How some thing called Pivot might change some things....

Ever hear of Pivot??? this is so new that I am not even sure it’s easy to get, but I’m going to share it anyway because the following video awed me: Watch Pivot in Action

What do you think? How could this type of program be useful in your courses? If you do happen to download it, do come back and share with us how you used it, what your students thought about it, and anything else worthwhile. Have fun!

Microblogging? What's that all about?

I am so excited to explore Google Apps, learning how to create a Wiki in PBWorks, and figuring out how to bring this excitement back to my NEIU faculty members and instill it in them!


Do you know what microblogging is? This blog isn't micro because I can write as much as I want. Instead, microblogs are much smaller in terms of content. One is Twitter, which most people know about, and Tumblr, which is a newer type of microblogging that allows for more characters and input of multimedia.


How can we use these tools to increase learning in our courses? Do you think they have a place in higher education classrooms?

Who's at FSI?

Here with me at FSI are Jane Peller (Social Work), Rene Alvarez (Teacher Ed.), Julie Scigalski (English), Paul Lempke (Art), Brian Ogrowdowski (English), and Mary Ellen McGoey (FLL).
We're attending fairly long sessions here that are informative and a bit empowering. Some are sort of controversial too. Interesting....
We've done a lot of walking and I'm personally hoping that I don't lose my Blackberry like I did yesterday. My afternoon could have easily been screenplayed as an episode of "The Office".

The Faculty Summer Institute at U of I

I've never blogged in my life; I've never really read blogs, either. However, I see a value in a blog such as this, especially for my faculty members at NEIU. Right now I am in a session at the FSI at U of I. I can't wait to bring the technologies I'm learning back to NEIU, especially during our No Professor Left Behind (name coined by Professor Jane Peller in Social Work at NEIU) bootcamp this summer.


What am I learning? Voice tools, online polling, voicethread, avatars, online design techniques, how to use YouTube, TeacherTube, and dozens of other web 2.0 technologies.


I hope to embed this blog on our Center for Teaching & Learning webpage so that when I start sending out a monthly post with a really awesome technology that can be used face to face and online, that faculty members can share how they're using these technologies, or others, to improve their practice.


'till next time,


Angela