OIT-ELN Blog Project

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• ELECTRONICA RECALL:
  COME BACK TO THE OIT LAB, MEDIA TECHNOLOGY, MEDIA TECHNOLOGY. Before you dash off for the summer, faculty persons, please don’t forget to return any electronica you may have checked out–Flip camcorders, iRiver MP3 recorder/players, Canon still cameras, or Plantronics headsets–to OIT. We need these devices in our cupboards for upcoming workshops. Thanks!
• OMG, ARE YOU SEEING JAVA ERROR WARNINGS, TOO? If you’ve logged into Blackboard-CE6 lately, you may have seen this warning pop up:
  

  Please note that raising a warning is merely a default behavior for some web browsers and not necessarily an indication of “unsafe components.” If you need to race ahead and get some work accomplished, just click “No” to the prompt and move passed it. If you are getting tired of seeing it every time you log in to the course management system or any other Java-driven systems you may use, you can correct your computer’s behavior easily. Just download the step-by-step Java Error Solution (PDF) document today!

• IRSURVEYS IN YOUR INTERSESSION. Institutional Research has concluded its access to Spring 2010 courses but will be entering Intersession courses to post links to end-of-course evaluations the week of May 10th. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Marcie Behrens, 662.846.4053 or mbehrens@deltastate.edu.
• GOOGLE ME THIS: WHEN IS OKRAMAIL NO LONGER OKRAMAIL? Why, on May 14, 2010. DSU is transitioning its students to Google’s Gmail service; students will benefit from more storage space (7GB on Google vs. 10MB on Okra), and faculty will benefit because emails will no longer get bounced back due to exceeded space limits. For more information on the event, visit OIT’s Technology Bytes Blog.
• SUMMER IS FOR ‘LOPERS. Developers, Course Developers. The Office of Instructional Technology staff is available all summer long to help faculty with course development projects, one-on-one training sessions, and most anything else technical and instructional. The lab will remain open most days from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm. Walk ins are welcome, but do check the calendar first (as we occasionally schedule the lab for OIT events and activities).

Workshops for Faculty

Regularly scheduled instructional technology workshops are not offered during the summer months. However, the OIT Lab (Bailey Hall 114) is open every day from 7:30 am to 4:30 pm for faculty who wish to work in the lab or who wish to schedule one-on-one or small-group training sessions or consultations. Please visit the OIT-ELN Lab page, to find out more what we have to offer. Contact Dr. Susan Hines for appointments: shines@deltastate.edu.

Volume 4, Issue 5.1-2. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• MUSICIANS, COOL AND GEEKY. Faculty: Please mark the date, April 27th, and attend the presentation: “Music To Our Ears: Teaching With Technology and New Media,” from 12:15 to 1:15 pm in the BPAC Recital Hall. Drs. Shelley Collins, Teri Herron, Jung-Won Shin, Christopher Meerdink, and Mark Snyder are ready show you that musicians are not only cool and hip, but seriously geeky. DSU’s Music and DMI faculty will be on stage to demonstrate and discuss how they use various strategies and technologies—screencasting, podcasting, and web video—in class and online to improve upon teaching and learning.
• SUMMER IS A-COMIN’ IN. Summer I (including Spring Intersession), Summer II, and Fall 2010 have been rolled out in Blackboard-CE6. All of the terms are available to faculty with instructor/designer access. Students do not have access to these terms until the terms begin officially–with one exception: Summer I. Because Summer I encompasses the Spring Intersession, students will be able to access these sections as soon as faculty activate the course shells.
• MASTERCOPIES LOVE TWEAKING. Yes. Summer is almost here, and you are ready to take a nice, leisurely break. However, your lazy days at the lake (or siestas in far-flung cities) will get old within the month, and you will find yourself fidgeting. Yes. Take advantage of the fidget; this the perfect time to log in to Blackboard-CE6 and tweak your course mastercopies.
• DO INSTITUTIONS DREAM OF ELECTRIC CURRICULA? If Delta State re-visions its vision statement, faculty members may need to improve upon their technology literacy. For more information on the vision re-vision, visit The Bolivar Commercial article, “DSU Seeks a New Vision,” online at: http://www.bolivarcom.com/index.cfm?event=news.view&id=0E0EAEBB-19B9-E2E2-67B201F889216CA8.

