I-BEST and Degree Estimator Cited as Exemplary Models

Dated January 24, 2013

 An Open Letter to College and University Leaders: College Completion Must Be Our Priority

National Commission on Higher Education Attainment and ACE

Under the sub-heading of “Improve the academic experience”, Washington State’s I-BEST program is cited as the example. (p.14)

Under “Communicate with students about progress to graduation”, Walla Walla CC’s “Degree Estimator” tool is cited as the example. (p.22)

 
Nice to see the recognition for work in our Washington State system of higher education!

Fabulous Compilation of SoTL Journals and Conference

Originally posted to the POD Network listserv (always a great source of information), and reprinted with permission from Tom Pusateri:

Dear colleagues,

I have recently updated the lists of SoTL journals and upcoming teaching conferences that are available from Kennesaw State University's CETL Web site.  See below for links to those resources.

PLEASE NOTE:  CETL is in the process of updating its entire Web presence, and we hope to have the new site operational in March 2013.  At that time, the journals and conferences sites will be searchable by key terms, topics, dates, etc.  Until that update occurs, we are providing the lists of SoTL journals and teaching conferences in PDF formats rather than in the HTML format we had used previously.  We will notify you when the sites have been updated and include redirects from the current sites to the new sites.

 Here are the current sites with updated information,  Please feel free to share these resources with your colleagues.  If you have any suggestions for additions or updates to the site, please email me at tpusater@kennesaw.edu.

 SoTL Journals

Current site:  http://www.kennesaw.edu/cetl/resources/journals.html

Direct link to PDF (71 pages):  http://www.kennesaw.edu/cetl/resources/SoTL-Journals.pdf

 

Teaching Conferences

Current site:  http://www.kennesaw.edu/cetl/resources/na_conf_list.html

Direct link to PDF (85 pages):  http://www.kennesaw.edu/cetl/resources/Teaching-Conferences.pdf

 Tom

Thomas P. Pusateri, Ph.D.

Associate Director for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning Kennesaw State University

1000 Chastain Road NW #5400
Kennesaw, GA    30144
Office: 770-423-6551
Email: tpusater@kennesaw.edu

Shootings on Kentucky Campus, Related Articles

Shootings Stun 2 Colleges

January 16, 2013 - 3:00am
By
Scott Jaschik

On Tuesday, the day before President Obama is expected to announce new proposals to control gun violence, two campuses were stunned by shootings.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reported that two people were killed and one was injured in a shooting at Hazard Community and Technical College, in Kentucky. The shooting took place in the early evening and the college went into lockdown until authorities said that it was safe for people to move about. Classes were being held in two buildings on campus when the shooting took place.

 Authorities said that the motive for the shooting may have had nothing to do with the college. A man charged in the shooting is reported to have had a child with a woman whom he allegedly killed, and officials believe the couple used the college's parking lot to exchange the child for visitation. The child was not injured.

College officials have called off today's classes at the campus.

The shootings in Kentucky came hours after a man reported to be a part-time student at Stevens Institute of Business & Arts shot the St. Louis college's financial aid director and then himself on Tuesday, KMOV television reported. Police officers quoted by the station did not identify a motive for the shooting of Greg Elsenrath, Stevens' financial aid director, by the unidentified student. The shooter was taken into custody at the hospital, where both he and Elsenrath were taken; both are expected to survive.

 The Associated Press reported that the shooting was not random and that that aid director "appeared to be targeted."

 Here is a compilation of articles from the last two years about higher education, shootings on campus and regulation of guns:

• College presidents urge President Obama to take actions to prevent gun violence.
• Two Casper College faculty members killed.
• Essay by president of University of Connecticut in wake of the killings in Newtown.
• How campus safety and mental-health experts try to identify those who may be prone to be shooters.
• Colorado Supreme Court bars the University of Colorado from banning guns on campus.
• Momentum shifts away from gun bans and limits on college campuses.
• How higher education defeated a move to allow concealed weapons on Texas campuses.
• Why some students push for more guns on campuses.
• After ex-student at Pima Community College shoots a Congresswoman, experts consider the challenges faced by community colleges in dealing with potentially dangerous students.
• Essay on what it is like to be a professor fearful for your safety because of a student.

