Reflection on the #Switzerland #StudyAbroad program

The study abroad program to Switzerland was everything that I expected and many things I did not expect. Just for reference on what I am taking about, here is the link to the post with info about the study abroad program: The official flyer: #UTampa Travel Course to Switzerland [Spring 2018]

Your can read about our experiences during the program in this blog (Main Author: Marquis Holley, UT ID&T, ‘14): https://utspartansabroad.wordpress.com

Here are a few thoughts on the experience:

Challenges

Jetlag sucks and it is important to take it into consideration. When I do this again, I will plan to have very light activities on the first few days.
It is very different to travel with students that have a high interested on the theme of the program compared to students have some interest. In the group with had a 75% of students with very high interest on the theme of the program. The other 25% were participating mostly for the experience.
The leadership team of this program are very active individuals that had no problem been on-the-go. It can be challenging to accommodate for others who do things like “nap” or are not very active. If you want to participate in this type of programs or recruit students to participant, make them aware that to make the most out of the experience you will be spending very little time in the hotel room posting on Snapchat.
Just like with any group, there are students who tend to be more vocal. Therefore, they tend to drive the direction of the group. It is important to give the other students options or opportunities to voice their opinions/choices.
In making connections or plans to meet with schools, university research groups, or others, it is at times difficult to know how casual or formal the visit will be. Asking for as much information as possible before hand will help give the students context.

Good Times

I cannot say enough about my assistant coordinator for the program: Merrie Tankersley. I already miss her! Having a good traveling partner to bounce ideas will make your study abroad program an amazing experience. Merrie was an absolutely joy to be around. I will miss our time together in Switzerland and I look forward to our experience next year in Belgium.
We organized most of the logistics through a study abroad service provider, CISabroad. As part of that arrangement, we had a on-site representative all the time. We met at the airport in Zurich after arriving in Switzerland, his name is Fred. Fred was honestly the best. He was very resourceful, friendly, and extremely patient.
The weather was just perfect. We would have made the best out of rainy days in Switzerland but I am glad that every day we were blessed with good weather.
Although there were some challenges with group dynamics, I was very happy to see that the five girls in our group grew so close together. They were also very inclusive of our male student. Overall, I am glad we had each of them in the group.
Aside from an strain ankle and a student with a cold, we had no major incidents during the trip. All students were always on time, respectful of the program rules, and participated in all required activities.
Switzerland is a beautiful country (and pretty much that sums it all). Our side trip to France was a treat. I strongly recommend visiting Colmar, France.
I am EXTREMELY thankful to every individual and organization that welcomed us during our visit in Switzerland. I plan to spend a good chunk of my pre-departure time at the Zurich airport writing thank you emails.

I am sure there are other comments I want to write about this experience, but this is all I have for now. Here are some of the pictures I captured:

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Instructional Design Research Women’s Caucus #AECT17

Please consider joining us during this Research and Theory Division panel session at the AECT 2017 International Convention:

Lead Discussant:
Enilda Romero-Hall
University of Tampa

Discussants:
Zeni Colorado-Reza
Emporia State University

Ginger Watson
University of Virginia

Camille Dickson-Deane
University of Melbourne

Ayesha Sadaf
University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Tugce Aldemir
Pennsylvania State University

See you in Jacksonville. Hope you can join us!

The official flyer: #UTampa Travel Course to Switzerland [Spring 2018]

Faculty Led Experiential Education Abroad Program Approved [Destination: Switzerland]

Last week, I received notification that the faculty led short term experiential education abroad program I proposed to the UTampa Office of International Program was approved. So, who is coming with me to Switzerland? The name of the program is “Teaching and Learning in Switzerland.” The study abroad advisor from the Office of International Programs mentioned that alumni can join as “non-degree seeking students.”

Save the dates: May 6 – 15, 2018

More info coming soon!

Sneak Preview: #AECT16 Research & Theory Division Highlights

Yesterday, I purchased my plane ticket to Las Vegas (to attend the AECT 2016 International Convention later this year). This reminded me that I wanted to share a sneak preview of the AECT Research & Theory Division (RTD) sessions. As you know (if you read my blog posts regularly), I have the pleasure of serving as the AECT RTD Convention Planner as well as the Featured Research (FR) Sessions planner. The peer review process for all the sessions was earlier this year (it was not an easy process). The AECT RTD had a large number of good submissions and, at the same time, it had a limited number of allotted presentation hours (plus we had very rigorous reviewers). Now that the review process is completed and all accepted authors have been notified, all planners put together division highlights for the conference printed program. Below are the sneak preview or “highlights” for the AECT RTD and Featured Research Sessions. The full AECT16 schedule will be available in a few months.

Featured Research Sessions: https://cloudup.com/cZomjap6oqL

Research and Theory Highlights: https://cloudup.com/cs6T_t6JAID

For more info about the conference, visit the AECT 2016 website: http://www.aect.org/events/convhotel/

Academic Momma Traveling with an Infant

Recently travelled abroad for a professional development seminar and took my 6-month old with me. The trip was overseas (Miami to Spain with a layover in Lisbon on the way there and back. The layover on the way back involved an overnight stay in Lisbon). I want to share some advice and things to consider when engaging in this type of travel adventures. I know there are many academic mommas that have to travel to conference and other engagements. Hope these bits of information and advice help make your travel journey a bit less stressful. One more thing, this advice relates to all mommas traveling with an infant (academic or not).