• iPadding at the Apple Store

  DEAR E-READERS, THE E-READERS ARE HERE. There’s nothing like summer reading, and this year you may be tempted to give up your cow-skin and paper-flake books for something that’s neither animal nor vegetable. Apple’s iPad release this month has re-invigorated the reading public’s interest in e-reading devices, such as the Amazon Kindle, the B&N Nook, the Sony Reader, and, of course, the iPad (pictured right: iPadders at the San Francisco Apple Store). If you’re interested in testing the e-reader waters and want to learn more about e-book technologies, consider checking out OIT’s Kindle 2 and/or taking our “Leveraging eBooks in Your Courses” workshop. Wired Magazine offers a pretty good e-reader primer (visit: http://www.wired.com/
  reviews/product/ pr_tablet_roundup).

• INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH IN YOUR ONLINE COURSES. If you teach online courses, you may see the profile IRSURVEYS enrolled in your courses during the month of April. Institutional research has requested staff-member access to facilitate end-of-course evaluations. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Marcie Behrens, Assessment and Planning Specialist, mbehrens@deltastate.edu.
• STILL CLEANING UP…FOR SPRING AND BEYOND. Please help OIT avoid quotas on space usage in Blackboard-CE6 and on the Faculty/Staff NT server by carefully reviewing what you are storing in these spaces. Please delete or remove any files that are obsolete or not in use. In Blackboard-CE6, please be sure to clean up your “my files” and course “file manager” spaces, and to download (to your desktop) then delete any backed up courses.
• THE FINAL LEG. The Office of Instructional Technology has four more workshops scheduled—and one presentation—before the end of the semester. If you wish to learn more about social networking, syndication, web video, bot research, and learning objects, April is the coolest month! Go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm for more information, and to sign up.

Workshops for Faculty

Instructional technology workshops are
offered in the OIT Lab in Bailey Hall 114. Each workshop is limited to 8
participants. To sign up for a session, go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm.

• Tuesday, 4/20, 2-4 pm
  ELN 401: Social Networking, Syndication and Research Automation
• Thursday, 4/22, 2-4 pm
  ELN 402: Basic Video Editing
• Monday, 4/26, 2-4pm
  ELN 403: Web Video Post-production and Distribution
• Wednesday, 4/28, 2-4 pm
  ELN 404: Embedding Learning Objects

Volume 4, Issue 4.2. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• HOW MANY MUSIC INSTRUCTORS DOES IT TAKE TO TURN ON A PROJECTOR? The answer is five, and the result is one very turned-on projector. Faculty: Please mark the date, April 27th, and attend the presentation: “Music To Our Ears: Teaching With Technology and New Media,” from 12:15 to 1:15 pm in the BPAC Recital Hall. Drs. Shelley Collins, Teri Herron, Jung-Won Shin, Christopher Meerdink, and Mark Snyder are ready show you that musicians are not only cool and hip, but seriously geeky. DSU’s Music and DMI faculty will be on stage to demonstrate and discuss how they use various strategies and technologies—screencasting, podcasting, and web video—in class and online to improve upon teaching and learning.
• A TOUCH OF INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH IN YOUR ONLINE COURSES. If you teach online courses, you may see the profile IRSURVEYS enrolled in your courses for approximately one week this spring. Institutional research has requested staff-member access to facilitate end-of-course evaluations.
• STILL CLEANING UP…FOR SPRING AND BEYOND. Please help OIT avoid quotas on space usage in Blackboard-CE6 and on the Faculty/Staff NT server by carefully reviewing what you are storing in these spaces. Please delete or remove any files that are obsolete or not in use. In Blackboard-CE6, please be sure to clean up your “my files” and course “file manager” spaces, and to download (to your desktop) then delete any backed up courses.
• THE HOME STRETCH. The Office of Instructional Technology has six more workshops scheduled—and one presentation—before the end of the semester. If you wish to learn more about screencasting, ebooks, social networking, syndication, web video, bot research, and learning objects, April is your month! Go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm for more information, and to sign up.

