Fall 1997
Vol 6 Issue 1
IN THIS ISSUE...
Who's Doing What with Technology
Who's
Doing What at the Colleges
The Next Generation of Ocotillo
Ocotillo College Roundtables
SEE ALSO...
The Forum
Maricopa Center for Learning and Instruction
Ocotillo College Roundtables
South Mountain Community College (SMCC)
Mary Long
Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair
This semester, South Mountain Community College is focusing on the integration of the new Ocotillo model with the existing processes for addressing technology on the campus. It is important for the college to determine the specific role(s) that current committees will play and that their role(s) be communicated to the college faculty and staff. Because the Technology Resources and Support Committee has played a major planning role in the past, we will see a shift in planning to become the focus of the college's Ocotillo efforts.
It is planned that the Educational Technology Center (ETC) will be the homebase for Ocotillo activities. For the past three years, ETC has served as the center for experimentation and innovation in uses of instructional technology. The role of the ETC will expand to enhance the center's ability to address the need for continual planning and implementation of strategies for effective use of instructional technologies.
Some specific projects that are in process this semester are:
- experimentation with desktop video-conferencing continues;
- beta test of IBM voice recognition software (completed);
- research of technology planning, classroom use of technology and "best practices and processes";
- subcommittee drafting of campus technology plan with on-going integration into the campus planning process;
- development of college Ocotillo web-site designed for information dissemination and sharing by use of a WebBoard and project documentation for learning;
- continue education and training efforts to help faculty use and manage web presence (responsibilities, guidelines).
Scottsdale Community College (SCC)
Doug Sawyer
Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair
The Ocotillo Committee will be busy this Fall 1997 semester since it is forming the first draft of the SCC Technology Plan. We met for the first time on September 3, 1997. Our strategy is to identify the deficiencies and needs of our campus, then to define goals and objectives which address those needs. This comprehensive list will be the basis for our plan, and we hope to develop this list by November 14, 1997. The list will probably be organized into categories such as Technical Support, Student Services, Distance Learning, Purchasing and Allocation, etc. Also, we have decided to include the sub-categories of Immediate Needs and Future Needs.
Our plan will be presented to the campus in a variety of ways so that
input and ideas about specific procedures can be defined to accomplish
our goals. We will present the plan to employee groups and the entire
campus at a one-day discussion/workshop in January 1998.
http://www.sc.maricopa.edu/~ocotillo/
Rio Salado College (RSC)
Pat Case
Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair
The Rio Salado College Technology Teaching and Learning Round Table (known as the Development Team) was formed in September of 1995. Initial purposes for the group were to create guidelines for development and delivery of distance delivery courses and to plan for future Distance Learning initiatives.
Currently, the team is responsible for:
- Continuing to establish best practice guidelines associated with the development and delivery of teaching and learning in Rio's Distance Learning courses.
- Researching, learning about, and discussing applications of technology that will enhance teaching and learning in Rio's Distance Learning Program and then planning for its implementation.
- Providing strategic direction to the Distance Learning program.
- Problem solving and learning together.
Phoenix College (PC)
Joan Ritsch
Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair
In the Fall of 1996, President Pepicello created a technology committee and charged it with the task of developing a technology plan for Phoenix College. In preparation for the development of a plan, the technology committee created three action groups to investigate strategic issues on the campus. The three groups addressed 1) support of innovation instructional uses, 2) survey of existing and projected uses by department, and 3) development of college wide policies and procedures for campus labs (both open and departmental).
Last Spring, Vice Chancellor de los Santos called for a reorganization of the Ocotillo project. Because PC already had a planning process in place, the Ocotillo Roundtable efforts at PC focus on supporting converstations among faculty and students across the college. These conversations will provide critical data to the Technology Committee as it works to develop a technology plan for the college.
Brown bag lunches are held monthly in the south dining room of the cafeteria.
These informal, "bring-your-own" affairs give Technology and Ocotillo
members a chance to talk with the rest of the campus about a variety of
technology issues. The first meetings will concern the construction of
a mid-range (3-5 year) plan for the development of technology assisted
education.
http://ww.pc.maricopa.edu/departments/tnd/ocotillo/
Paradise Valley Community College (PVCC)
Jeanne Franco
Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair
To fulfill Paradise Valley Community College's Mission and Goals and given the rapid changes in technology and globalization of our community through technology, the PVCC Technology Coordinating Team (TCT) provides direction for the effective use of technology at PVCC.
Toward this end, the TCT has completed a first draft of a Technology Strategic Plan. As identified by this plan, TCT:
- Identifies strategic technology-related issues, based upon both internal and external factors.
- Identifies college-wide technology goals.
- Establishes project teams which develop initiatives to address the identified goals.
- Consults and coordinates with project teams.
- Presents recommendations about initiatives to the Strategic Planning Committee for funding.
