LLL
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Newsletter of the Online Teaching and Learning Committee
Volume 17, Edition 2
Department of Languages and Literature
October 27, 2012
From the Editor
The OTLC Blog
This second edition, Volume 17, of the OTLC newsletter
focuses on Blackboard conferences: the Blackboard world
conference (BbWorld 2012) that several Ferris
stakeholders attended in New Orleans from July 10-12 and
the Michigan Blackboard Users conference (MiBug), held
at Ferris on March 16.
~Jonathan Taylor
The OTLC publishes a blog at
http://onlineteachingandlearning.wordpress.com/.
We include news updates from the world of elearning as well as teaching strategies for the online
environment.
Recalling BbWorld 2012, I hear the empowering music
and see the pulsing light shows, I witness the Flash Mob
and the New Orleans Marching Band, and I picture the
many vendors with their twenty-foot ads. I remember
Freeman Hrabowski’s inspirational keynote address in
which he said, “Thoughts become words, words become
actions, actions become habits, habits become
character….watch your character: it becomes your destiny.”
And I remember one of Sal Khan’s keynote comments: we
used to talk about student-to-teacher ratio, but now we
now talk about student-to-time-with-teacher ratio. And he’s
such a dynamic man that I almost believed him when he
said that teachers have moved up the value chain.
We also have a companion Facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/OnlineTeachingLearning.
If you "Like" our page there, you'll get updates in
your Facebook News Feed any time we post a blog
entry.
In This Edition….
From the Editor…………………………….…………...1
I recently read that BbWorld 2012 was the biggest
BbWorld ever, and I can believe it: so many people—about
3500, so many sessions—nearly 400, so much content!
The OTLC Blog…………………….………...............1
In this newsletter, Jackie Hughes (p 2), Deb Thalner (p 3)
and I (p 6) discuss some of our experiences in New
Orleans, and Sheila MacEachron (p 4) recounts hers at
MiBug.
About the OTLC Newsletter……………………..…3
You’ll also find out from OTLC chair Jonathan Taylor (p
1, 5) some of the committee’s recent efforts to assist faculty
with issues relating to technology and FerrisConnect.
Content! Content!.....………………………………….6
~Elaine
What I learned at Blackboard World..……..….....2
The Online Presence of the OTLC....................2
I’ll Take My Learning to Go, Please!..........……..3
MiBug Spring Conference…………………………...4
About the OTLC….…………………………………….5
OTLC Sponsors FerrisConnect Help
Session………………………………………………………5
Technology Problems?...………………………………5
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What I learned at Blackboard World
~Jackie Hughes
of creating community through the discussion board
forum. An instructor may also look at the grading section
of the rubric and realize that improvement could be made
in providing frequent feedback. The rubric provides a safe
and timely way for faculty to improve an online course
without feeling scrutinized. You may contact me for more
information about the course evaluation rubric at
Jackie.Hughes@ferris.edu.
The BbWorld conference is an amazing venue for me.
When I go, I take a long list of problems, complaints
and ideas that are reported by our faculty and I sit
down at the “Ask The Expert” booth until each item is
checked off the list. I learn how we can now embed
audio into a test; how the left menu now shows up in
the Calendar; how to get ePortfolios working; how to
get a Messages alert module; and how Alignments work.
Several of these features have been turned on or fixed
already and many others changes our faculty asked for
will be in Service Pack (SP) 10, which is scheduled to be
released this fall, and Ferris is scheduled to have our
test system ready for faculty to test by December!
Blackboard Mobile Learn
The Blackboard Mobile Learn app now has push
notifications to the mobile device informing individuals
when a new announcement, content item, grades and tests
are available. Students are now able to take tests on their
mobile device. The new update works on both WiFi and
data plan. The biggest change is that effective September
2012, there will be two options for getting Bb Mobile: the
institutional license, which is paid for by the university, or
the individual-pay option ($1.99 per year or $5.99 forever).