Workshops for Faculty

Instructional technology workshops are offered in the OIT Lab in Bailey Hall 114. Each workshop is limited to 8 participants. To sign up for a session, go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm.

• Monday, 4/5, 12-2 pm
  ELN 303: Beyond Powerpoint: Screencasting
• Wednesday, 4/7, 12-2 pm
  ELN 304: Leveraging eBooks in Your Courses
• Tuesday, 4/20, 2-4 pm
  ELN 401: Social Networking, Syndication and Research Automation
• Thursday, 4/22, 2-4 pm
  ELN 402: Basic Video Editing
• Monday, 4/26, 2-4pm
  ELN 403: Web Video Post-production and Distribution
• Wednesday, 4/28, 2-4 pm
  ELN 404: Embedding Learning Objects

Volume 4, Issue 4.1. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• ORCHESTRATING NEW MEDIA IN EDUCATION; OR, MUSIC TO MY EARS. Next month faculty in the Music Department and the DMI will give a presentation at DSU on how they are using podcasts, screencasts, and web video in their teaching. More information on this presentation is forthcoming. This month, Drs. Shelley Collins, Jung-Won Shin, and Christopher Meerdink (pictured right) traveled to Biloxi to present “Technology in Music Education: Video Self-Assessment and Podcasting” at Mississippi’s largest educational technology gathering, the 2010 Creating Futures Through Technology Conference.

• SPRING CLEANING. This spring OIT is on an all out mission to get faculty and staff members to tidy up their the online lives. So that we can avoid exacting quotas on space usage in Blackboard-CE6 and on the Faculty/Staff NT server, we are asking faculty to review carefully what they are storing in these spaces and to remove or delete any files that are obsolete or not in use. In Blackboard-CE6, please be sure to clean up your “my files” and course “file manager” spaces, and to download (to your desktop) then delete any backed up courses. Yes, shed the old syllabi you’ve recopied from previous courses and purge all those PowerPoint presentations you no longer use! You will feel liberated. Space is at a premium, folks, but I think we will all have enough if we institute some tidier practices.
• FOUR WORKSHOPS REMAIN IN MARCH. Workshops on learning objects, podcasting, and the design/development of hybrid and fully online courses are on the schedule for what remains of March. Times and dates are listed below. Visit http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm for more information and to sign up.
• SHOULD PROFESSORS SHARE LECTURES ONLINE? If you’re already podcasting or just thinking about it, you may want to review the article in the March 7th Chronicale of Higher Education by Jeffrey Young, “College 2.0: More Professors Could Share Lectures Online. But Should They?” Visit: http://chronicle.com/article/More-Professors-Could-Share/64521/

Workshops for Faculty

Instructional technology workshops are offered in the OIT Lab in Bailey Hall 114. Each workshop is limited to 8 participants. To sign up for a session, go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm.

• Wednesday, 3/24, 2-4 pm
  ELN 203: Web Design 2: Designing Learning Objects
• Thursday, 3/25, 2:30-4:30 pm
  ELN 302: Lecture Online: Podcasting for Professors
• Friday, 3/26, 8-10 am
  ELN 301: Designing Hybrid and Fully Online Courses
• Tuesday, 3/30, 2-4 pm
  ELN 302: Lecture Online: Podcasting for Professors