To date, four project teams have been created by the TCT. These teams
address such issues as technology policies and procedures, web development
and training, training needs assessment, and grant applications. Members
of the TCT blend a college-wide perspective with specialized skills in
instruction, technology, planning, and collaboration.
http://www.pvc.maricopa.edu/committee/tct/
Mesa Community College (MCC)
Brad Kincaid
Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair
Through the summer Dean Gail Mee and Brad Kincaid led a group of faculty and staff who planned the MCC TLTR. The inaugural event for MCC's Roundtable was a half-day retreat held on August 22, 1997. Retreat attendees developed ideas based on data collected at the summer Ocotillo retreat and AAHE Institute. This was done to accomplish five goals which focus the TLTR for the coming year. A subsequent meeting refined these goals and defined five workgroups to address these issues:
- Faculty Development
- Distance Education
- Pedagogy
- Student Technology Assistant Program
- Classroom Research and Assessment
- Communication and Outreach.
These workgroups are working independently and progress reports will be due at the October meeting of the full TLTR. To date, MCC's TLTR has attracted the participation of more than 38 faculty and support staff. They are committed to the maintennance of an inclusive group that fosters communication, cooperation, and collaboration as they use technology for teaching and learning at MCC. http://www.mc.maricopa.edu/academic/tltr/
Glendale Community College (GCC)
Bob Albury
Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair
The College Technology Committee (CTC) is in the second year of a five-year
computer lab plan. With the addition of new buildings on campus this coming
fall, the CTC will deal with technology purchases for these structures
and incorporate them into the current five-year plan. The CTC is attempting
to link software purchase to the five-year hardware plan. Glendale's CTC
is also working on a plan to domino office machines that are not part
of the Desktop Project. Currently, faculty and staff receive training
on these machines before they receive their upgraded computer. We are
also in the first year of the Palette Project. This project includes a
suite of software available to all users in Palette classes.
http://www.gc.maricopa.edu/apollo/desktop/GCC/ctc.htm
GateWay Community Colleges (GWCC)
Rosemary Kesler -- Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair &
Dean Stover -- Ocotillo Roundtable member
GateWay Community College's TLTR mission is to provide technology that is effective, accessible, and responsive to students' needs, staff, and community. This technology support has the goal of student success and customer satisfaction. As a TLTR committee, we act in an advisory capacity and will address the following items this year:
- Inventory skills of staff and faculty.
- Inventory hardware/software on campus.
- Compile a list of desired technology skills for employees.
- Identify goals/objectives for a technology plan.
- Gather examples of instructional uses of the web.
- Develop support teams and/or identify mentors for the use of technology in the classroom.
- Develop guidelines for faculty rewards and recognition for integrating technology in the classroom.
- Plan a second Electronic Learning Space (ELS) for students.
- Clarify the different responsibilities of the TLTR and the Technology Users Group.
- Develop a process to inform faculty/staff about TLTR's recommendations and successes.
Estrella Mountain Community College (EMCC)
Chris MacCrate
Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair
Recently, Estrella Mountain established a Faculty Center on Teaching and Learning (FCTL). The FCTL is championing and coordinating a number of activities which are dedicated to the art of teaching. The Estrella Mountain TLTR is one of these activities.
Regarding technology initiatives, the Faculty Center on Teaching and Learning has begun a year-long orientation series with our new faculty. This has been made possible because of a priority established by the Estrella Mountain senior administration. This program allows all new faculty three hours reassigned time for their first year in order for them to attend orientation workshops (called Survival Skills Workshops) and other events sponsored by the Faculty Center.
The Survival Skills Workshops idea began by highlighting basic technology usage issues which were common to all new employees at Estrella. The workshops are now advancing into the use of technology, and will then progress to the integration of technology in curriculum design. Planning to look in some detail at the common applications used at Estrella (i.e., the Microsoft Office suite), we began the process with an in-depth look at Netscape 3.01 and then, most importantly, Web Course in a Box.
This web-based class authoring tool was developed at Virginia Commonwealth University and provides a very user-friendly environment to put course materials on the Web. This makes student access better. The tools include automatic e-mail class distribution lists, e-mail to all students in the class, and an electronic forum that is easily set up by the instructor. This is a very nice tool to "web-ercize" your curriculum. You can accomplish this by creating either a completely standalone remotely administered "distance learning" environment, or by putting up complementary materials which fit your structured class.
Chandler-Gilbert Community College (CGCC)
Ted Wolter
Ocotillo roundtable faculty chair
The Instructional Computing Committee (ICC) is primarily concerned with issues that affect the use of instructional technology by students in their academic pursuits. Accordingly, ICC is responsible for recommending general policies and procedures which influence instructional computing. It also reviews capital request proposals involving instructional computing, and it coordinates the instructional use of computer technology between academic divisions and instructional support departments. Finally, it serves as a network for sharing computer technology information.
ICC derives its philosophy from one of the CGCC Mission and Goals statements: "Enable the institution to respond to the changing needs of today's educational programs, by providing technology for instruction and operations."
Since the use of computer technology is pervasive in our society, ICC will seek ways to provide the skills and knowledge necessary for student success in this new information age. ICC Membership is on a voluntary basis, open to everyone, and representative of all segments of the college community.