Summer 1999 Technology Workshops
Virtual Classical Studies Dept. Meeting and Work Session June 5-8, 1999
Leader: Kenny Morrell (Rhodes College), morrell@rhodes.edu
Location: ACS Technology Center (Southwestern University)
ACS Tech Center Inaugural Symposium June 25-26, 1999
Location: ACS Technology Center (Southwestern University)
NMR Workshop June 26, 1999
Leaders: Jennifer Muzyka, Joe Workman, Preston Miles (Centre College)
Location: Centre College
Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy (NMR) is one of the major techniques used by chemists to characterize molecules and chemical reactions. Recent advances in computer software and hardware have brought NMR instruments from the research laboratory into the teaching arena. While fairly expensive, they can be found at an increasing number of liberal arts colleges where they are being incorporated into the chemistry curriculum. The major goal of this conference was the exchange of information among ACS member institutions about innovative ways to use NMR at all levels of the chemistry curriculum. A secondary goal was to share experiences about getting funding for NMR's with faculty at institutions that did not have one. The outcomes for this conference included a general improvement of chemistry teaching at liberal arts colleges through use of NMR and a continuing (electronic) dialog among ACS institutions to disseminate how we are using NMR. ACS chemistry and biochemistry faculty benefited by learning about how to effectively use NMR in their courses. ACS faculty who did not have NMR's learned about the successful grant-writing at other institutions and were able to develop collaborative use of nearby instruments.
It was a one day conference that consisted of 20-30 minute talks by professors in all areas of chemistry (general, organic, analytical, physical, inorganic, and biochemistry). The talks focused on innovative experiments that had been developed using NMR and the general incorporation of NMR into particular courses in the curriculum. We had open-ended discussions of grant-writing for an NMR, off-line data processing, and maintenance. Three major manufacturers of NMR's gave presentations to interested faculty.
NMR Workshop Follow-up Web Site
Applications of Educational Technologies in the Classroom June 27-30, 1999
Leaders: Jim Purser (Millsaps) and Kevin Treu (Furman)
Location: ACS Technology Center (Southwestern University)
Purpose:
This workshop was intended to provide a forum for faculty and staff with some web development experience to share successful classroom applications of educational technologies, including evaluation techniques. Participants also learned about "state-of-the-art" web-based educational technologies and received training and support for ongoing projects.
Pre-requisites:
Competent in the mechanics of the WWW, including the graphical browser Netscape and web-deployable multimedia formats; each applicant had a classroom application of the WWW to present at the workshop.
Topics:
Applications of the WWW in the Classroom:
Classroom models for use of educational technology - examples from participants*
Emerging web-deployable technologies - training and projects
Evaluation techniques for educational technology applications - reports of results and survey of sources
Participant Presentations:
Each participant was asked to cover at least these basic points:
- What "educational need" did you identify and attempt to solve using educational technology?
- Why did you think educational technology held promise for meeting this educational need?
- What exactly did you do?
- What were your results - formal evaluation data if you have it or anecdotal results.
Web-deployable Educational Technologies:
- Tools [including Paintshop Pro and PowerPoint]
- JavaScript
- Web-deployed tutorials [Lotus ScreenCam]
- Shockwave
- Real Media Encoding and Delivery [Real Producer]
- Extended Collaborative Learning [Microsoft NetMeeting]
WWW for Biologists July 7-11, 1999
Leader: Damon Waitt (Southwestern)
Location: ACS Technology Center (Southwestern University)
Purpose:
The purpose of this workshop was to decide on and, ultimately, develop a repository of shared biological information at the ACS Technology Center, for shared consortial teaching and research use.
Pre-requisites:
Experience in the use/development of classroom or laboratory applications of instructional technology and a genuine interest in developing a consortium-wide biological resource.
Topics:
- Using the WWW for biological instruction
- Interactive laboratories
- Why web? What do students have to say?
- Establishing a consortium-wide biological resource; is there content we can all agree on?
- Developing a technology network for ACS biologists and students
Educational Technologies Bootcamp July 21-25, 1999
Leaders: Jim Purser (Millsaps) and Kevin Treu (Furman), treu@s9000.furman.edu
Location: ACS Technology Center (Southwestern University)
Purpose:
Training in educational technologies for:
- faculty who have been meaning to get involved
- faculty who started with educational technologies a while ago but need review and update
- administrators who want to get involved
Pre-requisites:
Assumed no significant computer knowledge and focused on the basics; covered basic components of a personal computer and how to configure; computer-based productivity tools (e.g., word processing, spreadsheet, presentation package); the Internet; and special topics suited to individual participants.
Topics:
Personal computer/personal computer tools basics; the Internet
Rationale:
Educational technology had become an essential resource for academia. Most of our faculty and administrators at ACS Consortium Schools had begun to use these resources for teaching, research, and personal productivity. However a significant number had not yet had adequate orientation to educational technologies and were being left behind. Many faculty did not have the time within their already crowded schedules to take training which were available during the academic year. This workshop provided a time and setting in which these people could "catch-up" and become proficient with educational technologies.
Multimedia Development for Teaching (Director, Authorware, Shockwave, Dreamweaver, Flash) July 28-31, 1999
Leaders: Damon Waitt (Southwestern) and Ken Abernethy (Furman)
Location: ACS Technology Center (Southwestern University)
Purpose:
The purpose of this workshop was to familiarize ACS faculty with the Macromedia suite of multimedia development tools.
Pre-requisites:
This workshop was appropriate for those who had intermediate to advanced training in web site development. The focus of this workshop was on extending that expertise to include interactive multimedia created using Authorware, Director, Dreamweaver, and Flash. While attention were focused on delivering these products over the Web (via Shockwave), the knowledge gained about Authorware and Director were also applied to the creation of stand-alone interactive multimedia as well.
Faculty with Authorware or Director experience were welcome to use this time for project development and to take advantage of Center facilities and staff expertise.
Topics:
- Authorware - is a visual media authoring tool for creating Web and online learning applications. It allows educators to develop trackable learning applications and deploy them across the Web, LANs and CD-ROM.
- Director - is the standard for creating and delivering multimedia for the Internet, CD-ROMs, and DVD-ROMs. Director includes tools powerful enough to combine graphics, sound, animation, text, and video into content.
- Dreamweaver - is a visual Web page layout tool for professional looking Web site design and production. Features include layout control, table editing, and site management features.
- Flash - is used to create interactive vector graphics and animation for the Web. Web designers can use Flash to create compact navigation interfaces, long-form animations, and other effects for their site.
Shodor Computational Science Institute Workshops July 1999
Archaeology Program Meeting Sept. 24-26, 1999
Leader: Mark Garrison (Trinity University),
Location: ACS Technology Center (Southwestern University)
Information Literacy/Fluency Nov. 19-20, 1999
Leaders: Barbara Halbert (ACS), and Ken Abernethy (Furman University),
Location: ACS Technology Center (Southwestern University)
More information
1999 Workshop Documentation
[Past Workshops]
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