Volume 4, Issue 3.2. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• THE SOUND OF MUSIC IN BILOXI. This week three faculty members from the Department of Music—Drs. Shelley Collins, Jung-Won Shin, and Christopher Meerdink—will travel to Biloxi to present “Technology in Music Education: Video Self-Assessment and Podcasting” at Mississippi’s largest educational technology gathering, the 2010 Creating Futures Through Technology Conference. The university will also be represented by Dr. Susan Hines, who will present “eBook rEvolution.” For more information on the annual Biloxi-based conference, visit: http://sbcjcweb.sbcjc.cc.ms.us/conf/.
• SPRING CLEANING. This spring OIT is on an all out mission to get faculty and staff members to tidy up their the online lives. So that we can avoid exacting quotas on space usage in Blackboard-CE6 and on the Faculty/Staff NT server, we are asking faculty to review carefully what they are storing in these spaces and to remove or delete any files that are obsolete or not in use. In Blackboard-CE6, please be sure to clean up your “my files” and course “file manager” spaces, and to download (to your desktop) then delete any backed up courses. Yes, shed the old syllabi you’ve recopied from previous courses and purge all those PowerPoint presentations you no longer use! You will feel liberated. Space is at a premium, folks, but I think we will all have enough if we institute some tidier practices.
• IN LIKE A LION, OUT LIKE A LAMB WORKSHOPS. This month, the Office of Instructional Technology will provide workshops on cloud computing, graphic imaging, learning objects, web design, podcasting, online test creation, and the design/development of hybrid and fully online courses. If your schedule does not permit you to attend a workshop, we are happy to schedule one-on-one and small-group sessions tailored to your interests. Workshop times and dates are listed below. Visit http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm for more information and to sign up.
• WORK BREAK, NOT. The OIT Lab will be open and available for faculty use during the Spring Break, March 15-19th, Monday-Friday, 8 am-5 pm. If Cancun or Aspen are not in the picture this year, you are more than welcome to visit with us on your staycation.

Workshops for Faculty

Instructional technology workshops are
offered in the OIT Lab in Bailey Hall 114. Each workshop is limited to 8
participants. To sign up for a session, go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm.

• Tuesday, 3/2, 2-4 pm
  ELN 404: Embedding Learning Objects
• Thursday, 3/4, 2-4 pm
  ELN 104: Graphic Imaging for the WWW
• Monday, 3/8, 12-2 pm
  ELN 103: An Introduction to Web Design
• Wednesday, 3/10, 12-2 pm
  ELN 105: Configuring Your Virtual Desktop
• Monday, 3/22, 2-4 pm
  ELN 201: Effective (and Efficient!) e-Pedagogies
• Wednesday, 3/24, 2-4 pm
  ELN 203: Web Design 2: Designing Learning Objects
• Friday, 3/26, 8-10 am
  ELN 301: Designing Hybrid and Fully Online Courses.
• Tuesday, 3/30, 2-4 pm
  ELN 302: Lecture Online: Podcasting for Professors

Volume 4, Issue 3.1. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• RESOURCEFUL LIAISONS. This year the Office of Information Technology has selected 8 faculty liaisons who will work closely with OIT to raise awareness of OIT services, projects and programs among their colleagues across campus. Liaisons have been selected to represent a broad array of academic disciplines. Please be aware of the liaison(s) within your college, division or department; they are your representatives as well as OIT’s. Their charge is share with OIT your ideas for improving OIT services as well as to direct and encourage faculty members who wish to (or need to) learn more about the technologies that facilitate teaching and learning at DSU. To find out more about the Faculty IT Liaison program, visit http://eln.deltastate.edu/liaisons.htm. The 2010 Liaisons are listed below:

• AND THE DELETING BEGINS! This week the Office of Instructional Technology will begin deleting Spring 2009 courses from the Blackboard-CE6 server. The courses were archived in the previous week. Server space is at a premium these days, so online courses from the previous year are now archived at the beginning of every semester. Please be aware that no more than a year’s worth of courses remains on the server at a time. If you need to save a copy of your course for reuse, you are encouraged to set up a master copy or to download a back-up copy of your course. For more information on master copies, visit http://eln.deltastate.edu/forms/master_copy.htm.
• JUST FIVE MORE WORKSHOPS IN FEBRUARY. The remaining workshops this month teach screencasting, web video editing and postproduction, and e-book utilization. See the list below, and visit http://eln.deltastate/edu/workshops.htm to sign up.

Workshops for Faculty

Instructional technology workshops are
offered in the OIT Lab in Bailey Hall 114. Each workshop is limited to 8
participants. To sign up for a session, go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm.

