Find below links to all of the presentation sessions from NWMET 2017 in Helena, MT. They are arranged loosely based on conference track, of which there were five main elements: Open Educational Resources, Accessibility, Pedagogy and Professional Development, Media Hosting and Management, and Strategic Decision Making and Administration.

Open Educational Resources

Keynote Presentation: Open Textbooks, Let Us Begin

David Ernst, Ph.D., Chief Information Officer in the College of Education and Human Development – University of Minnesota

David Ernst is a graduate faculty and the Chief Information Officer in the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Minnesota. David is the Director of the Centre for Open Education and the Executive Director of the Open Textbook Network, which works to improve higher education through the advancement of open textbooks.

OER: What is Boise State University’s IDEA Shop doing?

Bob Casper, Instructional Design Specialist – Boise State University

An overview of what the IDEA Shop at Boise State University has done to demystify Open Education Resources for faculty. We will address interventions from web page collections of OER elements and a Faculty Learning Community to One-on-One sessions with faculty addressing various aspects of OER. In addition, look at OER as it pertains copyright and licensing, mixing and matching of various sources, as well as, faculty concerns of workload, publishing and research credit and an overall perception of policy and political issues within the confines of further adoption in face-to-face and hybrid courses.

Understanding Creative Commons and Copyright in OERs

Nate Wise, Intellectual Property Rights Specialist – Brigham Young University Idaho

Open educational resources not only save students from outrageous textbook costs, but they also allow instructors to mix-and-match content for a more personalized, engaging learning experience. In this presentation I will review copyright and creative commons and discuss how these work together in creating Open Educational Resources and how remixing and attribution works with the different license types.

Open Instructional Design: OER Process over Product

Lindsey Brandt-Bennett, Curriculum Developer – Montana State University Northern
Caleb Hutchins, Instructional Designer – Montana State University Northern
Jason Geer, Instructional Designer – Montana State University Northern

We usually think about OERs from a “product consumption” perspective, but the OER creation process itself also presents a valuable opportunity for instructor reflection and development. In this session, instructional and curriculum design staff from MSU-Northern will share their experience hosting an OER contest as a way to encourage instructors to implement culturally responsive pedagogy in the classroom. Not only were the OERs impressive as end products, but the process of creating them proved an effective and cost-efficient way to build a community of practice and engage faculty in personalized professional development.

The Making of CNA Specialties as Open Education Resources

Natalie Peeterse, Director of Distance Delivery – HealthCARE Montana, Missoula College
Sue Roe, Curriculum Designer, – The Roe Group
Madeline Boehm, Healthcare Apprenticeship Specialist – Montana Department of Labor and Industry

Sue, Madeline and Natalie will discuss the process of designing several CNA specialty courses as Open Education Resources. The courses were designed with re-usability in mind. These nimble and flexible resources can be used as eight week online academic courses at two year colleges, or as training at healthcare facilities, or as the curriculum for healthcare apprenticeship programs through the Montana Department of Labor and Industry. The resources will eventually be stored at SkillsCommons.org, which is the repository for all resources created with federal grant dollars. They will be available nationally and are intended to be re-used efficiently.

Empowering Teachers and Students By Making Their Own Apps For Free

Ellen Weber, Speech-Language Pathologist and Educational Technology Specialist – Cobb County School District (retired)

This presentation is a modern “make-n-take”, where participants will learn how to create their own interactive instructional activities and assessments for iOS or Android mobile devices using a combination of free apps. This session is appropriate for all ages/grade levels/content areas, from PreK to adult PD. Particularly useful for flipped classrooms, blended learning, or project-based learning activities. Great open educational resource! Participants are encouraged to BYOD (preferrably a tablet, not smart phone) with the following apps downloaded prior to the session: TinyTap – Create Interactive Lessons and Games, Cut My Pic, and Dropbox (not needed if you store your photos in an iCloud or GoogleDrive account), as well as setting up their TinyTap and Drop Box profiles in advance.

Pedagogy and Professional Development

Meeting Learners Where They Are: Using Available Tools Effectively to Promote and Support Learner Engagement

Ana Thompson, Learning Technologist – University of Washington Bothell

Institutions often wrestle with selecting and supporting solutions that not only support student learning, but are effective, affordable, accessible and easy to integrate with current processes. The landscape of learning technology across campuses today is increasingly dynamic and interconnected, so we use survey tools and research available literature to match needs with feasible best practices and options.

The modern classroom demands that we use available technologies to support a learning style that is active, inclusive and learner-centered. Our answer: Universal Design for Active Learning (UDAL). At UW Bothell, we have been integrating Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles into our training materials, support sessions, active learning classrooms, and tool-vetting processes.

Universal Design for Learning and Active Learning principles support and encourage student learning. Implementing well-thought-out and tested checkpoints and processes improve access for all students and faculty, provide better tool recommendations and enhance the support our diverse community.

