Instructional Technology Conference 2008

Title: Bringing the Field of Dreams to Life 2.0: When You Build it They Will Come!

Name: Ed Kinley, PhD & Kenneth Janz, PhD

Audience Level: The content is suitable for all but is of particular value to the teaching/learning practitioner.

Audience: The presentation topic will be of interest to all engaged in the academic enterprise; the content will be of particular value to facultu and those charge with support faculty professional development and teaching/learning. The presenters will develop the concepts by describing the comprehensive approach used at ISU. Participants will then be asked to consider a small case study, formulate possible strategies and engage in disucssion.

Length: One hour

Abstract:
If you believe learning is inherently a social process and that the character of today's students (the millennial generation) has changed, it's increasingly apparent that creating an effective learning environment is an important undertaking that demands comprehensive strategies for success. The lives of today's students are defined by high‐impact sensory emersion and expectations of Mc‐service delivery. Indiana State University has developed a comprehensive set of activities, programs and strategies to improve student success, enhance learning spaces, and assist faculty with the development of pedagogies that foster student learning. The project utilizes a holistic approach of leveraging technology and exploiting synergies through a set of complementary activities.

Description:
Hillary Clinton was clearly controversial when she wrote "It Takes a Village, And Other Lessons Children Teach Us";. While the message sparked debates at the political level, the underlying question of how we raise children and the interlinking societal dependencies that construct a complex network (parents, churches, schools, social agencies, peers, media, etc.) is generally not in dispute - raising children is a complex process. If you believe that learning is inherently a social process and given the changing character of today's students (the millennial generation), it becomes increasingly apparent that the creation of an effective learning environment is a complex undertaking that demands a comprehensive strategy to be successful. While individual efforts and initiatives can have targeted impact in a given instructional environment, a more holistic institutional approach is needed if we are going to effectively engage today's students.

This presentation focuses on how an institution of higher education begins to build an effective learning "playing field"; and explores the preparation of faculty to engage digital natives through Life 2.0. Today's students come from environments where their daily lives are defined by high-impact sensory emersion and a world that expects Mc‐service delivery. Couple this with societal expectations for performance and a global environments that are framed by instant communication and multi-international competition and we have an imperative for change. Connectivity, collaboration, and efficiency have become the watchwords of for today's society and provide the context in which higher education is being asked to create learning.

As educational institutions we are tasked with preparing students to not only function in today's world but to flourish in a rapid and continually changing environments. Responding to these needs and expectations requires a rethinking of nearly every aspect of learning. The historical "cottage industry"; approach to learning of the past, which to a large degree relied on single faculty in isolation ("sage on the stage";), is no longer adequate now nor can we continue to allow the slow pace of change that has heretofore typified higher education. As higher education professionals, we must aggressively pursue strategies that employ multi‐pronged activities designed to transform our learning environments and enhance student engagement with the learning process.

Indiana State University has placed student success at the core of its institutional goals. As one of only sixty‐two institutions nationally to receive the Carnegie Classification for Curricular Engagement and Outreach & Partnerships, ISU has placed experiential learning and student engagement at the center of its strategy to deliver educational outcomes. Indiana State University is bringing the field of dreams to life 2.0 with a comprehensive set of initiatives to support student learning. These are:

1. Comprehensive Faculty Professional Development Program. This is seen in the new semester‐long faculty orientation program, participation in course transformation activities through the National Center for Academic Transformation, and other diverse offerings.
2. Physical Learning Space Development. This is seen in the design and construction of the new College of Education and Center for Visualization on campus as well as development of spaces to continue conversations and thinking across campus spaces.
3. Virtual Learning Space Development. Membership in MERLOT and deployment of Blogs, Wikis, and Podcasting technologies.
4. Tools - Seen through the introduction of a variety of instructional tools. Student use is augmented through a mandatory student laptop ownership program and a unique laptop scholarship that provides a University purchased laptop to all students who have achieved a 3.0 high school GPA.

Session Type: Lecture/Presentation

Contact information/affiliation:
Presenter 1:
Ed Kinley, PhD
Assoc. Vice President for Academic Affairs and CIO
Indiana State University
103 Gillum Hall
Terre Haute, IN 47809
(812) 237‐2100
ed.kinley@indstate.edu

Presenter 2:
Kenneth Janz, PhD
Director - Center for Instruction, Research, and Technology
Indiana State University
301 Normal Hall
Terre Haute, IN 47809
(812) 237‐9632
kjanz@isugw.indstate.edu

Equipment: Projection capabilities

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