• Tuesday, 2/16, 2-4 pm
  ELN 303: Beyond Powerpoint: Screencasting
• Thursday, 2/18, 2-4 pm
  ELN 304: Leveraging eBooks in Your Courses
• Wednesday, 2/24, 12-2 pm
  ELN 402: Basic Video Editing
• Friday, 2/26, 8-10 am
  ELN 403: Web Video Post-production and Distribution

Volume 4, Issue 2.2. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• FEBRUARY IS FOR LOVERS OF INSTRUCTIONAL MEDIA. The Office of Instructional Technology invites faculty to fall in love with a new technology or course development strategy this month. We’re offering workshops that can teach you how to podcast your lectures, automate your research and grading, design hybrid and fully online courses, develop database-driven assessments, create and edit video, leverage free ebooks and learning objects, and adopt social networking tools and techniques. Listed below are the workshops offered in February. Please visit http://eln.deltastate/edu/workshops.htm for a narrative description of the workshops along with meeting dates and times; there’s a convenient sign-up form, too.
• SCATTERED AND SMOTHERED? WE’VE GOT YOU COVERED. If you’re one of those faculty members who would love to attend a workshop but simply can’t find the time on your schedule, you can always sign up for a one-on-one session. We are happy to work with individuals or small groups on their own time. Just contact shines@deltastate.edu to set something up.
• DIGITAL NATION: LIFE ON THE VIRTUAL FRONTIER. If you’re curious about how new media technologies are affecting American culture, consider tuning in to Frontline on PBS at 8 pm tonight. Frontline’s previous report on the topic, “Growing Up Online,” was particularly insightful and is genuinely useful to college and university instructors teaching in the Digital Age. The Digital Nation website is designed for educators and their students, and may be a great way for those of you teaching in areas relevant to the program to join in on a national conversation. Visit: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/digitalnation.
• FREE LECTURES FROM THE FORUM NETWORK. Looking for professional lectures on topics that you’re covering in your courses? There’s something for everyone at the PBS/NPR-supported Forum Network. The speaker’s list is amazing—from composer John Adams to physics professor, Maria Zuber—and the lectures are easy to embed and download. Visit: http://forum-network.org often.
• CAN’T GET ANYTHING DONE IN YOUR OFFICE? COME OVER TO OURS! The OIT Lab in Bailey Hall is reserved for faculty every day from 8 am to 12 noon. It’s also populated with knowledgeable, sympathetic, and entertaining staffers to help you with instructional design, technology and training issues. In addition, we have a Podcast Studio, which faculty can reserve to develop and post-produce audio and video. We also loan out new media equipment, including e-readers (Kindles), AVI camcorders (Flip cameras), MP3 players/recorders (iRivers and Trios), still cameras (Canon ELPHs), and digital headsets (Plantronics). For more information about the Lab and to check out new media equipment, visit http://eln.deltastate.edu/lab.htm.

Workshops for Faculty

Instructional technology workshops are offered in the OIT Lab in Bailey Hall 114. Each workshop is limited to 8
participants. To sign up for a session, go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm.

• Tuesday, 2/2, 2-4 pm
  ELN 201: Effective (and Efficient!) e-Pedagogies
• Thursday, 2/4, 2-4 pm
  ELN 203: Web Design 2: Designing Learning Objects
• Monday, 2/8, 12-2 pm
  ELN 301: Designing Hybrid and Fully Online Courses
• Wednesday, 2/10, 12-2 pm
  ELN 302: Lecture Online: Podcasting for Professors
• Tuesday, 2/16, 2-4 pm
  ELN 303: Beyond Powerpoint: Screencasting
• Thursday, 2/18, 2-4 pm
  ELN 304: Leveraging eBooks in Your Courses
• Monday, 2/22, 12-2 pm
  ELN 401: Social Networking, Syndication and Research Automation
• Wednesday, 2/24, 12-2 pm
  ELN 402: Basic Video Editing
• Friday, 2/26, 8-10 am
  ELN 403: Web Video Post-production and Distribution

