Fierce Education’s purpose is “Rethinking Higher Education Pedagogy in a Blended Learning World” and technology is at its center. We are highlighting “Fierce Ed Technologists” who have responded to the new blended learning world by:
- Improving the use of technology
- Providing additional technologies to staff
- Optimizing integration of technology
- Providing staff the support required for proper deployment and utilization of technology
Fierce Ed Technologist:
J. Cody Moyer, Director, Learning Technology
Affiliation:
Polk State College
Technologies Embracing:
In the past year Polk State College purchased technology for students and faculty use to bridge the digital divide. They have worked with local municipalities to add Wi-Fi access in public parking lots for ease of access and developed countless opportunities for faculty professional development to enhance distance learning course quality across all courses.
J. Cody Moyer, Director, Learning Technology, helped onboard Honorlock remote proctoring for all students, faculty, paid by the institution, to enable integrity of coursework to continue. This technology also enabled the college to offer placement testing (PERT) for all dual enrollment, incoming students and those attending our own charter high schools, of which they have three.
In addition, Polk also created resources to help faculty, within the LMS to support quality instructional design best practices. The college moved all tutoring services online through the use of Canvas as the platform, for all subjects that were offered in person previously. This effort was an immense task to shift in-person services online, but Polk did so with ease and made it a very positive experience for the students. Moyer was directly involved in the process and oversaw all of the online tutoring services as part of distance education.
Polk also onboarded ALLY, a tool for accessibility in the LMS, to empower faculty to make course materials accessible as well as provide multiple formats for all documents with no action needed by the faculty member. This ensures students gain access to course materials in a manner that suits their learning style. We implemented a self-reporting tool for students to identify themselves as needing academic support, during the term, to be able to get assistance in hopes of improving and ultimately finding success.
In terms of technology, Polk purchased higher volume of Big Blue Button premium as well as an enterprise license for Zoom for the institution to enable synchronous learning and promote the use of these tools with faculty and students to help bridge the distance learning gap for those that desired the in-person experience. All of these tools, processes and efforts work together to support faculty and students at Polk State College. The college continues to review, rethink and rework what it is doing to best serve the community in an informed manner as it continues forward as a college, and specifically as a department that manages distance learning.
For other Fierce Education Technologists:
Fierce Ed Technologist: Javier Aldape, Texas A&M University