Ferris does not have the institutional license, so if you
download or update your Bb Mobile Learn app, you will be
prompted to pay. Ferris will not reimburse for mobile apps
already purchased, so plan ahead!
Course Evaluation Rubric
Central Penn College has developed a course
evaluation rubric that faculty can use to evaluate their
online course for quality. The categories include
instructor information, announcements, getting-started
information, coursework, discussion board, grades, and
other required functions. An instructor can look at the
rubric to see what it means to do an exemplary job
The Online Presence of the OTLC
You can find out about us at our Department address:
http://www.ferris.edu/HTMLS/colleges/artsands/languages-and-literature/Online-Teaching-andLearning.htm
You can find our newsletters at our Academic Affairs address:
http://www.ferris.edu/HTMLS/administration/academicaffairs/online/otc
You can find our Facebook page and our blog here:
http://www.facebook.com/onlineteachinglearning/
http://onlineteachingandlearning.wordpress.com/
(Both
these sites were created and are monitored by our Chair, Jon Taylor.)
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I’ll Take My Learning to Go, Please!
~Deb Thalner
and faculty can access their online courses
from their smartphone or iPad. No, that is not
a “typo”….for less than two dollars a year!
What does this new access mean for students
and for faculty? For one, students and faculty
do not need to use Learn Mobile if they are not
interested. However, for those that do want the
added flexibility, there are some cool features.
For example, students can elect to get push
notifications to their phone when there are class
announcements, when items are graded, or
when a test is posted. Discussion boards can be
used from a phone, so learning and
communication can happen anytime, anywhere.
Access to the syllabus and other features
normally seen in the Blackboard shell are
accessible from a cell phone or iPad (see
blackboard.com for further information).
Frankly, I’m excited to try it out! The current
version I have on my iPad is “clunky” for an
instructor to use, and I’ve had my problems!
But I’m willing to give the new version a try,
especially if it means I can use my phone if
necessary, and not always worry about carrying
my trusty pc with me everywhere.
It’s a mobile world. Cell phones, smartphones
and iPads are frequently seen on the Ferris
college campus. This is not unusual….
According to a research study by Pew Internet,
94% of community college students and 96%
of university students own a cell phone. Of
those students about 65% and 63%
respectively use their cell phone to access the
internet and/or email (see pewinternet.org
2011 reports for more information).
As a result of this shift towards using mobile
technology, at BbWorld, Blackboard
announced a new Learn Mobile application
coming out this fall. At Ferris, we’ve had the
free version of Blackboard’s mobile application
for a while, but the cost for institutional
licensing of the “full-feature” model has always
been an area of concern. However, there may
now be a way to serve those students who want
the mobile application in a really cost-effective
way. One of Blackboard’s announcements
was that this new full-feature model will soon
be available to students or faculty, without an
institutional license agreement being
necessary. For less than $2.00 a year, students
About the OTLC Newsletter
L and L on Line is published twice a semester by the Online Teaching Committee of the
Department of Languages and Literature, Ferris State University. Its purpose is to keep
members of the Department and others at Ferris apprised of issues affecting our online
teaching. Your contributions and suggestions are welcome. The editor is Elaine
McCullough, ASC 3077, x5875, mcculloe@ferris.edu.
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MiBug Spring Conference
~Sheila MacEachron
The Michigan Blackboard Users, miBUG, held its
Spring Conference 2012 at Ferris State University
in the new Michigan College of Optometry
Building on March 16th. The coordinators for
this event were Mary Holmes and Jackie Hughes.
a Network of Educational Support Services,
Brad Shulz, Starfish Retention Solutions
LLC
 Implementing Social Learning for Faculty
and Staff Development, John Niedzielski,
Davenport University, and Lacey Daniel,
Grand Rapids Community College
 The Blackboard Learn Platform Product
Roadmap, Keely McDonough, Nick
LaRusso, and Tiffany Tooley, Blackboard
The day officially started at 8:30 am with an
introduction by Paul Blake, Associate Provost,
followed by the keynote speaker, Tom Guckenberg
from Blackboard. Mr. Guckenberg emphasized
that “If you fail to plan, you plan on failing”
during his presentation. He discussed some
trends for online learning in Higher Education,
and he also talked about the history of Quality
Matters and how Blackboard’s partnership with
this organization has become a core portion of
faculty development and course design training.
