Keynote
Clay Shirky
Our keynote speaker this year was Clay Shirky, writer, consultant, and teacher on new technology and social media. Clay is a provocative new voice on all things Internet: social networks and media, economics and culture, connected communities, and the open-source movement. He divides his time among consulting, teaching, and writing on the social and economic effects of Internet technologies. His consulting practice is focused on the way network technologies provide new ways for groups to get things done, including collaboration tools, social networks, peer-to-peer sharing, collaborative filtering, and open-source development.
Session Videos
Student and Faculty Expectations of Technology and Education
Cole Camplese, Senior Director Teaching and Learning with Technology, University Park; Sherry Robinson, Associate Professor, Hazleton; Andrew Read, Distinguished Senior Scholar, University Park; Sam Richards, Senior Lecturer, University Park; David Adewumi, Undergraduate Student, University Park; Mike Alexander, Undergraduate Student, University Park; Caitlin Doyle, Undergraduate Student, University Park; Davis Shaver, Undergraduate Student, University Park
Student desires and disappointments with educational technology are often different from what faculty and staff might suppose them to be. A similar disconnect can occur between faculty and staff regarding their views on the adoption of educational technologies. How can we surface those differences in a meaningful way, one that is more constructive than @AngelSucks? During this session, the panel will offer responses to questions sourced through a Twitter backchannel conversation. The goal will be to surface and hopefully bridge divides between faculty, student, and staff opinions regarding educational technology.
You Can’t Go Back Now: Social Media and Democracy in a Large Lecture Format
C. Michael Elavsky, Assistant Professor, University Park
Technology has become as much a part of the student classroom experience as the seats. The attention of students is a finite resource, for which instructors compete. It is easy for students to withdraw into their technologies. But what if those technologies could be harnessed to reengage students? By leveraging the power of technologies such as Twitter, COMM 110 has transformed from a one-to-many lecture into a rich forum for discussion. This session will discuss the process of reimagining the course, from inception and implementation to analysis and assessment.
The Unlearning of Science Education: The Story of SC200
Andrew Read, Professor, University Park
An understanding of science is critical to an informed understanding of everything that happens around us. Yet many students will receive degrees without enough baseline scientific experience to make informed evaluations of the “scientific” claims that bombard us daily. SC200 was created to inspire a passion for science in students who had given up on the field. By using tools such as Blogs at Penn State and Poll Everywhere, we have allowed the students to teach themselves the value of science in their lives in meaningful ways.
