Month: October 2016

Learning from Las Vegas #AECT16 [Recap]

It has been a year of conference planning and work in preparation for #AECT16. I am happy with the outcome of the Research & Theory Division (RTD) division sessions and I am confident on the quality of the presentations. Since I had several president-elect commitments I was not able to attend many of the sessions but I received good feedback from those who attended the sessions. Thanks to all that helped and supported the Research and Theory Division before and during the conference.

The preparations for #AECT17 started already. RTD PD Professional Coordinators are already working on the grant preparation for the Early Career Symposium. Our RTD conference planner & research and theory coordinator had their first Convention Planning Committee meeting. Also, during the RTD membership meeting several topics related to research methodology and theoretical perspectives were mentioned as recommendations for the professional development coordinator-elect to consider. The RTD board, specifically our past president, has already started looking for potential nominees to serve in our division during the 2017-2018 service year. We are also preparing to launch several initiatives that will serve to connect graduate students and faculty members.

On a personal note, I am so grateful to be part of the AECT family and all my other sub-families (ESU IDT, ODU IDT, and UT IDT). I am very grateful that I was able to attend the AECT conference this year (since I was not able to attend #AECT15). I made new connections with first timers or individuals who I’ve never had the opportunity meet in the past. As usual, it was great to see and talk to those who I consider not only colleagues but also my friends. Hope to see everyone next year in Jacksonville!

For quick access to the #AECT16 hashtag tweets click here:

Honors Symposia – Enilda Romero-Hall

The Honors Program @ UT

Dr. Romero-Hall presenting in the Music Hall. Dr. Romero-Hall presenting in the Music Hall.

On September 22nd, 2016, Dr. Enilda Romero-Hall presented to an audience of Honors Program students.  Her presentation was titled, “Be part of the revolution: Graduate Students as Learners in Social Media Outlets.”  The symposium focused on the varied ways that students – both undergraduate and graduate students – can utilize social media to network, communicate with experts in their fields, and learn formally and informally.

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International Scholar, Hanspeter Erni, from @PHLuzern visits @UofTampa @UT_IDT

This week the UT Department of Education and UT Instructional Design & Technology Program hosted, Mr. Hanspeter Erni. Mr. Erni is the Director for the Center of Teaching and Learning and the Head of Computer Science and Media Education at PH Luzern. I met Hanspeter during my visit to PH Luzern last year.

During his visit to The University of Tampa, Hanspeter, did a presentation for the UT College of Social Science, Mathematics, and Education (CSSME) faculty, staff members, and current UT IDT students and alumni. It was a great presentation on the importance of informatics and computer science. He also discussed the project “Mini-Beaver.”

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Music Room, Plant Hall [University of Tampa]

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Music Room, Plant Hall [University of Tampa]
In addition to the presentation, I was lucky to have Hanspeter join one of the UT IDT classes. Other activities included: visits to local schools, meeting with the UT CTL Director, and meeting the UT Ed Tech department.

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Instructional Multimedia Class Session

We are collaborating on a special project that will help internationalize the educational experience of UT graduate and undergraduate students. This includes the addition of a travel component (optional) in the curriculum for education graduate and undergraduate students (and potentially UT students with others major who find the topic interesting. More information on this coming soon!