Volume 4, Issue 2.1. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• OUT WITH THE OLD, IN WITH THE NEW. Welcome back, faculty. Now that Spring Term 2010 is up and running on Blackboard-CE6, we will be archiving Spring Term 2009 and removing the year-old courses to make more room for future courses. If you wish to save any courses or course materials from Spring Term 2009, please copy them into master copies or back-up and download a copy on your office computer. To request a master copy, just complete this online form: http://eln.deltastate.edu/forms/master_copy.htm. We will begin removing Spring 2009 courses from server on January 18, and plan to complete the removal by January 29.
• IT’S 2010… AND TIME TO EVOLVE. Not everyone can take a trip to Jupiter and become an energy-based life form, but you can still evolve a little right here on Earth, right here at Delta State—and in just a few hours a month! The Office of Instructional Technology is offering faculty a higher plane of existence this year through software training and electronically mediated experiences designed to make instructors savvier, hipper, and more efficient. Just ask your savvier, hipper, and more efficient colleagues; they love instructional technology workshops. Geek is the new sage. Listed below are the workshops offered in January. Please visit http://eln.deltastate/edu/workshops.htm for a narrative description of the workshops offered as well as meeting dates and times; there’s a convenient sign-up form, too.
• ONE-ON-ONES AND SMALL-GROUPS FOR EVERYONE. If you’re a DSU faculty member and your schedule is such that you cannot attend the OIT-ELN workshops you want to attend, you can always set up a one-on-one or small-group session for training. Don’t hesitate to contact us for all your instructional technology training needs. We’re happy to come to your offices and classrooms—whatever it takes to tame the technology so the education can get underway. To set up a customized one-on-one or group session, contact Susan Hines at: shines@deltastate.edu.
• CAN’T GET ANYTHING DONE IN YOUR OFFICE? Come over to ours! The OIT Lab in Bailey Hall is first and foremost a faculty lab, reserved for faculty every day from 8 am to 12 noon. It’s also populated with knowledgeable, sympathetic, and entertaining staffers to help you with instructional design, technology and training issues. In addition, we have a Podcast Studio, which faculty can reserve to develop and post-produce audio and video. Our Lab and Podcast Studio is equipped with industry-standard software for online test creation, web design, podcasting, screencasting, video capture, and image, audio and video editing. We also loan out new media equipment, including e-readers (Kindles), AVI camcorders (Flip cameras), MP3 players/recorders (iRivers and Trios), still cameras (Canon ELPHs), and digital headsets (Plantronics). For more information about the Lab and to check out new media equipment, visit http://eln.deltastate.edu/lab.htm.
• WHERE OH WHERE IS BLACKBOARD 9? It’s coming, folks, but we are waiting for Blackboard, Inc. to improve upon their system before we upgrade Blackboard-CE6 and migrate all of DSU’s course content to a new course management system. The current version of Blackboard 9 omits some key features that many of you use in Blackboard-CE6, such as the content modules. We are hoping that Blackboard’s version 9.2 will be more to our liking, and should know more about the new system and our course migration trajectory around April or May of this year. Stay tuned.

Workshops for Faculty

Instructional technology workshops are offered in the OIT Lab in Bailey Hall 114. Each workshop is limited to 8
participants. To sign up for a session, go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm.

• Tuesday, 1/19, 12-2 pm
  ELN 101: Teaching Online with Blackboard-CE6
• Thursday, 1/21, 12-2 pm
  ELN 103: An Introduction to Web Design
• Monday, 1/25, 2-4 pm
  ELN 104: Graphic Imaging for the WWW
• Wednesday, 1/27, 2-4 pm
  ELN 101: Teaching Online with Blackboard-CE6
• Friday, 1/29, 8-10 am
  ELN 105: Configuring Your Virtual Desktop

