Contact: Melissa Cox Norris, Director of Library Communications, (513) 556-1558 or melissa.norris@uc.edu
July 24, 2006 – In June, librarians from UC’s Academic Information and Technology Libraries (AIT&L) and University Libraries partnered once again to offer the Early Summer Instructional Technology Institute to UC faculty members looking to develop or enhance technical skills.
Nineteen participants spent the week learning about Photoshop, PowerPoint, producing e-portfolios with BlackBoard and Dreamweaver, blogs, creating Web tutorials, and more. The faculty members came from across the university including from the Colleges of Allied Health Sciences, Applied Science, McMicken College of Arts and Sciences, Business, DAAP, Engineering, Medicine, Nursing, Raymond Walters College, and the School of Social Work. And while they come together with different goals – some wanted to learn a new skill while others wished to enhance previous experience – they all left with a better understanding of technology and how to apply it to their teaching and research. “The great value of the Institute is its flexibility,” said one faculty member. “Everybody can learn something; no matter what your skill level is on Monday, you will be miles ahead on Friday.”
On the final day of the Institute, the participants shared what they had learned by demonstrating projects they worked on throughout the week. The projects ranged from the restoration of a cherished family photo using Photoshop to the compilation of a visual tour of Pakistan to the creation of a Web tutorial to help students better understand BlackBoard. “ The presentations are the highlight of the Institute,” said Leslie Schick, director of library services for AIT&L. “As an instructor it is rewarding to see how the participants have been able to put what they’ve learned during the week into practice.”
After the Institute, the faculty members are able to apply their technical skills to the classroom, some immediately as one participant wrote, “The types of technologies I learned are already being implemented in a distance-learning class I am developing and I can see how several others of the technologies will benefit my students learning as well.”
The learning can continue long after the Early Summer Instructional Technology Institute concludes as both AIT&L and University Libraries offer workshops for faculty throughout the year. “Our goal with the Institute and the various workshops we offer is to combine the outstanding scholarly resources of the libraries with new software and technology to enhance learning and engage students,” said Jane Carlin, instruction coordinator for University Libraries.
The Early Summer Technology Institute was funded through a Faculty Development Grant from the Faculty Development Council. For more information on the Institute or other library instruction initiatives, contact AIT&L’s Leslie Schick at (513) 558-4321 or University Libraries’ Jane Carlin at (513) 556-1319.
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