After lunch, the last breakout session included
 EduClick Student Response, Arlyn Boorsma,
Engaging Technology/ eInstruction
 Using Blackboard 9.1 for TEAC
Accreditation, Geralyn Stephens, Wayne
State University
 Creating a Framework of Quality, Sheila
MacEachron, Ferris State University
After the keynote presentation, participants
attended breakout sessions until lunch. During
the first breakout session, the following topics
were available:
 Providing Quality Assignments and
Assessments: The Connect/Blackboard
Integration, Karryn Vogt, McGraw-Hill
Higher Education
 The Wiki Tool for Collaborative Writing,
Jonathan Taylor, Ferris State University
 Quality Assurance in Online Course
Development, Revision and Teaching,
Mingsheng Dai, Central Michigan
University
During the day vendors were available and extremely
helpful in addressing questions and concerns
regarding their services and products.
Five faculty members created poster boards and/or
computer displays to showcase their Blackboard
courses. Participants evaluated each presentation,
and prizes were awarded near the end of the
conference.
During the last half hour of the conference
participants were able to tour the new Michigan
College of Optometry Building or attend Birds of a
Feather, a roundtable discussion.
Participants during the second breakout session
were able to select one of the following topics:
 Maximize the Impact of Student Services
Through “Smart CRM” Technology:
Leveraging Blackboard to Identify at-Risk
Students and Connecting Them with
This conference was informative and well organized.
Faculty members would benefit by attending and
presenting at future miBUG conferences.
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About the OTLC
The 2012-13 members of the Online Teaching and Learning Committee are Jon Taylor,
Chair; Steve Fox, Recorder; Lynn Chrenka; Elaine McCullough; Dan Ding; and Linda
Sherwood. The OTLC is an open committee and welcomes all department members who
wish to participate.
The mission of the Online Teaching Committee is to promote and facilitate online teaching
within the Department of Languages and Literature, act as a resource for best practices,
support the use of online technology in the classroom, develop policy guidelines for offering
courses online, and represent the department's online interests to other University bodies.
We meet at 11:00 am on the third Thursday of the month, publish a newsletter twice a
semester, and host department workshops and campus-wide activities related to
online instruction.
OTLC Sponsors FerrisConnect Help Session
~Jonathan Taylor
The Online Teaching and Learning Committee is sponsoring a FerrisConnect open session on
Friday, November 2, in ASC 2082, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m., to bring together members of the
Department of Languages and Literature and share our strategies. If you're having challenges, please
come by and we'll look at various ways to accomplish your goals. The Committee will also collect any
technical issues to try to get them resolved. Save the date!
Technology Problems? Tell the OTLC
~Jonathan Taylor
The Online Teaching and Learning Committee is compiling a list of unresolved technology issues to
forward to the administration in order to improve support and functionality.
If you are experiencing any of the following issues, please email them to Jonathan Taylor
(taylorj@ferris.edu) by Friday, November 2:




Classroom technology problems
Lab technology problems
Unresolved issues on office/faculty computers
Unresolved teaching-related software problems (FerrisConnect, Tegrity, etc.).
In your email, please include relevant room numbers and any known work order numbers. More
information is better than less in this case, so please email Jon with any issue.
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Content! Content!
~Elaine McCullough
“Ninety-two percent of American children have an
online presence by the age of two.”
“The primary source that college instructors use for
finding course content is Google.”
These bits of arresting data I plucked from the
Blackboard-engineered environment as I headed to my
first break-out session at BbWorld 2012 in New Orleans
last July: one I saw posted in the ladies room, and one I
saw on a PowerPoint slide in the hallway.