Volume 4, Issue 1.1-2. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• STUDENT ACCESS TO ONLINE COURSES. Students will have access to their Fall 2009 online courses until December 11th. If you have students who are receiving incompletes and may need continued access to their courses, please contact shines@deltastate.edu.
• INTERSESSION AND OTHER SESSIONS. Students will have access to online Winter Intersession courses on December 14th. Please note that these courses are part of the Spring Term, so all of the Spring Term courses will be made available on the December 14th as well. If you are already working in your Spring 2010 course shells and do not want to give your students access until the scheduled start date of January 11th, you can deny them access via the course gradebook. Just log in to the course, select the Teach tab, then select the Grade Book. Once in the Grade Book, select the students’ names and click the Deny Access button. Just remember to reverse the setting on January 11th!
• END-OF-SEMESTER REMINDER. DSU faculty members teaching online courses are reminded to save any course materials they plan to use again in the form of a master copy or as a back-up file. Due to limited space on the Blackboard-CE6 server, we will begin archiving and removing from the server courses from the Spring 2009 semester in mid January 2010. To set up a master copy or to overwrite a master copy with a more current course iteration, just complete the appropriate form at: http://eln.deltastate.edu/forms.htm.
• WINTER BREAK LAB SCHEDULE AND ONE-ON-ONES. The Office of Instructional Technology remains open to assist faculty during much of the Winter Break. Our lab and podcast room is available from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm until December 18th. We reopen on January 4, 2010—bright and early for those of you who wish to get a jump on your Spring courses. For more information about the OIT Lab, visit: http://eln.deltastate.edu/lab.
• FREE LECTURES FROM THE FORUM NETWORK. There’s something for everyone at this PBS/NPR-supported website. Visit: http://forum-network.org often.
• WHO NEEDS COLLEGE, AND WHO SHOULDN’T GO. An interesting Talk of the Nation podcast for faculty and students alike. Visit: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=120700162&ft=1&f=1013.

Workshops for Faculty

and student Instructional technology workshops are offered in the OIT Lab in Bailey Hall 114. Each workshop is limited to 8 participants. To sign up for a session, go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm.

• Wednesday, 12/2, 8:30-10:30 am
  ELN 404: Basic Video Editing.
  

Volume 3, Issue 12.1. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.

e-Learning Snippets, Tips and Workshops

• BLACKBOARD DOWN—FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 20. Blackboard-CE6 will be offline this Friday during the normal maintenance window of 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm. If you have scheduled any quizzes or chats (or other “real time” events) during this timeframe, we recommend that you reschedule.
• AN END-OF-SEMESTER REMINDER. DSU faculty members teaching online courses are reminded to save any course materials they plan to use again in the form of a master copy or as a back-up file. Due to limited space on the Blackboard-CE6 server, we will begin archiving and removing from the server courses from the Spring 2009 semester in mid January 2010. To set up a master copy or to overwrite a master copy with a more current course iteration, just complete the appropriate form at: http://eln.deltastate.edu/forms.htm.
• WINTER BREAK LAB SCHEDULE AND ONE-ON-ONES. The Office of Instructional Technology remains open to assist faculty during much of the Winter Break. Our lab and podcast room is available from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm until December 18th. We reopen on January 4, 2010—bright and early for those of you who wish to get a jump on your Spring courses. For more information about the OIT Lab, visit: http://eln.deltastate.edu/lab.
• NOVEMBER IS STILL VIDEO MONTH. The Office of Instructional Technology is offering two more courses on video editing and post-production. If you want to ad instructional video to your repertoire in the new year, you can still pick up the skills in 2009! Please see the the workshop list below.
• FREE LECTURES FROM THE FORUM NETWORK. There’s something for everyone at this PBS/NPR-supported website. The speaker’s list is amazing—from composer John Adams to physics professor, Maria Zuber—and the lectures are easy to embed and download. Visit: http://forum-network.org often.

Workshops for Faculty

Z Instructional technology workshops are offered in the OIT Lab in Bailey Hall 114. Each workshop is limited to 8 participants. To sign up for a session, go to: http://eln.deltastate.edu/workshops.htm. 

• Friday, 11/20, 10-12 am
  ELN 402: Web Video Post-Production and Distribution
• Monday, 12/2, 8:30-10:30 pm
  ELN 404: Basic Video Editing
  

Volume 3, Issue 11.2. The OIT-ELN Bi-Monthly is published by the Office of Instructional Technology’s Electronic Learning Network. For additional information contact Dr. Susan Hines, Director of Instructional Technology (shines@deltastate.edu or x4038). Find the “blogged” back issues at http://eln.deltastate.edu/wordpress.