Visit ETS at http://ets.cac.psu.edu, send e-mail to ets@psu.edu, or call (814) 863-1654
The Center for Academic Computing invites you to take advantage of the free learning opportunities offered through Winter-Fest 98, a series of computer workshops to be held January 5-9. Whether you are just beginning to use technology or you are a more experienced user looking to learn something new, these workshops will be useful to you. Most workshops are hands-on and include topics on general computing skills, the Internet, and incorporating technology in the classroom.
More details will be available at the following Web site beginning November 1:
http://cac.psu.edu/training/winterfest.html
Please feel free to contact Cari Howlin at cxh25@psu.edu or (814) 863-5769 with any questions.
By Cari Howlin, Education Technology Services
Twelve new Faculty Technology Initiative Projects have been accepted for support. Each new project idea was selected from proposals submitted to the 1997-98 Faculty Technology Initiative program. This program encourages instructional effectiveness through the use of innovative teaching and learning technologies.
The following projects were funded for this year:
Course: Freshman Seminar (AG 150)
Faculty: Joan S. Thomson, Associate Professor of Rural Sociology, Agricultural & Extension Education, College of Agricultural Sciences, University Park.
This project will develop a Web site of agricultural resources so that students can explore current issues in the agricultural sciences.
Course: Turfgrass Management (TURF 235)
Faculty: A.J. Turgeon, Professor of Agronomy and M. Susie Whittington, Assistant Professor of Agronomy & Extension Education, College of Agricultural Sciences, University Park.
This project introduces students to the growth and development, environmental adaptation, cultural requirements, and uses of turfgrass species. Included in this Web-based learning environment will be problem-based exercises, graphic-intensive instructional modules, and automatically graded exams.
Course: Biobehavioral Health 101 (BBH 101)
Faculty: Ray Palmer, Assistant Professor of Biobehavioral Health; Liz Susman, Sibley Professor of Biobehavioral Health; Carol Gold, Research Associate, College of Health and Human Development, University Park.
This project will develop a variety of digital animation models to enhance students' comprehension of the interrelation of several disciplines biology, psychology, sociology, environmental science, and policy studies. The project will create a rich collection of teaching materials to support instruction in many courses offered by the College.
Course: Applied Music 100-150, Undergraduate and Graduate Levels
Faculty: Mark Lusk, Associate Professor of Music, College of Arts and Architecture; Roger Martin, Post Doctoral Researcher, Intercollege Materials Research Laboratory, College of Science; Herb McKinstry, Applications Programmer/Analyst, Intercollege Materials Research Laboratory, IRP, University Park.
A software program will be designed to enhance the teaching of sound quality and tone production for music students. This interactive teaching environment will include real-time analysis of audio wave forms and the ability to integrate this analysis with other media such as video and other recorded sources.
Course: Business Calculus, Math 110
Faculty: Peter H. Maserick, Professor of Mathematics, Eberly College of Science, University Park.
Abstract calculus concepts will come alive on the Web through animated images and simulations. "Calculator graphics" will link to the concepts on the existing Web page, allowing students to input functions and grasp essential, real-world Calculus functions. Animations will enhance learning by putting these concepts into motion.
Course: All
Faculty: John M. Cimbala, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering, University Park.
Although this project will concentrate on Mechanical Engineering courses, it will also be designed to be shared among other courses and colleges throughout the Penn State System. This project will focus on creating cross-disciplinary, Web-based learning modules, tools, and on-line quizzes without faculty having to learn new programming languages.
Courses: Facilities Management and Design (HR&IM 319), Legal Aspects of the Hospitality Service Industry (HR&IM 405), and Human Resources Management in the Hospitality Industry (HR&IM 466)
Faculty: Angela L. Farrar, Assistant Professor, HRRM; Carolyn U. Lambert, Associate Professor, Food Systems Management; Robert D. Lee, Professor, HRRM/Public Administration, School of Hotel, Restaurant, and Recreation Management, College of Health and Human Development, University Park.
Three HR&IM issues will merge through the use of multimedia simulations and Web-based scenarios based on actual case studies and incidents of persons with disabilities in a hotel. In addition, the simulation will allow students to access other on-line resources such as related Web sites, the text of the Americans with Disabilities Act, digital photographic examples, and current events and journal articles.
Course: Human Physiology (BIO 42) and Function and Development of Organisms (BIO 240)
Faculty: Jacqueline S. McLaughlin, Assistant Professor of Biology, Berks-Lehigh Valley College.
A collaborative laboratory environment where students will be able to complete their biology course work at Penn State Lehigh Valley is the focus of this project. In addition, project dollars will fund the Biopac Student Lab, an integrated set of hardware, software, and documentation that guides students through a set of fundamental physiology lessons. This project received special funding from the Office of Undergraduate Education, the Commonwealth College, and the Center for Academic Computing.
