy of a syllabus for a course that might benefit from the inclusion of ePortfolio-type assignments or activities.

Session 3 Room L2.72.05

Daniel Auld
Undergraduate Studies & Psychology

Using the webcam and VOCAT for student presentations

There are many advantages to capturing digital files of student presentations.  A recorded presentation can be reviewed by the student. professor and peers and allow for in-depth evaluation.  It can facilitate an archive of best work that can be used to create student academic portfolios.  The workshop will discuss a process for recording, saving and broadcasting presentations videotaped both in class and at home.  It will also look at a new online video  assessment tool being developed by the Communication and Theatre Arts Department at John Jay in cooperation with Baruch College's Bernard Schwartz Communication Institute.  

Session 1 Room L2.79

Cloud Computing

It’s all the rage, but what is it? More importantly, how might it help me? Join us for a discussion and overview of cloud computing and how it can be used in today’s classroom. Along with a general introduction to what cloud computing is, various programs and technologies will be examined for their efficiency and suitability for higher education. Security concerns will also be addressed. Please bring your own experiences to the discussion.

Session 1 Room L2.72.03

The Art of Screencasting: Design, Creation, and Publication

As students increasingly utilize smartphones, tablets, netbooks and other devices to consume course content, screencasting is becoming an interesting addition to the usual forms of student engagement. Screencasting is a method of recording actions performed on a computer desktop, usually with audio narration.  The effect of watching a screencast is somewhat like receiving a private whiteboard lecture, but with the option to review the lesson at one's own pace.  The potential of the concept is well-illustrated by the success of Salman Khan's website khanacademy.com, which has attracted the attention of the Gates Foundation, the TED group, and others. In this talk we will present methods for creating and publishing screencasts on a variety of platforms, and relate our experiences. In this workshop we will present methods for creating and publishing screencasts on a variety of platforms, and relate our experiences of their use.

Session 2 Room L2.72.03