12th Annual Learning Technologies Showcase at the University of Arizona
| Date | 10 July 2007 |
| Published date | 10 July 2007 |
| Pages | 12-13 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/07419050710823265 |
| Author | Dorothy Hemmo |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science |
12th Annual Learning Technologies Showcase at
the University of Arizona
Dorothy Hemmo
12 LIBRARY HITECH NEWS Number 6 2007, pp. 12-13, #Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 0741-9058, DOI 10.1108/07419050710823265
Promoting student engagement with
collaborative technology
Collaborative technologies, mobile
communication, and virtual worlds were
all explored at the 12th Annual Learning
Technologies Showcase at the
University of Arizona in Tucson. The
half-day conference took place May 3,
2007 and was open to faculty, staff, and
students.
The focus of this year’s Showcase
was Student Engagement, and each
Breakout Session was geared toward the
use of technologies to promote student
engagement in the classroom. Even
though the presentations were directly
relevant to classroom use, there was a
great deal of information applicable to a
library setting. The session on
podcasting, for example, offered many
resources, from where to find podcasts
to how to do your own. The University
of Arizona podcasting website can be
found at http://podcasting.arizona.edu.
The site features a podcasting tip sheet,
a Flash movie tutorial on subscribing to
podcasts, and many examples of
educational podcasts. The presenter,
Senior Consultant for Learning
Technologies Stuart Glogoff, pointed
out that podcasting is a low-cost tool for
marketing and instruction. Participants
came away from the session with ideas
for projects and a starting point for their
own exploration of podcasting.
‘‘Using collaboration tools to
facilitate student engagement’’,
presented by Wayne Brent, a consultant
for the Learning Technologies Center at
the University of Arizona, gave a rapid
overview of various collaboration and
information sharing tools including
Wikis, Google Docs and Spreadsheets,
Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP),
and Breeze.
Wikis and Google Docs allow users
to engage in collaborative authoring, an
excellent way for students or co-workers
to work on group projects, to revise
documents and to share ideas in writing.
With VOIP one can download the
appropriate software and make phone
calls, including conference calls, on the
computer via the internet. The
University of Arizona Library Student
Organization uses Skype, a VOIP
application, to allow distance students to
‘‘attend’’ LSO meetings.
Breeze is conferencing software that
allows people to meet virtually in real
time via the internet. Brent explained
that there are different ‘‘pods’’ or areas
of the interface that can be used to
increase interaction of the participants.
The main area or pod could be used to
give a lecture in PowerPoint, while
participants chat in a pod off to the side
(hopefully about the lecture). Links
within the main area are ‘‘live,’’
allowing participants to delve
immediately into a subject of interest to
them. Sessions can be recorded and used
again. The camera and voice pod allows
video and audio connections among
users. Another pod allows the presenter
to give polls or surveys to the
participants and to get immediate results
for all to see. This kind of software
could be used to collaborate with distant
colleagues, to give presentations with
interactive elements, or to attend virtual
conferences.
Chris Johnson, Senior Systems
Programmer for Steward Observatory at
the University of Arizona, and Adrienne
J. Gauthier, Instructional Specialist
Coordinator in Astronomy, presented a
session on how educators at the
University of Arizona are using the
interactive virtual world Second Life
(SL) as an instructional tool. In
Astronomy 202: Life in the Universe at
the University of Arizona, students were
offered the option of using SL in their
required ‘‘Creative Project.’’ A scale
model timeline from the formation of
the Earth to the present was created in
SL. Students then created an avatar (a
virtual representation of themselves),
chose an event in Earth’s history and
built a project using graphics, pictures,
and models. Co-presenter Adrienne
Gauthier called the use of SL ‘‘the great
experiment’’ and referred to the many
challenges faced by the instructors and
the students. Adequate computer lab
time must be available and students
must have, or quickly acquire, strong
computer skills including knowledge of
Photoshop.
SL is being used by educators in
many creative ways. Among these are
projects in fashion design, architecture,
installation art, and the design and
building of stage sets. Students have
been assigned to go on scavenger hunts
in themed historical simulations.
Because SL is multinational, students
can experience immersive foreign
language environments. Any of the
above interactions would make an
interesting virtual field trip.
For anyone consi dering
implementing SL in the classroom, one
should keep in mind that SL requires a
lot of time and effort: to learn the world,
to learn new teaching tools and
techniques, and to create materials. The
International Society for Technology in
Education has a presence in SL and they
have a website that may be a helpful
resource for those curious about SL,
http://iste.org/secondlife. Johnson also
cautions potential educational users
about the sometimes adult nature of SL
interactions. This is probably not the
venue for the under age 18 set. It is a
whole world of fun and trouble, and
students do not have to stay in the
part of SL you have created for a
class. According to Johnson, a
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