Month: June 2016

3D Printing @ the MADLab

Posted on by avihyman

Here’s a nice article about 3D Printing in our MADLab:
http://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/tPwr74Id5VwgykRhvCmh/full

Our colleagues, Erica Lenton and Carolyn Dineen from Gerstein Library, do a very nice job describing what’s involved in setting up a 3D printing service:

“We use a certification process designed to train users on the printers, introduce them to design software, and test them on their knowledge of the equipment and printing process … The issues with our service are predictable. For example, how can we expect people to get into 3D printing with no prior experience or hands-on assistance? There are at least six hoops that users have to jump through before getting to the printer! Isn’t that a bit much? This is a conundrum of a “mediated” DIY service: How do you provide unfettered access to technology, encouraging experimentation and hands-on, self-directed learning, while also ensuring everyone’s safety and security in an unsupervised environment? Our solution is to inject as much support as we can, at each step of the creative process, from imagining the design, to troubleshooting design and printing issues, to sharing the final product.”

More Reading (June 20 selection)

Posted on by avihyman

Happy Monday. Here are some more readings on EdTech, PSE and general tech with a possible impact on education. Enjoy!

_____________

EdTech Stories

Counseling in 140 Characters: Engagement with diverse students requires that faculty and staff members develop new social-media strategies to reach students
by Alfreda James. June 13, 2016
https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2016/06/13/using-twitter-aid-career-counseling-essay

Why EdTech Is A Good, But Not Great, Business
by Joshua Kim  April 24, 2016
https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/technology-and-learning/why-edtech-good-not-great-business

Teaching and Learning Technologies: “Blending personal with digital: the quest for the perfect teaching and learning environment”
CUCCIO News Summary (no date)
http://www.cuccio.net/en/news-updates/158-teaching-and-learning-technologies-blending-personal-with-digital-the-quest-for-the-perfect-teaching-and-learning-environment.html

How Academics and Researchers Can Get More Out of Social Media
by Lina Duque, June 08, 2016
https://hbr.org/2016/06/how-academics-and-researchers-can-get-more-out-of-social-media

_____________

PSE Stories

Copyright-free material edging out Canadian educational texts: Plunging educational book sales like ‘falling off a cliff’
by Nigel Hunt, June 19, 2016
http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/arts/copyright-law-educational-books-1.3640331

YouTube Space Toronto opens at George Brown
(Press release: April 26, 2016)
http://www.georgebrown.ca/home/news/george-brown-college-home-to-canadas-first-youtube-creator-space.aspx

Tri-Agency Statement of Principles on Digital Data Management
Government of Canada. June 15, 2016
http://www.science.gc.ca/default.asp?lang=En&n=547652FB-1

This chart tells a fascinating story about higher education
by Danielle Douglas-Gabriel June 8, 2016
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2016/06/08/this-chart-tells-a-fascinating-story-about-higher-education/

Nunavut not yet ready for its own university: Quassa Study suggests partnering with established university
NUNATSIAQ NEWS – June 9, 2016
http://www.nunatsiaqonline.ca/stories/article/65674nunavut_not_yet_ready_for_its_own_university_education_minister/

George Brown finalizes $2.73M payout for students misled by course summary: International students paid $11K in tuition expecting to earn professional designations
by Laura Fraser, June 18, 2016
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/george-brown-settlement-1.3642035

Are universities preparing students for the Fourth Industrial Revolution?
by Selina Chignall April 27, 2016
http://ipolitics.ca/2016/04/27/are-universities-preparing-students-for-the-fourth-industrial-revolution/

Canada 150: U of T prepares to mark a big birthday
UofT News. June 3, 2016
https://www.utoronto.ca/news/canada-150-u-t-prepares-mark-big-birthday

_____________

General Tech (with possible impact on ed) stories

Why Microsoft bought LinkedIn for $26 billion, in one word: Cortana – Know everything about your business contact before you even walk into the room.
by Mark Hachman. June 13, 2016
http://www.pcworld.com/article/3083016/software-productivity/why-microsoft-bought-linkedin-for-26-billion-in-one-word-cortana.html

Creepy startup will help landlords, employers and online dates strip-mine intimate data from your Facebook page
by Caitlin Dewey, June 9, 2016
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-intersect/wp/2016/06/09/creepy-startup-will-help-landlords-employers-and-online-dates-strip-mine-intimate-data-from-your-facebook-page/

____________________________________________
—————————————————————————-

This week’s readings

Posted on by avihyman

A few more items you may find interesting:

Online Education: A Catalyst for Higher Education Reforms (April, 2016)
Karen E. Willcox, Sanjay Sarma, Philip H. Lippel, MIT
https://oepi.mit.edu/sites/default/files/MIT%20Online%20Education%20Policy%20Initiative%20April%202016_0.pdf

Ignore Edtech at Your Peril (June 6, 2016)
Jonathan Rees, Colorado State University – Pueblo
https://chroniclevitae.com/news/1429-ignore-edtech-at-your-peril

How Ten Key Developments Are Shaping The Future of Technology-Enable Learning

Kivuto and CICan Launch Partnership to Help Colleges and Institutes Go Digital

Work Study

Posted on by avihyman

The University’s annual Work Study Program is now accepting applications from faculty and staff to create jobs for students for the coming 2016-2017 academic year: https://cln.utoronto.ca/staff-faculty/overview/wspublic.htm

We often hear about interesting course or curriculum projects that just need a little bit of extra help – so why not consider hiring a UofT student to help out – it’s good for you, and good for them 🙂

ACT does not run the program (although we’ve definitely benefited from hiring students in the past) – if you have questions that can’t be answered from their website, you can also write to workstudy@utoronto.ca directly.

Please feel free to let others know.

LME RFP

Posted on by avihyman

As many of you know, the University of Toronto has been going through an extensive process we’ve been calling our ‘Academic Toolbox Renewal.’ As part of that process, we recently posted an RFP for a ‘Learning Management Engine’ – which is our attempt to actualize the theoretical model defined in Brown, Dehoney and Millichap’s seminal ’The Next Generation Digital Learning Environment’ report.

Many people have asked us for our RFP documents, as they are going through similar processes at their schools.

Now that the RFP submission phase is complete (we still have lots of work to do, but), we are happy to make the document available:  http://toolboxrenewal.act.utoronto.ca/core-learning-management-engine/

We hope you find it interesting, and maybe useful.

No matter what, we are happy to receive feedback.

Interesting Reading Part 3

Posted on by avihyman

More interesting reads that have crossed my desk:

Mobile Strategy at SFU
http://www.sfu.ca/itservices/strategy-and-policy/mobile-strategy.html

Canadian Universities and our Digital Future: A workshop by Universities Canada. Nov 30 – Dec 1, 2015, Vancouver
http://www.univcan.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/canadian-universities-and-our-digital-future-2015-workshop-report.pdf

A New Architecture for Learning by Rob Abel, Malcolm Brown and John J. Suess. Monday, October 7, 2013.
http://er.educause.edu/articles/2013/10/a-new-architecture-for-learning

Technology in Higher Education: Guiding Aspiring Leaders by Karen A. Wetzel, May 31, 2016
http://er.educause.edu/articles/2016/5/technology-in-higher-education-guiding-aspiring-leaders