In March and April 2013, OIT will be hosting two new “Technology and Pie” events, Security & Legal Issues of Cloud Computing, and Extreme Makeover for Syllabi.
To register, see:
https://etna.oit.umass.edu/public/workshops
Space is limited, so please register early.
Questions? Contact the Instructional Media Lab (instruct@oit.umass.edu or 413-545-2823).
Security & Legal Issues of Cloud Computing
Friday, March 29, 12:30 to 1:45 p.m.
Over the past few years, cloud computing, or “the cloud,” has been one of the most talked about technologies (Google, Dropbox, Tumblr, Flickr, YouTube, Vimeo, just to name a few). While there is a lot of talk, there is almost more confusion over what cloud computing is, is not, and how it can and should be used within higher education.
This session will explore some of the issues related to cloud computing in an academic environment. UMass Amherst’s Christopher Misra, Associate CIO for Security, and Laura Quilter, Copyright and Information Policy Librarian, will join us to discuss what cloud computing is, the security and legal risks of placing information and services in the cloud, and how to assess the risks of using the cloud for your higher education-related activities.
*Cloud image by Wing-Chi Poon, Wikimedia Creative Commons
Extreme Makeover for Syllabi
Thursday, April 18, 11:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.,
Course syllabi are often one of the first impressions that students get of your course. These texts play an important role in framing both learning outcomes and your classroom community, but the key expectations you want to convey can be lost among all the other necessary details in these documents. Redesigning how these texts look- not just what they say- can help you better meet your teaching needs. Inspired by a ProfHacker blog post on doing an “extreme makeover” for syllabi, UMass Amherst instructors and English Dept. Doctoral candidates Travis Grandy and Hari Stephen Kumar have developed a variety of design methods for both syllabi and assignment sheets. Students have remarked that these designs have motivated them to actually read the entire syllabus word-for-word.
This session will help you to rethink your course documents and do your own “extreme makeover” of course materials. Hari and Travis will join us to facilitate brainstorming and hands-on exercises, and will also share some best practices, helpful tips, and some lessons learned on design principles for course documents.
*Hammer image by Malene Thyssen, Wikimedia Creative Commons
About Technology & Pie
“Technology and Pie” is an interest group for faculty and instructors who would like to learn about technologies for learning and teaching. These sessions are intended as quick overviews with discussions about the application of these tools. Faculty have priority for these sessions when seats are limited. And yes, we really do serve pie (well, some of the time…we also serve cookies, pastries, and other goodies)!