2009 UO Symposium on Computers in Teaching and Learning

Open Content and Open Source: Applications of Computer Technology to Improve Education and Decrease Costs to Students

Friday, May 15, 2009
8:30 a.m. - 3:15 p.m.
Browsing Room, Knight Library
University of Oregon, Eugene

The 3rd Annnual University of Oregon Symposium on Computers in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education will be held on Friday, May 15, 2009 in the Browsing Room of the University of Oregon's Knight Library (map). The unifying theme for this year's event is open content, open source, and other Information and Communication Technology approaches to reducing the cost while maintaining or improving the quality of education at the University of Oregon.

JQ Johnson and David Moursund are planning the symposium. The presenters are University of Oregon faculty, researchers, and administrators. The Symposium is free of charge, including break time refreshments and lunch for preregistered attendees. Please note that space is limited, so early registration is advised. To register, contact Tiffany Van Pelt, Library Administration at (541) 346-1889; tambiel@uoregon.edu.

Schedule

8:30–9:00 Registration Begins. The expectation is that most attendees will be preregistered. Beverages and refreshments will be available.

9:00–9:05 Introduction. JQ Johnson, Director, Scholarly Communications and Instructional Support, UO Libraries

9:05–9:35 Welcome. Don Harris, Vice Provost for Information Services and CIO, University of Oregon.
Don will kick off the symposium by describing (and showing) innovative ways that information technology is being used at the University of Oregon, as well as by partner universities in the Pacific Rim. Participants will be encouraged to consider how IT resources can be used in their academic discipline to further the goal of teaching excellence at the institution.

9:35–10:15      David Moursund, Professor Emeritus, University of Oregon.
Lifelong Learning from Free or Inexpensive Resources.
This presentation focuses on learning to learn for a lifetime of learning in a environment that contains both human brains and computer "brains," and an environment that provides free or inexpensive access to a huge and steadily collection of data, information, knowledge, and aids to learning.

10:15–10:30    Break

10:30-11:15     Mark Thoma, Associate Professor, Department of Economics, University of Oregon..
Using Blogs, YouTube, and Social Networking Technology to Deliver Educational Services.
This presentation focuses on extensive use of Blogs, YouTube, Twitter, and other Internet-based vehicles to reach students both on campus and throughout the world. A number of personal examples will be used to illustrate the topics presented.

11:15–12:00    Mary Harrsch. Network & Management Information Systems administrator (Retired), College of Education, University of Oregon.
Building Communities of Practice with Web 2.0 social networking tools.
This presentation will focus on materials licensed through Creative Commons for free noncommercial use with attribution, and on distribution through resources such as Blogs, Flickr, and Twitter. It will include an emphasis on building an active worldwide network of professional colleagues.

12:00–1:00      Lunch provided for preregistered attendees

1:00–1:30        Ulad Slabin, Research Associate, Electronic Studying, University of Oregon.
Second Life in Teaching Chemistry.
Along with Wikipedia, Google, SlideShare, and YouTube, my lecture-only, "green-oriented" General Chemistry course includes Second Life, a 3D virtual environment. The presentation covers aids to chemistry education in Second Life with emphasis on those solving the problem of spatial imagination - molecular 3D modeling and stereoscopic/anaglyph illustrations.

1:30–3:00        Andrew Bonamici, Associate University Librarian for Media and Instructional Services, UO Libraries and JQ Johnson, Director, Scholarly Communications and Instructional Support, UO Libraries.
An Open Educational Ecosystem: Open Content, Open Source, Open Access, Open Textbooks, Open Courseware, and Open Resources
What do all these "opens" have in common (besides a buzzword)? How can we locate and evaluate existing content, and how can we identify effective ways to use open content in our teaching? How are students, faculty, and institutions adapting to open educational environments?

3:00–3:15        Final questions, wrap-up, and closure with JQ Johnson and David Moursund.
The Internet (including the Web) is a major educational change agent. Each individual faculty member and each individual department can make a significant contribution to improving the education of their students through use of the rapidly growing collection of free and/or low cost resources.

Maintained by: Andrew Bonamici, bonamici@uoregon.edu