If it’s true that conference attendance is a success when
an attendee remembers one concept from the
conference, then my attendance at BbWorld 2012 last
July 10-12 was most certainly a success. In terms of
content, the conference was an embarrassment of riches.
On the way to my first session, I passed the Digital
Content and Upgrade Center in the hallway, where I
stopped for a moment to listen to Carrie O’Donnell say
that science and math faculty are reluctant to teach
online. I knew that, and I was familiar with her next
assertion, that faculty need help with training, support,
best practices, and mentoring. But I didn’t know what
she said next: faculty need a common vocabulary with
which to discuss online instruction. Humm…. Maybe
that was an issue the OTLC should address. As I was
walking away, I heard O’Donnell say that the shift from
print to digital is happening right now, and that LMS is
increasingly part of the daily teaching workflow. Later I
learned that O’Donnell is president of O’Donnell and
Associates and that her presentation was called “Digital
Adoption Moving to Mainstream: Faculty Perceptions on
Technology usage.”
Then I made my way through the crowd and settled in to
listen to Kate Worlock’s presentation, “The Future of
Interactive Education.” Worlock, Director and Lead
Analyt for Outsell, is British and I enjoyed her warm,
humorous speaking style. According to her, the
fundamental task of educators is to pass along a standard
body of knowledge to an increasingly non-standard
student body. We also need to pass along a 21st century
skill set, plus skills in critical thinking, problems solving,
global awareness, creativity and collaboration. And we
face an increasing emphasis on enabling our students to
be productive members of the work place. We have lots
of challenges and pressures, including pressure to
increase student achievement, part of which is
technology-based. But if we were to equip all students
with an i-pod, it would cost the same as the next NASA
mission.
How can we do these all things? And how can we possibly do
them with less money? This year, 37 states have cut educational
funding.
According to Worlock, to do what we as educators are tasked to
do, we need a faster pace of change than we’re seeing—we can’t
maintain even our present standards with incremental change. So
we need a revolution, not an evolution. And apparently, like all
revolutions, that revolution will occur is from the bottom up….
And that’s just what’s happening. Worlock said we’re not seeing
across-the-board change, nor is the change so much from the top
down. Rather, pockets of innovation are occurring…. created by
the users of the technology. And for the revolution to spread,
those who are creating the innovation need to share it. I could
relate to that. For some time now, others in the OTLC and I have
believed that grass-roots, faculty-to-faculty sharing is critical to the
success of online teaching and learning here at Ferris. To hear
that concept reinforced by Worlock at once revitalized my efforts
in the OTLC to encourage such sharing. Ok! So the OTLC is part
of a nation-wide revolution. Viva la Revolucion!
The next session I attended was “Using Templates to Improve
Course Designs,” which promised to give some examples of course
templates that increase course quality and student success. The
presenter, Constance Weber, is Senior Management Consultant
for Blackboard, but had also been an English teacher, so I
identified! We in the Department of Languages and Literature
discuss the product vs. the process approach to writing instruction,
with process winning out, and the same has been true in my
online course design: I think of my needs and design my course
from the bottom up, so to speak. But I thought I’d like to see
some “top-down” examples. Also, I’ve long been interested in
example online courses, which was the origin of the Online
Courses Fair: I think we faculty should see lots of examples of
what successful courses look like. The OTLC will be initiating the
second Online Courses Fair next spring, so at the Bb templates
session, I eagerly gathered information about well-designed course
templates that I could share at the fair. For now, here are some
excellent examples of templates adopted by universities:
http://www.uni.edu/elearning/uni-bb-learn-course-template
http://www.ndsu.edu/dce/faculty_resources/forms_and_template
s/template_preview
http://www.missouristate.edu/fctl/117749.htm
I attended additional sessions at BbWorld 2012 and learned a lot
of content I have already begun applying in my online courses.
Looking back at BbWorld 2012, I think, “Content! Content!”
Anticipating the next BbWorld, I can only hope for “Encore!
Encore!”
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