Teaching, Learning & Technology in Higher Education

Fullbright Scholarships in Engineering - apply today!

jgvanides — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 22:54:00 GMT

Apply now for Fullbright Scholarships in Engineering! Here is the email from the Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES) that I just received... ...(read more)

Call for Proposals (due 9 Sep) - Educause Learning Initiative

jgvanides — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 22:08:00 GMT

One of the best communities focused on teaching, learning, and technology in higher education is the Educause Learning Initiative. I've mentioned it several times in my blog before, and I am doing so again because of their Call for Proposals due September 9th... ...(read more)

Why I'm Looking Forward to the Future of Learning & Technology

jgvanides — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 23:03:00 GMT

I was recently asked by a school district to describe "the future of technology and learning". It's a great question, even though we all know we should distrust anyone who says they have THE answer. However, there are enough clues and innovations in the works today that I can honestly say I am excited about what the Future of Learning could look like......(read more)

Questions from a 2nd Life Newbie

jgvanides — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 22:33:00 GMT

Lately I've been laughing to myself. The joke goes something like this: A sociologist, an anthropologist, and an engineer walk into a virtual bar in 2nd Life. The bartender says, "_______". The only problem is I haven't decided on what the punch line is - yet......(read more)

Classroom Presenter - Now Available in Chinese and Brazilian Portuguese!

jgvanides — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 21:42:00 GMT

Thanks to Richard Anderson and his team at the University of Washington, Classroom Presenter keeps getting better - and with its growing popularity around the world, new language versions are on the way......(read more)

Making Classrooms More Interactive Improves Learning Outcomes at Elizabeth City State U

jgvanides — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 22:12:00 GMT

Dr. Kuldeep Rawat has been the Principal Investigator for a 2007 HP Technology for Teaching grant at Elizabeth City State University (North Carolina, USA). Their goals was to enhance student learning by increasing the "interactivity" of courses such as Engineering Technology, Circuits, and Analog Electronics. The results were impressive - and well documented by Dr. Rawat... ...(read more)

DyKnow Improves Computer Science Courses at Farleigh Dickenson University

jgvanides — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 10:30:00 GMT

Dr. Kiron Sharma, professor at Farleigh Dickenson University, received an HP Technology for Teaching grant in 2007. The computer science faculty are using DyKnow software - and the project team made a short video describing their experience. In Dr. Sharma's own words, "DyKnow basically makes teaching fun... it's active learning - students are actually involved in the process of their learning". Check out the video to hear what students have to say, too... ...(read more)

How Faculty are Using Clickers

jgvanides — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 22:28:00 GMT

Rick Reis from the Stanford Center for Teaching and Learning, has a great newsletter called "Tomorrow's Professor". Not long ago he shared a recent article on clickers, which was an excerpt of "Teaching with Clickers" by Erping Zhu (University of Michigan, Center for Research on Learning and Teaching). While I am clearly biased towards the power of classroom interaction through Tablet PCs because they support open-ended, diagramatic feedback, clickers are much simpler and clearly have an important role to play.......(read more)

Tablet PC Software to Enhance Classroom Interaction

jgvanides — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 08:00:00 GMT

I often get asked what type of Tablet PC software is available for use by faculty and students. Though I posted similar information nearly two years ago (see ""Clickers on Steroids"), I thought it's too important a topic NOT to repeat. Here's a sampling of what is being used by HP Technology for Teaching grant recipients for real-time "graphical response" in the classroom... ...(read more)

5 Modes of Instruction, Including The One Tablet Classroom - Murray State Shows How

jgvanides — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 21:07:00 GMT

Most of the examples I blog about are from courses where faculty have deployed tablet pcs to all of their students (1:1), or where they are shared (2:1, or 3:1). Terry Derting and Ricky Cox, along with their colleagues, have been experimenting with 5 different models of instruction with tablet pcs. Interestingly, they have some emerging evidence that shows how even the "One Tablet Classroom" can make a difference - if you use it wisely and revisit the role of "instructor". ... ...(read more)

Lawrence University of Wisconsin - the power of digital ink

jgvanides — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 07:41:00 GMT

Jeff Clark at Lawrence University of Wisconsin is leading an HP Technology for Teaching project that is redesigning courses in Environmental Science. The participating faculty and students are using Tablet PCs in the field, and Classroom Presenter software http://classroompresenter.cs.washington.edu/ in the classroom. Jeff reports that how Classroom Presenter has unlocked the power of digital ink and "revolutionized the classroom"......(read more)

Enhancing Distributed Learning Environments at Georgia Tech Savannah

jgvanides — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 00:14:00 GMT

With support from an HP Technology for Teaching grant, Professors Monson Hayes and Elliot Moore at the Georgia Institute of Technology, Savannah, are leading a project entitled "Enhancing Distributed Learning Environments through Tablet PC Technology." The participating faculty are using DyKnow software and tablet PCs to create an active learning environment in a distributed learning setting. The student comments are fantastic......(read more)

York University - Using Tablet PCs to Enhance Collaboration & Improve Soft Skills for Business Students

jgvanides — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 21:15:00 GMT

Jean Adams, an assistant professor from the Schulich School of Business , received an HP Technology for Teaching grant in 2007. She and her colleagues used the tablet pcs to redesign the "Managing Contemporary Enterprise" course. The improvement...(read more)

It’s a Beautiful Day! Good News from Grant Recipients…

jgvanides — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 18:50:00 GMT

This is one of my favorite seasons of the year. Not only is the weather in Northern California absolutely gorgeous (mornings around 65f/18c, blue skies, light ocean breeze), but it’s also the time of year when I have the joy of reading project update...(read more)

Blog System Upgrade Underway

jgvanides — Thu, 22 May 2008 21:17:00 GMT

This is just a quick posting to let you know that HP blogs will be migrating to a new platform over the next week. As of tomorrow, May 23, I won't be posting to my blog and won't be able to receive any comments submitted. Please hold your comments until the week of June 1 when our new site will be live.

I'll be back...!

Jim Vanides, B.S.M.E, M.Ed.
Program Manager - Worldwide Higher Education Grants
HP Global Social Investment
Hewlett-Packard

For information about the HP Technology for Teaching philanthropy initiative in higher education, visit www.hp.com/go/hpteach-hied