Engaging Faculty in the Use of Technology in Teaching:

 A Multi-Faceted Approach

Rita R. Owens Associate Academic Vice President

Boston College

The New Media Consortium June 2005

Boston College

• Jesuit-Catholic University• Enrollment - 15,000 Students• 6 Colleges and School of Law• Two campuses• 600 Full time faculty• 400 Adjunct faculty• 150 University classrooms

The Boston College eLearning Story

• 1999-WebCT purchased and managed within Information Technology Services

• 2001-Early adopters account for 4% of BC courses with electronic component

• 2001-AVP and EVP call for eLearning strategic plan

• 2001-Instructional Technology Services group created under the AVP; WebCT moves here

• 2001-2003-eLearning Programming and Support Funding begins to build

• 2004-BC offers first online course; new media rapidly grows within courses

• 2005-47% of BC courses offered with an electronic component, mostly in-class extension

The Boston College eLearning Success Formula

• Strategy

• eLearning Infrastructure

• Partnerships

• Programming

Strategy

• eLearning strategic plan• Executive buy-in• Funding through undergraduate

initiatives program • Long-range financial plan

inclusion• Capital Improvements• Faculty Leadership and Direction

eLearning Infrastructure

• Instructional Technology Services Staff

• Classroom Technology Upgrades• Course Management and Course

Development Software• Ubiquitous computing environment

Instructional Technology Services Staff

MissionInstructional Technology Services assists instructors who integrate technology into their teaching. Through consultation, training and support, research and development, and project management, we help instructors transition their teaching practice to one that supports the ever-growing technology-driven student population.

Classroom Technology Upgrade Program

• University Standards Established

• Five Year Classroom Upgrade

Plan--75% complete

• Increased Technology Use in

Classrooms a Direct Result

General ClassroomStandard

Basic level AV system

“The Black Box”

•2 Laptop connections

•DVD

•VCR

•Cable TV

•LCD projector

•Automatic screen

control

•Campus telephone

Computerized Classroom Standard

• Macintosh G4 laptops • Smartboard Sympodium • Classroom Performance System• DVD & VCR player• LCD projector• Automatic screen controls• Sound reinforcement• Cable TV• Campus telephone

Specialized Facilities—Moot Court

Course Management and Course Development Software

• WebCT Campus Edition, primary

course management tool

• Xythos “MyFiles” Central Storage

Mechanism

• BePress ePublishing ASP

• Digitool Digital Media Creation

Environment

Ubiquitous Computing Environment

• Faculty/Staff Computing

Replacement Program

• Student Laptop Recommendation

• Wireless Classrooms and Public

Academic Areas

Partnerships

• Internal Infrastructure Partners

• Internal Design, Development

and Oversight Partners

• External Partners and

Collaborators

Internal Infrastructure Partners

• University Libraries: ePublishing capability, joint program sponsorship, digital library resources

• Information Technology Services: WebCT production environment, MyFiles storage environment, computer replacement

• Facilities Services: Classroom Technology Upgrade Program Management and Installation

Internal Design and Development Partners

• eLearning Action Group (elag)

• eLearning Teaching Group (etag)

• Reference Librarians

• Media Technology Services

• ITS Communication and Training

External Partners and Collaborators*Current and Emerging*

• AJCU/JesuitNet

• Northeastern University

• MIT

• New Media Consortium

• MERLOT

• TLT Group

Programming

• Strategic Migration—from Training to Modeling

• “Faculty Day” to “Academic Technology Week” to “Focused Events”

• Faculty Involvement- Moderating and Mentoring

• Recognizing Achievement and Innovation

Faculty Technology Day-to-Academic Technology Week-to-Focused Events

• Faculty Technology Day: 1996-2001

• Academic Technology Week: 2001-2003

• Three Symposia: ePublishing, eLearning, eTeaching: 2003-2005

• Faculty Summer Workshop: 2004-onward

Faculty Technology Day: 1996-2001

• Presentations

• Hands-on Sessions

• Information Fair

• 100 participants

Academic Technology Week: 2001-2003

• 30-40 course offerings

• Multiple speakers/presenters

• 10-12 faculty members presented

or provided instruction

• Vendors participated in the

program

• 250 Participants

Focused EventsFall 2003-present

• ePublishing Symposium

• eLearning Symposium

• eTeaching Symposium

• Faculty Summer Workshops

(2 Week Mini-course)

Focused Events2003-present

• Three 50-minute presentations by Boston College faculty

• Plenary speaker or panel presentation

• Over 100 participants at each program

• Focused on “modeling”• Created demand … “I can do

that” … “I want to do that in my course.”

Faculty Summer WorkshopVideo

Faculty Involvement- Moderating and Mentoring

• FMRC and Faculty Moderators• Faculty Mentors• Academic Technology Advisory

Board• Academic Technology Forum

Recognizing Innovation and Achievement

• Summer Faculty Workshop Selection Process

• Teaching and Mentoring Grants• AnDover Weekends• Teaching with New Media Awards

(TWIN)

Teaching with New Media Awards TWIN

• Innovation• Multiple uses of technology• Originality• Changes in course pedagogy (due

to technology)• Improved interaction with

students

Evan Kantrowitz-Summa Cum Laude

• Chemistry Department• CH561 – Biochemistry I

“(Dr. Kantrowitz) is constantly improving the course through use of all the technology available to him so that students can best understand the material.”

TWIN Award Recipient

• WebCT• 3D models

Software to exploreprotein and enzyme models

• Benefits?– Made the invisible visible– Easier access to programs, not

limited by lab environments.

Groovy Glasses included in Tuition….

Bonnie Jefferson—Summa Cum Laude

• Communication Department• CO010 – The Rhetorical Tradition

“The technology used in and outside the classroom has made me a more attentive student as well as taught me how to identify the concepts taught in class when they are used in real-world media.”

“I love Prof. Jefferson!”

TWIN Award Recipient

• WebCT– Interactive syllabus– Video and Audio– External media sites

• Discussions boards

• The Benefit?– Material available at any

time.– Regular opportunities for

student and student to instructor interaction.

Our Results

Dramatic by our standards…

WebCT Usage Growth: Course Sites

0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

900

F2001 F2002 F2003 F2004

Totals in Spring 2005 equal 47% of courses offered for the semester

WebCT Usage Growth: Students

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

F2001 F2002 F2003 F2004

As of Spring 2005, 81% of all BC students have at least one course with a WebCT site

What’s Next

• Organizational Growth & Development

• Online course and degree programs

• WebCT VISTA Implementation

• Targeting Areas of Excellence with Outside Grant Funding

• Collaborative Instructional Services Center

Lessons Learned

• Breadth of results achieved through major programs

• Depth of results achieved through focused programs

• Faculty Peer-to-Peer sharing works best, for all parties

• Exposure to outside speakers is invaluable

• Project Management is as important as design services

• Supplying the right infrastructure and tools gives eLearning traction

• The right faculty involvement makes it stick

Questions?

Rita R. Owens

rita.owens@bc.edu