Courses: Microelectronics I (EE BD 324), Microelectronics II (EE BD 425), and Software Engineering (EE BD 497).
Faculty: Ralph M. Ford, Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering, Penn State Erie-Behrend College.
A JAVA-based interactive, flexible teaching tool will be created for faculty to create interactive environments without learning JAVA programming. The software will be developed for a variety of operating systems. This adaptable tool will be used in core electrical engineering classes, but will be general enough for use in other disciplines.
Course: Basic Skills Writing (English 04) and Rhetoric and Composition (English 15)
Faculty: Claudine Keenan, Lecturer, Learning Center Assistant, Lehigh Valley.
The power of a MOO (MultiUserDomain, Object-Oriented) on-line conferencing system will allow tutors at any time from any Penn State location to communicate with students who seek assistance from other Penn State locations. The instruction will take place in text format, while students enhance their writing and communication skills by scribing their inquiries and responses. In addition, the MOO will automatically log a written transcript of sessions for future reference.
Course: The French Revolution and the Napoleonic Era (HIST 418), European Women's History (HIST/WMNST 421)
Faculty: Joan B. Landes, Professor of Women's Studies & History, College of Liberal Arts, University Park.
This project will involve the creation of a CD-ROM, created from images available in printed sources, slides, and videodisc images. The CD-ROM will be used to facilitate an active learning process inside and outside of the classroom by introducing undergraduate students to 18th century primary sources in French history. Another stage of this project will involve the availability of students' final projects from HIST 418 on a Web site.
Course: All
Faculty: Thomas G. Fox, Professor of Economics, College of Liberal Arts, Ralph H. Locklin, Director of University Testing Services, University Park.
This project will be available for all Penn State faculty to use in "low stakes" testing of students using the Web. "Quiz Me" will allow students to take quizzes "anytime, anyplace" within constraints set by each faculty member, as convenient for the student, and will generate a new test for students authenticated as a member of a specific class. Students may be allowed to take the quiz once, or several times, as determined by the faculty member. Various types of test questions and response alternatives will be part of "Quiz Me" including the use of multimedia components.
By Karen Hackett, Center for Academic Computing.
The William Blake Archive is a hypermedia archive sponsored by the Library of Congress and supported by the Getty Grant Program, the Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities (IATH) at the University of Virginia, Sun Microsystems, and Inso Corporation.
The Archive also includes a selective bibliography of criticism, reference materials, and standard editions, with about 500 entries. A searchable online version of David V. Erdman's Complete Poetry and Prose of William Blake is
also planned. The Blake Archive is located at the following URL:
http://www.iath.virginia.edu/blake/
For more information about SGML see "The SGML Primer" at the following URL:
http://www.sq.com/sgmlinfo/primbody.html
For more information on the DynaWeb software link to the following: http://www.inso.com/frames/consumer/dynatext/productinfo/dynaweb.htm
For more information on other archive projects at the IATH link to the following: http://www.iath.virginia.edu/reports.html
From IAT Infobits, August 1997
With new methods introduced in September, it will be easier to search the World Wide Web for educational materials from many sources, according to Educom, a national consortium of 600 colleges and universities dedicated to transforming higher education through information technology.
The metadata specification announced today by Educom is designed for materials used in higher education, corporate and government training programs, and K-12 schools. It provides a common vocabulary for searching and using the various components that make up individual lessons or whole courses of study. Publishers, educators, or anyone else putting learning material on the Web will be able to tag it with information such as the author's name, the learning objective, subject area, and licensing requirements.
Educom is also making available a Java-based tool that will assist content developers in applying the metadata labels to their materials.
The metadata specification has been developed by the Instructional Management Systems (IMS) project, an academic, industry and government partnership led by Educom.
The metadata specification posted at http://www.imsproject.org/metadata is a draft for review by interested parties until December 5, 1997. The final specification will be released early 1998. Educom also plans a 1998 release of a prototype instructional management system based on this and additional specifications. Once released, the specifications and software components of the IMS project will be available at no cost. Additional information on the IMS project can be found at http://www.imsproject.org.
Educom (http://www.educom.edu), based in Washington, DC, is a non-profit consortium of 600 colleges and universities and 100 Corporate Associates that facilitates the introduction, use and access to, and management of information resources in teaching, learning, scholarship and research.
From the IMS Project Web site at
http://www.imsproject.org/metadata/metadatapr.html
The American Council on Learned Societies has announced that its recently published Occasional Paper No. 37, "Information Technology in Humanities Scholarship: Achievements, Prospects, and ChallengesThe United States Focus," by Pamela Pavliscak, Seamus Ross, and Charles Henry is now available online in a hypertext version at http://www.acls.org/op37.htm on the World Wide Web.
From IAT Infobits, August 1997
