Welcome 2012!

2012 is finally here!  I am looking forward to a wonderful year of eLearning innovations, enhancements, and advancements.  Here's a sneak peak of what you can look forward to this year!

• The distance education team will be launching ONLEARN, a fresh and exciting eLearning journal.  Look for more information on how to submit articles and subscribe to the journal in February!
• UCO faculty and students will soon have the opportunity to apply for eLearning research grants sponsored by CPDE.  The research projects can be either discipline specific or focused on more general eLearning issues.  Information on grant guidelines and submission requirements will be released in a few weeks!
• Those UCO faculty interested in a more in intense and focused research experience may be interested in our eLearning faculty fellowship.  The faculty member selected for the fellowship will work to contribute evidence-based research findings to the eLearning body of knowledge, and work to develop innovative solutions to pressing problems in the fields of distance education, eLearning and instructional design.  Look for more information in early April!
• The Heartland eLearning Conference is just eight weeks away!  Plan to join us March 5 and 6, 2012, for informative and exciting sessions by Lee Crockett, Alec Courous, Wes Fryer and many more eLearning specialists.The conference is held on the UCO campus to give you maximum flexibility to teach classes and still attend conference sessions. If you want to attend the full conference but have content to cover, contact CPDE if you need help developing online alternatives! Hurry - early bird discounts end February 15.  For more information and to register, visit the conference website at http://www.uco.edu/heartlandconference/.  

  

 

Best wishes for a joyous and fulfilling year! 

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

It's my favorite time of year again!  Not just the holidays and all the fun associated with them - it's Heartland eLearning Conference proposal review time! 

We had an incredible response this year -- 71 proposals spread throughout the five conference tracks.

Besides the 21 fantastic submissions by UCO faculty and staff, we received submissions from:

• Eight other Oklahoma colleges and universities, including Southern Nazarene University, Oklahoma City University, Oklahoma Christian University, Langston University, Southwestern Oklahoma State University, University of Oklahoma, Northeastern State University, and the OU Health Sciences Center;
• Eleven other states, including Georgia, Texas, Arkansas, Missouri, Michigan, Colorado, Illinois, South Carolina, North Carolina, Utah and Kansas;
• University faculty, psychologists, K-12 educators, business owners and other individuals passionate about eLearning!

The proposals covered all of the conference tracks -- Instructional Media, Future Directions in eLearning, Social Networking, Effective eLearning Instruction Track, and The Digital Campus. The abstracts are fascinating, with interesting, cutting-edge eLearning ideas and solutions. 

Have you enrolled yet in Oklahoma's best eLearning Conference?  Don't miss the opportunity! http://www.uco.edu/heartlandconference/attend.html

Best wishes to you and your family for a peace-filled, safe and wonderful holiday season.

End your semester on a high note!

The end of the fall 2011 semester is just weeks away.  I am sure all of you are busy grading papers, preparing for final exams, and wrapping up your work.  And I know some of your colleagues are already preparing their online courses for the spring 2012 semester. Wouldn't it be great to have some help wrapping up fall and unwrapping spring?

Join us for the last few mini-sessions of the semester, where you can master the WebCT gradebook, learn some simple and innovative design principles to freshen your spring courses, and find out ways to teach your students on the go.  Not only will you improve your skills, you might also win our drawing.  Each time you attend a CPDE mini-session or workshop, your name is thrown into our virtual hat for a chance to win an iPad, Netbook, or Samsung Galaxy!

The mini-session schedule is listed below, along with a link to the registration page.  I look forward to seeing you in our faculty training center in the Nigh University Center, room 322.  And don't forget - the coffee is always on!

11/28/11: WebCT Gradebook (http://www.eventbrite.com/event/2279604358)  

Whether your a WebCT grade book beginner or expert, there is always something new to learn! This session will cover how to use the gradebook, including organizing columns, creating new ones, calculating grades based off of existing columns as well as a few other tips and tricks.

12/1/11: Using Basic Design Principles in the Development of Your Course  (http://www.eventbrite.com/event/2323449500)

There are some basic elements and principles of design that you should 

consider when creating your online course. This mini session will include 

some tips for typography, color and hierarchy so that you can create visual 

interest for your students

12/2/11: Creating Mobile Learning Content for Online Courses  (http://www.eventbrite.com/event/2279893222) 

Learning happens everywhere! Smart-phones and tablet devices are 

changing the ways learners access and interact with learning content; 

however, most content developed for use in online courses is designed for 

use on standard computer screens. In this workshop you will learn how to 

create content for mobile devices and use that content in your online or 

hybrid course. Define mLearning Identify types of mobile devices 

Differentiate between eLearning and mLearning Decide situations where 

mLearning is an appropriate instructional method List tools for creating 

mLearning Apply best visual design principles to the creation of mLearning 

Create an mLearning lesson Integrate mLearning content in online courses.