Using iPads/iBooks to Promote Academic Success for Low-Income and First-Generation Students

Ed Ostrander, Academic Technologist – Oregon State University
Clint Edwards, Learning Resource Coordinator – Oregon State University
Michelle Onaka, Academic Counselor – Oregon State University
Jon Dorbolo, Associate Director – Oregon State University

Low-income and first-generation students arrive at Oregon State University with a technological disadvantage. To compensate, TRiO-SSS was awarded a grant to give the participants of this program access to tablet technology.

Access to this technology, along with campus partnerships, led to the development of a first-year student success class that utilized iPads, iBooks, and peer led team learning. The course helped first-generation students better understand tablet technology during their first year, while gaining knowledge of college success, group study strategies and digital literacy competencies. TRiO-SSS and Technology Across the Curriculum faculty instructed the class over consecutive Fall terms, 2014/2015. The project leveraged digital storytelling to enable underrepresented students to share their own story in three iBook chapters: 1. What brought them to college; 2. Their time and plans in college; and 3. How they see their life after college. The iBooks were archived in the library, and student feedback on the project was overwhelmingly positive. This presentation provides participants with a detailed overview of the TRiO-SSS program, the iBook course project and technology-driven campus partnerships – along with a look at some student-produced digital stories created in the class.

The power of faculty peer mentoring: Advancing course design, assessment strategies, and student learning through mobile technology integration

Lana Grover, Senior instructional Design Consultant – Boise State University
Devshikha Bose, Instructional Design Consultant – Boise State University

Through various professional development programs, offered by the Instructional Design and Educational Assessment (IDEA) office at Boise State University, faculty have the chance to share their expertise and experience with their peers. These mentoring opportunities include workshops, semester-long cohort programs, summer intensives, and long-term faculty associate positions. This presentation is going to focus on a three-day professional development program, the Mobile Learning Summer Institute (MLSI), wherein slightly advanced faculty, mentor their peers in the integration of mobile learning in teaching and student learning.

Though informal measurements reported the anecdotal success of our faculty peer mentoring model, we wanted to verify its efficacy through a formal study. The aim of the study was to identify how this faculty development model impacts course design, assessment strategies, and the integration of mobile technology in teaching and learning. Data was collected during the MLSI, via pre and post survey and a focus group meeting. Results from the study will be shared during the presentation. Recommendations will be provided, which may be useful to both faculty professional developers, technology managers, as well as instructors seeking to improve their teaching and learning.

EdReady Montana: Moving Students Forward in Mathematics

Ryan Schrenk, Ed Ready Montana Program Manager – EdReady Montana

EdReady Montana is a free, online, math support program that identifies knowledge gaps and builds a customized learning path for individual students. EdReady Montana provides students with high-quality, vetted, diverse learning tools that cater to many learning types. EdReady is being used in colleges around the state and nation to help students prepare for and succeed in college level mathematics.

This session will focus on use cases of EdReady including remediation, acceleration, blended learning, as a math boot camp platform, and in a corequisite model. Compelling data from use cases during our three year Montana implementation will be shared. Participants will have the opportunity to visit with a panel of teachers and administrators who use EdReady in their school. Attendees will be able to see the EdReady program in detail and obtain sandbox accounts to investigate the resources, learning modules and available reports.

EdReady Montana has been used successfully in schools around the state to combine technology of the future with tried and true teaching strategies thus creating a blend that promotes student success. Participants will leave with a clear understanding of what the EdReady program is and the difference it can make at their higher education institution.

From iPads to Faculty Centered Professional Development: The MiClassroom Initiative at Carroll College

Ryan Hazen, Instructional Technologist – Carroll College

This session covers the inception, planning, and outcomes of Carroll College’s MiClassroom iPad Pilot program from 2016 as well as the design and goals of the 2017 revision of the program. Come hear how we set up our initial explorations into the feasibility of a 1:1 iPad program at Carroll, what we learned from it, and why we eventually broadened the scope and narrowed the focus of our work with faculty on this program.

Accessibility

Accessibility: A Journey In Developing a Grassroots Effort for Our Institution

Betty Miller, Online Faculty / Technology Manager – Boise State University
Tammy Schmidt M.S., OIT Training Coordinator – Boise State University

The presentation will cover the beginning of Boise State’s journey in building institutional awareness of the impact of accessibility, or lack thereof, and how a grassroots effort initiated between the School of Nursing, Office of Information Technology, and the Educational Access Center for Students began to improve awareness and support across campus for both academic and non-academic campus functions. Using a pioneering attitude we found ourselves in the role of being motivator, documenter, planner, leader, and evangelist. Maybe this sounds familiar to you?

Accessibility Across the Northwest

Ana Thompson, Learning Technologist – University of Washington Bothell
Betty Miller, Online Faculty/Technology Manager – Boise State University
Marlene Zentz, Senior Instructional Designer/Accessibility Specialist – University of Montana
Aaron Page, Accessibility Specialist – University of Montana

Attend this session and learn about new online accessibility developments taking place in the Pacific Northwest! Presenters from the University of Washington, Boise State University, and the University of Montana will share a number of exciting efforts at their respective campuses, including building accessibility into program infrastructure, launching accessibility awareness campaigns, and developing accessible STEM content. They’ll also give a sneak preview of a new accessibility MOOC developed by the presenters that opens for enrollment soon. Questions welcome!

