Teaching Resources

Technology

hybrid courses course redesign online courses game-based learning tutorials

Check out more resources on our Teaching with Technology site

Overview

Technology has transformed education, creating new ways to teach and to learn. The 21st century is indeed the "technology era," and these students, most of whom have grown up with computers, cell phones, blogs, wikis, and podcasts are known as the Net Generation.

Technology in education is really too broad an area to define as it encompasses so many different tools and applications. Its impact, however, is undeniable. More students are now visual learners, daily conditioned to learn and respond to graphically presented material. Most college students have a laptop, a cell phone, and an IPod and expect to use them for educational purposes--for research, for collaborative activities, or for listening to podcasts. All of this, of course, presupposes that their instructors are comfortable using these tools in class.

MTSU Resources

Faculty who need help using technology in their courses should call the Faculty Instructional Technology Center (FITC). Located in the Telecomm Building, Director Barbara Draude and her staff run workshops, offer individual support, and can make suggestions on any aspect of using technology in the classroom. Make them your first stop.

The Instructional Media Resource Center provides an array of materials and multimedia tools for both teaching and learning. Its library includes material in a range of formats--CDs, DVDS, VHS, audiocassettes....There you'll find a computer lab offering access to both Windows and Macintosh computers; single-campus closed circuit cable system; satellite program downlink services.

LTITC Resources

Our library includes numerous books and articles on all aspects of technology in education. In addition, our membership in Educause--a nonprofit association whose mission is to advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology--provides us with a subscription to its monthly journal (issues available in the Center) and entre to its webinars, hosted monthly in the Center and described in our calendar of events.

Bates, A.W., & Poole, G. (2003). Effective teaching with technology in higher education: Foundations for success. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Brown, D.G. (2000). Teaching with technology. Bolton, MA: Anker Publishing.

Garrett, N. (2007). Building learning communities with RSS feeds, wikis, and blogs [CD-ROM]. Madison, WI: Magna Publishing.

Oblinger, D., & Rush, S. (1997). The learning revolution: The challenge of information technology in the Academy. Bolton, MA: Anker Publishing.

Quinn, C.N. (2005). Engaging learning: Designing e-learning simulation games. San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer.

Richardson, W. (2005). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Smaldino, S.E., Russell, J.D., Heinich, R., & Molenda, M. (2005). Instructional technology and media for learning (eighth edition). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

The Center subscribes to the Online Classroom, a monthly newsletter offering practical advice and examples of proven, research-based pedagogical techniques to help instructors and course developers create and teach outstanding online courses. Includes expert advice on course design, learner-centered pedagogy, synchronous and asynchronous interaction, online learning communities, appropriate use of technology, course management, and assessment. Issues available in the Center.

Teaching Tip

Online Resources: Tips and Strategies

Tips for All Kinds of Instructional Technology
Campus Technology Website
University of Washington, Learning and Scholarly Technologies: Help Guide - A list of documents with step-by-step instructions on how to use software and tools to enhance your course.

Simulations, Games, Role-Playing, and Dramatization Do you know how to use these four forms of experiential learning activities in ways that engage students' identity and feelings, thereby promoting a fuller understanding of the meaning of the subject of your course?

Merlot MERLOT is a leading edge, user-centered, searchable collection of peer reviewed and selected higher education, online learning materials, catalogued by registered members and a set of faculty development support services.

Online Publications: Viewpoints, Articles, Books...

Whitepaper on Education with Smartphones

Writing Collaboratively Online Wiki

Create An Educational Wiki--pbwiki provides templates and educator friendly tools so that you can create a wiki for any teaching and learning purpose.

Online Education Competencies--a slide presentation from the University of Illinois.

From the Journal Of College Excellence, an article on creating standards for e-learning: Web Based Instruction: Emphasizing Pedagogy in a Technological Environment, Peter Doolittle (VPI), Margaret Chambers (Mindlink). (available hard copy from the Center).

Excerpt from The Electronic Word by Richard A. Lanham
NY Times: At MIT, large lectures are going the way of the blackboard