We will be sending out several newsletters each year. The hope is to pass along some pertinent information that will facilitate your teaching and student learning. Please reach out if you have any questions, needs, or ideas for future trainings.

The Ed. Tech. department is now fully staffed. Please stop by or reach out if you have any questions, needs, or just want to say hi.

Rob Lucas - Education Technology Specialist

H1036

3367

Alicia Farris - Education Technology Coordinator

H1035

3276

You’ve probably noticed that Moodle has a new look this fall. In order to maintain support from our Moodle hosting company, and to take advantage of additional Moodle features -- such as full WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility

We are here to support you through this Moodle update. We still have our Knowledge Base and the Moodle for Instructors course in Moodle. These will continue to be updated throughout the semester to reflect the changes in Moodle. Moodle trainings are also on the schedule in the TLC.

Big Blue Button

Big Blue Button (BBB) is a tool for holding synchronous virtual classes inside your Moodle course shell and/or hold virtual office hours. BBB provides a range of classroom features such as:

• Live chat

• Shared whiteboard

• Upload documents and presentations for viewing and sharing

• Quick classroom polling

• Breakout rooms

• Screen sharing

Add BBB sessions to your class through the “Add an Activity or Resource” menu. Our version of BBB has some limitations, including:

• Session length of no more than 60 minutes

• Maximum concurrent users in a session is 25

• Recordings of sessions expire after seven days

Contact us for a demo of BBB’s capabilities.

In promoting creative and productive uses of new technology, the Education Technology department has started supporting the use of VR in the classroom. We encourage all instructors to explore ways that virtual reality can be used to enhance their students’ learning experience. To support your efforts we are providing:

• A classroom set of VR headsets ad VR accessories (including cameras for recording in 360 VR)

• A checkout system in the library for putting VR experiences “on reserve” for your students to view

• A continually growing database of existing experiences in the Knowledge Base to help you to find experiences that fit your instructional goals.

• Training and assistance with using VR. If you can’t make a scheduled training session, set up a one-on-one orientation.

In our short time with it, we have already incorporated VR into a variety of events, including:

• A VR summer kids camp using competitive and cooperative games.

• Leading students in career exploration with virtual hands-on, skill-based lessons.

• Virtual batting practice with the baseball team.

• A VR experience of MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech, and the March on Washington on its 60th anniversary.

Contact us for more information about using VR.

Epic Pen software is installed on instructor touch screen workstations (only the lower monitor is touchscreen capable). This software tool allows you to annotate on the screen, use a built in whiteboard, and screenshot. You can use your finger to write on the screen or sign out a stylus from the Ed. Tech. department.

Epic Pen can be used in conjunction with the document camera software ImageMate to annotate what is under the document camera.

If you want a short tutorial, ideas on how these tools could be incorporated for your class or other questions please reach out to the Ed. Tech. department.