Technology Adoption:Faculty Perceptions of Administrative Support
Innovations 2000
February 27-March 1, 2000
Orlando, Florida
Slides on Innovations Conference page at www/league.org
Technology Adoption:Faculty Perceptions of Administrative Support
Child of………..
1998 League conference presentation using the same survey and (almost the) same responders
Presenters
• Dr. Alice Villadsen, PresidentBrookhaven CollegeDallas County Community College DistrictDallas, Texas
• Dr. Sunil Chand, Executive Vice PresidentAcademic and Student Affairs Cuyahoga Community CollegeCleveland, Ohio
So, What’s it all About?
Topics for Today
Sources of Funding
Encouragement of Faculty
Institutionalization
Awards and Rewards
Organization
Current Status
Lessons
Insights
Sources of Funding
1998
• Release Time
• Internal grants
• State Funding
• Industry Partnerships (e.g. IBM, Apple Kodak - hardware)
• College Foundation
• Volunteers
Seed and start-up
2000• Tax levy• Federal grants - Title
III; FIPSE• Gifts
Systemic change
Encouragement of Faculty
Encouragement of Faculty
1998•Internal financial and workload procedures (RT, seed grants & stipends, overload)•Travel•Training•Smart facilities (offices, classrooms)•Technology Development Labs
Encouragement of Faculty1998
• Internal financial and workload procedures (RT, seed grants & stipends, overload)
• Travel
• Training
• Smart facilities (offices, classrooms)
• Technology Development Labs
2000• Help Desk
• Academic Technology Plans
• Challenge Grants
• WWW access
• Consortia with other colleges
• Promotion & advancement
Encouragement of Faculty (contd)
1998
Focus on initiation and experimentation
2000
Focus on development and growth; institutionalization
Initiation to Institutionalization: Evidence from the Toys
1998• Desk top PC’s• Smart facilities• Smarter facilities• Connectivity (hard:
internal and to web)
Hard
2000• “A big DL Office and
computer support - VCR’s, PC’s, Proximas, Zip drives, control panels”
• Elmos, Pentium II and III, LCD panels
• “Pervasive network facilities”
Initiation to Institutionalization: Evidence from the Toys (contd)
1998• Desk top PC’s• Smart facilities• Smarter facilities• Connectivity (hard:
internal and to web)
Hard
2000• “We now have four
TV studios”• Blackboard &
CourseInfo 4.0• WEB-CT Ver. 2• Etudes• MS Frontpage 2000• Asymetrix Toolbox
Initiation to Institutionalization: Evidence from the Toys (contd 2)
1998• Desk top PC’s• Smart facilities• Smarter facilities• Connectivity (hard:
internal and to web)
Hard
2000• Compel• Perception (!)• JavaScript• Perl (of wisdom)• Connectivity (soft:
WWW, consortia, listservs, students)
Soft
From Platforms to People
1998
• From systems, to... • ….Teaching and Learning
2000
Awards and Rewards1998
• Innovation of the Year
• Showcasing individuals
• Conference, stipend, grant support
• RT
• Latest technologies
• More work
• None
Individual
2000• Promotional growth
units• Advanced courses• Camaraderie
Group and workplace
Organization: Classroom Technology
and Distance Learning Initiatives 1998
• Don’t know
• Instructional Tech under academic officer or (s)he holds all Tech responsibility
• Joint reporting
• Team management
• CIO
Titles, titles, titles...
2000• “Distance learning tries to
coordinate with … Also have a Director of Instructional Tech...”
• “College Without Walls reports to Associate Dean of Instructional Development. Title III reports to… There is a Director of CWW and a Director of DL”
Organization…. (contd)1998
• Don’t know
• Instructional Tech under academic officer or (s)he holds all Tech responsibility
• Joint reporting
• Team management
• CIO
Titles, titles, titles...
2000• Separate
• Learning Technology and DL work closely together
• ‘That’s a real good question. At the moment I’m not sure anyone is...”
• Alternative Learning Division
Where are the titles? What’s going on?
Constancy (in the Changing World)
1998 2000Cost-benefitanalyses?
Yes: 11%No: 22%Huh?: the rest
Constant; noresultsreported yet
New JobDescriptions?
Yes: 25%No: 75%
Constant, butare JD’s inoperationnow?
So, Where are We Now?
• On-line courses: YES 100%
• Range from 20 to 60+ sections each year
• Credit and non-credit (just now beginning)
• Average enrollment per section: 25 - 30
• Overall annual enrollments: 400 - 1800
• Growth: YES 100%
So, Where are We Now?
• Universal E-Mail To:
Full-Time Faculty YES 100%
Part-Time Faculty YES 50%; Soon 100%
Students YES 40%; Soon 100%
Dreaming…… but not Snoozing
• Wireless
• Netmeeting & Videoconferencing
• Desktop video; desktop ATM
• Portals
• Virtual reality
• Voice recognition
• Academic applications software
Reality: Lessons on What Works1998
• Training on technology
• Resources - funds; equipment for students and faculty
• RT
• Technical support for hardware, software, course and Web applications
2000• Training on teaching &
learning strategies and their integration with technology; course design & management; “sustained faculty development”
• Resources
• RT
• Technical support: “stable servers”
Reality: Lessons (contd)1998
• Allow time
• Engage faculty in technology decision making and leadership
• Deal with workload early on
• Don’t jam technology down
• Keep current
2000• Don’t let IT dictate the
environment
• Allow time for experimentation, learning and implementation - up to 3 years to fully implement in a course
• Always have a backup plan; technology does not always work
• Connect students to students; create on-line, interactive communities
Reality: Lessons (contd 2)
1998• Focus on learning, not on
technology; bad teaching will create bad technology applications
2000• Focus on the education:
identify learning goals and find technology to help achieve them; “these are art courses, not technological courses”
Reality: Lessons (contd 3)1998
• Ensure planned and public commitment by the college
• Keep Board informed
2000• Tech courses “struggle to
reproduce the interactions and chemistry of a traditional classroom. I’m concerned that I see signs of burnout in some of our technology innovators - we need to acknowledge and address this issue”
• I have no understanding of the thinking of District.
So, What’s Up, Docs?
What’s Up
1998
• Leadership must understand the innovations they promote
• There are many unresolved issues
What’s Up2000?
Clear shift to Faculty- led Initiatives and Faculty
Leadership
What’s up, Docs? (contd)
2000
• More technology could be used
• I have had mixed experiences using technology, both on the human and technical levels
• Make (technology deployment) a concerted not sporadic effort; have course design/management in place before mounting a course
What’s up, Docs? (contd 2)
2000
• Dramatically shorten the time to learn and infuse technology into the curriculum
• Temper the rush with quality control
• Plan and implement (not vice versa)
• “Our focus regarding technology adoption is in the physical, not virtual, classroom”
• Technology is better used to supplement rather than to replace traditional instruction
So, What is up, Docs?
“I am very proud to be a part of such a fine effort.”