Call the airline in advance. Let them know you are traveling with an infant. They can arrange a decent seat for you and your child, perhaps with close access to a bathroom (in case you need to change your child). I called the airline three weeks in advance my travel dates and they arranged to seat us in the first row of economy class. We were fairly close to the bathroom with the changing table and had a bit of extra room in front of us because we were in the first row. Also, the airline that we used (TPA Portugal) provided us with a small, detachable bassinet so that baby could sleep in it during the flight.
Let the hotel know that you are traveling with a baby. If you let them know in advance, they can arrange to give you a quiet room or put a crib in your room. Most hotels will do this for free. I have not come across a hotel that charges for a crib.
Make sure you carry enough diapers and wipes with you in your diaper bag. I did not see any stores selling diapers in the airport. I initially thought I had packed enough diapers for the entire trip and was in a bit of panic mode when I realized I could run out of diapers.
When you are in the airport, check for queue lines that are assigned for parents with children. In particular for security, passport control, or other lines. It will save you time and energy. I did not see queue lines for “parents with children” in the U.S. airport (Miami) but I did see and used them in Europe (Spain and Portugal).
Strongly recommend traveling with another adult to help you with the process. This person can be your spouse, parents, or a friend. It is doable for you to travel on your own with your infant but it will be a bit stressful. Having someone else to share the responsibility will ease the stress of dealing with paperwork, timelines, luggage, changing diapers, feeding, and everything else that comes with traveling with an infant.
Do not leave packing until the last minute. If you can find someone to watch baby while you pack, it will be very helpful. I recommend making a list of the things you must take with you (clothes, toys, food) and the things that you could buy at your destination.
Take time to think about traveling with your baby and proceed as desired. For some reason other people will feel the need to tell you their opinion on whether you should or should not travel with your infant. The reality is that you know yourself and your infant better than anyone else. If you feel that you and your infant are ready, do it.
Make sure you have a pacifier or bottle with food ready during the changes in altitude. During a flight, give you infant the pacifier or bottle as the plane takes off or lands to avoid pain in his/her ears: http://www.entnet.org/content/ears-and-altitude

So far, this is the initial list I have. I know I will remember other suggestions and advice in the future. I will just update this post as I remember them.

Photos of #CIEEIFDS Seville

Here are the images I was able to capture during the IFDS in Seville last week. I figured it was best to post this sooner rather than later because I wanted to acknowledge the amazing people that we (the seminar attendees) worked with during our time in Seville. Thank you to Oscar Ceballos, Carlos Pineda, Miguel Romero, Antonio Perez, Carlos Sanches, Ruben Diaz and Emilio Gonzales Ferrin. I would also like to thank the six ladies with whom I shared and collaborated with during the seminar: Collete, Rebecca, Nancy, Kaitlin, Ellen, and Rylan. Learned so much from you ladies!

The Local Hero

Sharing our stories

The Art of Telling Stories

Carlos Pineda

Palace of the Alcazar

Carlos Sanchez

Shared Workspace

Antonio Perez

Torre de los Perdigones

Personal Camara

Views of Seville

Shoeboxes

Group Photo

Building a Story of Spain

Emilio Gonzalez Ferrin

Audiovisual Narratives

Ruben Diaz

Information vs. Comm.

Mercado “El Jueves”

Carlos Sanches

The Metropol Parasol

Radio Podcast

Radiopolis

Recording Studio

On Air

Our Podcast Directors

#CIEEIFDS COMM Summer 2016 Radio Show #Sevilla #Spain

Hopefully you have read my previous posts and understand the context of this post. Just in case: I am doing an international professional development seminar in Seville in which I am learning and practicing communication strategies (and using digital media). One of the assignments in the seminar was to record sounds of the city during our stay in Seville. We finally used those sounds today during the production and recording of a radio podcast. It was a two hour preparation time of scripting and sound editing before recording our radio show. I am really impress with the final product!

I have to upload more sounds that I captured this week (they are now updated). I have many more, including interviews and more street sounds. However, I want to share our radio podcast. Big thank you to Radiopolis for letting us use their space to work on the project and their recording studio.

Here is our story, narrative, experience:

IFDS Communication Strategies in Context Summer 2016 Radio Show

The Sounds of Seville [Sonidos de Sevilla] #CIEEIFDS

The Assignment

As part of the seminar I have a bit of homework and will be sharing (or at least try) to share it every day. The homework consist of audio recordings of sounds, conversations, audio reflections, interviews, and other audio recorded during the next few days in Seville. Each audio recording should be no more than two minutes long.

The Recordings

CIEE Seminar Director: Oscar Ceballos:

Walking Tour of Old Town Sevilla:

Reggaeton on the Streets of Seville:

Morning Walk to CICUS (Universidad de Sevilla)

Visual Narrative (Operation Just Cause)

US Invasion of Panama_Operation Just Cause — Photo Credit: Wikipedia

The Importance of Context [Games of Thrones Example]

First Impressions of Seville [Nancy & Enilda]

Horse Carriage

Church Bells

What is information?

Interview in “El Corte Ingles”

Coffeeshop Conversation with Local Sevillanos

Note: Here is the updated post with all the audio recordings from Seville, Spain.

Greetings from Seville! #CIEEIFDS @CIEESeville

Thrilled to be in Seville, Spain for another CIEE International Faculty Professional Development Seminar. Thankful for the CIEE Alumni Scholarship which helped sponsor my participation in this seminar. The title of the seminar is “Communication Strategies in Context: Culture Learning and Community Engagement through Digital Tools.” I hope to provide regular updates throughout the week related to the seminar.

Homework:

Also, as part of the seminar I have a bit of homework and will be sharing (or at least try) to share it every day. The homework consist of audio recordings of sounds, conversations, audio reflections, interviews, and other audio recorded during the next few days in Seville. Each audio recording should be no more than two minutes long.

Now it is bed time. Buenas noches!