Read more: http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/01/16/2-killed-kentucky-community-college#ixzz2IB0VXBHE
Inside Higher Ed

MOOC on OER, OER-101: Locating, Creating, Licensing and Utilizing OERs

Earlier today, we sent a broadcast message about the OER course at SUNY. However, people have to be logged into this Community to see the details and the registration link. So I am now sending the content of the event including the registration link. If you register for the course and would like a mentor, write to melody@collegeopentextbooks.org   ---  Regards, Jacky Course Description Registration Link https://OpenSUNY.coursesites.com Use Buffalo State as the Institution, search for Beth Burns and then choose the class. OER-101: Locating, Creating, Licensing and Utilizing OERs is a self-paced online community course that has been built to demonstrate how to find, adapt, and develop OERs step-by-step. These OERs may then be licensed via Creative Commons, printed and bound, and integrated into any type of learning environment. The course is organized into five “pursuits,” each of which represents one facet of the world of OERs.  Participants are encouraged to complete all of the pursuits by following the suggested course progression, but each pursuit can also be completed individually. For evaluation and feedback, OER-101 will employ a badging system powered by Mozilla Open Badges.  The exploration of badging within the course is funded by a SUNY Innovative Instruction Technology Grant. Participants will earn badges by completing the course pursuits and will receive a ‘master badge’ for course completion.  Additionally, OER-101 will utilize a community learning model informed by a facilitation method established by Philyse Banner at the American Public University System. The results from this course will be documented within the SUNY Learning Commons. Accessing the Course The course is offered through Blackboard’s Coursesites.  Enrollment in the course is open and continuous.  Participants may self-enroll beginning on Wednesday, January 16th, 2013, and the course content will be available to participants after Wednesday, January 23rd, 2013.  Additional information on the course and a link to registration can be found at  https://OpenSUNY.coursesites.com    Use Buffalo State as the Institution, search for Beth Burns and then choose the class.

Visit College Open Textbooks Community at: http://collegeopentextbooks.ning.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

Expanding a bit on Noreen's recent listserv invitation to "consider posting [to the ATL blog] links to the 'good stuff' you’re finding and share your thoughts...as well," I'd like to invite you to consider committing to a specific scheduled blog post as a designated ATL blogger. With Noreen leaving us to take on a new job and new challenges, at least for a while I'm going to have to pick up my game here and help out more, but I'm hoping to get some additional help by "crowdsourcing" the work load :-) We know everyone is crazy busy these days, but we think the blog is a great vehicle for an active exchange of ideas and discussion of issues that are broadly relevant to our ATL community; there's real value in hearing from multiple voices and perspectives, and I know we have lots of folks in this far-flung community with lots of valuable things to share! So contact me if you're interested (bmoore@sbctc.edu) and we'll take it from there to work out details; thanks! Bill

Learning Analytics: A comparison of tools

Learning analytics tools aim to boost student retention, outcomes

By Sarah Langmead, Assistant Editor
Read more by Sarah Langmead

Learning analytics software helps professors evaluate their course

structures and ensure better student outcomes.

As policy makers and campus leaders focus on boosting college completion rates, learning analytics is a field that has exploded in importance. A number of programs now exist to help instructors and campus leaders track student progress more closely, leading to better student outcomes.
Some of these programs are standalone software packages, while others are modules or features included in leading student information or learning management systems. Here’s an overview of some of the many products that can improve communication between students and professors, allowing everyone to gain a clearer perspective on students’ needs.

Read full article...

MOOCs, Prior Learning and Portfolios

Interesting article with thoughts on combining MOOC-learning and prior learning in an ePortfolio. Shouldn't everyone have an ePortfolio for course-related evidence of learning, professional development, on-the-job highlights, and so forth? (No, I haven’t created one for myself, yet!)

From Campus Technology:

Click here to subscribe to CT for free

The Taming of the MOOC--With ePortfolio Evidence

• By Trent Batson
• 01/16/13

The IT revolution that was supposed to transform higher education has failed to materialize, at least in the way we had imagined it. The revolution did occur, but not directly within higher education--instead, it changed the overall nature of work in our culture. And now, higher education seems to be behind the curve, struggling to catch up.

Enter the MOOC--a relatively new buzzword meaning Massive Open Online Course. And it holds hope for many as a way for higher education to "catch up." Indeed, MOOCs could be one way to get ahead of the curve again, or, they could become a yet another material threat to higher education.

Here's how to turn this "threat" into something much more positive.

Read full article...