The GCC Innovation Center, directed by Chuck West,
takes a team approach to helping faculty develop multimedia
instructional applications. With faculty providing content,
the group of three full-time programmers, Bill Stewart,
Miguel Corzo, and Mark Foshee, graphic artist Janet
Wandrey, and several part-time student workers are
collaborating on many projects. StudentPal, developed for
the Director for Minority Services, Jose Mendoza, is a
program that downloads information from SIS to a desktop
computer where users can extract detailed data via an easy-
to-use interface to Borland Paradox. A paper-test generator
is being designed for use in chemistry and mathematics that
includes subscript, superscript, and symbolic characters
typically not found in commercial software. The test-
generator is a Toolbook front end to faculty-written
questions stored in a Microsoft Access database. An on-line
testing template for nursing faculty designed by Mary
Ryan allows faculty to enter questions that will be
presented to students in a random order. For Kurt
Chambers in the Fitness Center, the Innovation Center is
designing a multimedia application with full-motion video
and sound to demonstrate the proper use of exercise
equipment. Instructors Joy Wingersky, Jan Boerner,
Char Howey, and Linda Austin provided content for Past
Tense Verbs, a self-paced Toolbook tutorial based upon a
story of a trip to the Grand Canyon. A multimedia program
by Betsy Cooper, Marilee Murray and Jill Suydam
provides students the chemistry background they will need in
Biology courses. Computer animation in Math Factoring,
developed with Mike Holtfrerich, helps developmental math
students learn the principles of factoring. A multimedia
program developed for Sherry Robinson teaches nursing
students proper procedures with patients. Another program
designed for Lucy Flaaten examines the attitudes of
different cultures toward medical procedures. The final
product will be placed on CD-ROM.
Training and Employee Development provides a
comprehensive set of computer workshops for faculty and
staff. The facilities in High Tech II include networked
Macintosh and IBM-compatible computers, color printers,
scanners, CD-ROM drives, and a wide variety of software.
Susan High and Sandra Wells provide support to faculty
and staff, who often need to accomplish something quickly.
"They don't have time to wait for a class or read the
manual," says High, who calls much of what she does "just-
in-time training."
The Mathematics department uses software packages such as
MicroCalc and Derive. Also, GCC has been using graphing
calculators for several years and a special lease program
provides calculators to more than 100 students. Anne
Dudley has witnessed an increase in student motivation as
this technology helps them to really "see" the math. Phil
Moloso uses spreadsheet programs for his Intermediate
Algebra sections. Calculus students are exploring computer
exercises created by Mike Holtfrerich and Jeffrey
Kruse as well as completing projects that involve
activities such as analyzing the motion of a roller coaster.
Students in the MAT 055 Flex Format courses have access to
software and video tapes that accompany their textbooks.
Ted Corley's students use the software packages
GeoExplorer and GraphExplorer. Many students participate in
discussions of their math classes and assignments on the
Electronic Forum, which also provides valuable feedback to
their instructors.