Designing for Diverse Populations

Kari Goin, Course Designer – Portland State University

Discover strategies in how to design experiences that excite and delight people, and break down barriers for students. This presentation will cover methods to designing online courses that are inclusive regardless of age, background, access, gender, and ability, that advocate for human rights and the human experience through design. Case study examples from online course and program design at Portland State will be provided.

If not you…who? Empowering Instructors to Meet ADA Standards

Carrie Kyser, Instructional Designer – Lewis-Clark State College
Angela Meek, Senior Instructional Designer – Lewis-Clark State College
Dawn Lesperance, Director of e-Learning Services – Lewis-Clark State College

In this presentation, LCSC e-Learning Services will share how they developed a timeline and resources to address accessibility in online courses. The purpose of e-Learning Services’ work is to make meeting ADA standards an achievable goal for instructors who teach online. With limited funds and limited “man power,” the responsibility of making content accessible falls to individual instructors. To reach this goal, e-Learning Services created a “Universal Design for Learning” resource portal that provides training about accessibility standards and training for the technology tools used to meet those standards. Join us as we discuss our process, challenges, and successes in this ongoing endeavor.

Media Hosting and Management

The Media Ecosystem in Higher Education Part 1: Capture

Raul Burriel, Streaming Media Coordinator – Oregon State University

As enrollment in higher education increases, institutions must rely more frequently on capture technology in order to make content more easily available to students. But not all capture technologies are the same. Technologies range from basic low quality video recordings to enhanced presentations with accompanying metadata. We’ll examine the options available in academia today and take a deep dive into the modular options that exist that are best suited to provide an affordable, scalable solution to institutions which are increasingly being squeeze when it comes to budgets.

The Media Ecosystem in Higher Education Part 2: Delivery

Raul Burriel, Streaming Media Coordinator – Oregon State University

With the proliferation of video in higher education, keeping the technology contained is like taming a many-headed hydra. Options abound for uploading and sharing video, but a laissez-faire attitude within institutions can lead to flagrant copyright and privacy violations, and fragmentation that is entirely unmanageable. Solutions for centralized management of media via simple, intuitive interfaces exist. We’ll look at the options available on the market and make the case for such systems over fragmented or siloed solutions.

Empowering Faculty by Managing Classroom Videos on Google Drive

Michael Spall, Sr. Instructional Technology Consultant – Idaho State University

Idaho State University changed from housing classroom video recordings on a homegrown video server to using Google Drive. Learn about the issues involved with the change and the benefits to faculty of managing their own videos.

Strategic Decision Making, Administration, and Program Management

Making IT Decisions that Improve the Academy

Leif Nelson, Director of Learning Technology Solutions – Boise State University

Enterprise IT decisions can and should support the aims of teaching and learning. In some cases, IT decisions can have a transformative effect on teaching and learning practices. There have been a few examples at Boise State University where this has proven to be true. A shift from traditional lecture capture towards a more flexible software solution has supported active learning. A mobile first clicker strategy has promoted mobile learning. And universal UI design has helped promote accessibility and consistent learning environments.

Moodle ISU, 10 Years and Counting?

Randy Stamm, eLearning Coordinator – Idaho State University

This presentation will discuss the historical overview of ISU’s Learning Management System (Moodle ISU) and future interests moving forward. What have we learned? What is different? How have our faculty, staff, and students changed? What does Moodle ISU look like in 10 years?

Unmanned Aerial Systems: Collaborative Experiences and Learning Stories from a Research Office, Central IT Shop and Extension Service

Ed Ostrander, Academic Technologist – Oregon State University
Mark Peters, Interim Director Research Integrity & International Compliance Officer – Oregon State University
Victor Villegas, Technology & Media Support Coordinator – Oregon State University Extension Service

This session aims to provide inquiry into Oregon State University’s Unmanned Systems Initiative ranging from in-the-hopper activity to the 36,OOO’ strategic planning view to implement drone technology across OSU and beyond. Presenters will discuss the FAA’s Part 107 and Remote Pilot Certificate (RPC), a legislative change that lowers the barriers for would-be sUAS operators. Moreover, in considering the new RPC, we envision budding partnerships with commercial enterprise Drone Complier Enterprise and central IT to address questions about access, authentication, training and management to help ensure the initiative scales. Lastly, we will consider the impact of UAV’s on research, scholarship and recruitment by sharing user stories and recent field experiences.

Strategic Planning in Higher Ed IT

Leif Nelson, Director of Learning Technology Solutions – Boise State University
Daniel Gold – Boise State University

As technologies and priorities are constantly changing, a well-crafted strategic plan can help keep Higher Ed IT units weather the storm and stay on track. In this session, Leif Nelson will describe the strategic planning models and processes they used at Boise State to come up with goals and metrics that were focused enough to be meaningful, yet flexible enough to be adaptable.