2004 StudentAffairs.com Virtual Case Study Heather Barbour, Daniel Doerr, Kunwar Umesh Vig, & Michael Violette University of Connecticut February 15, 2004

Proposal for a Course on Student Affairs and Technology Why? Why? Student affairs and technology Student affairs and technology Students and technology Students and technologyWhat? Skills and Issues Skills and Issues

Information Technology & The Role of Student Affairs Professionals Four Key Roles  Architects  Facilitators of Change  Educators and Learners  Policymakers (Ausiello & Wells, 1997)

Information-Age Mindset  Computers aren’t technology  The Internet is better than TV  Reality is no longer real  Doing is more important than knowing  Learning more closely resembles Nintendo than logic  Multitasking is a way of life  Typing is preferred to handwriting  Staying connected is essential  There is zero tolerance for delays  Consumer and creator are blurring (Frand, 2000)

Why a Course in Technology?  Undergraduate college students using sophisticated applications of technology  Incoming graduate students’ demand for technology to be fully integrated across the graduate preparation curriculum  Students will choose graduate program based on the quality of the program’s information technology resources  To prepare future student affairs professionals with technology skills to understand and meet the needs of the students they will eventually serve (Engstrom, 1997)

Desired Outcomes Skills Web design Web design Desktop publishing Desktop publishing Assessment AssessmentIssues Today’s digital students Today’s digital students Ethical and legal concerns Ethical and legal concerns Technology resource management Technology resource management

Basic Course Description “Skills” lessons “Skills” lessons Learning specific software Learning specific software Learning the potential applications of specific technologies in the higher education and student affairs environment Learning the potential applications of specific technologies in the higher education and student affairs environment “Issues” lessons Learning about specific technology-related issues Learning about specific technology-related issues Problem solving around specific issues Problem solving around specific issues

Student Performance Assessment Related to outcomes Ability to use software and understand its applications Ability to use software and understand its applications Degree and depth of understanding of technology related issues Degree and depth of understanding of technology related issues Project-based assessment Weekly group analysis Weekly group analysis Semester project Semester project

Tailoring the Course To current technology issues To students To resource availability To instructor preferences

Week One: Issues Class Lesson Plan Introduction to class structure, desired outcomes, and class members Overview of technology issues and skills and how they relate to student affairs profession Introduction to first technology issue Today’s digital students Today’s digital students Desired outcomes Understanding of course content and structure Basic understanding of today’s college student mentality

Week Two: Skills Class Lesson Plan Distance learning technology WebCT WebCT University Listservs University Listservs Video conferencing Video conferencing Multiple Object Oriented Structures (MOOS)/ chatrooms Multiple Object Oriented Structures (MOOS)/ chatrooms Desired outcomes Basic understanding of various distance learning technologies and their application potentials

Week Three: Issues Class Lesson Plan Today’s digital students Distance learning and community Distance learning and community Student web pages Student web pages Isolation and Involvement Isolation and Involvement Desired Outcomes Ability to understand and anticipate specific effects of increased technology on students

Week Four: Skills Class Lesson Plan Web design Features of an effective student affairs website Features of an effective student affairs website Introduction to using WYSIWYG web programs Introduction to using WYSIWYG web programs Desired Outcomes Understanding of the features that make an effective student affairs website Ability to construct a basic HTML page

Week Five: Issues Class Lesson Plan Ethical issues Technology & academic integrity Technology & academic integrity Student web pages Student web pages Downloading software, music, etc. Downloading software, music, etc. Desired Outcomes Understanding of basic ethical issues and ability to analyze and anticipate ethical implications of technology use

Week Six: Skills Class Lesson Plan Web design Intermediate design skills Intermediate design skills Making sites accessible Making sites accessible Desired Outcomes Ability to construct a multi-paged web site with internal and external links

Week Seven: Issues Class Lesson Plan Legal issues Institutional responsibility for student technology use Institutional responsibility for student technology use The Digital Millennium Copyright Act The Digital Millennium Copyright Act Free speech & digital harassment Free speech & digital harassment Desired Outcomes Understanding of basic legal issues and ability to analyze and anticipate legal implications of technology use

Week Eight: Skills Class Lesson Plan Desktop publishing Basic print design principles Basic print design principles Introduction to using desktop publishing programs Introduction to using desktop publishing programs Desired Outcomes Understanding of, and ability to apply, good design techniques Ability to construct basic one-page document

Week Nine: Issues Class Lesson Plan Technology resource management Staff related issues Staff related issues Staff training Outsourcing IT Keeping technological parity Desired Outcomes Understanding of basic technology resource management issues and ability to analyze and anticipate budgetary and human resource implications

Week Ten: Skills Class Lesson Plan Desktop publishing Intermediate design skills Intermediate design skills Desktop printing and packaging for outside providers Desktop printing and packaging for outside providers Desired Outcomes Ability to construct a multi-page document and an understanding of printing techniques

Week Eleven: Issues Class Lesson Plan Technology resource management Infrastructure issues Infrastructure issues Understanding networks Bandwidth usage Keeping up with technology Wireless campus Desired Outcomes Understanding of basic campus technology infrastructure and ability to analyze and anticipate budgetary implications and usage

Week Twelve: Skills Class Lesson Plan Assessment technology Data Management Data Management Constructing a database Extracting information Data Analysis Data Analysis Desired Outcomes Ability to construct a basic database, perform queries and produce reports Basic understanding of the use and potential application of data analysis programs

Week Thirteen: Skills Class Lesson Plan Web design Designing forms Designing forms Using forms for data collection Using forms for data collection Dynamic web design Dynamic web design Desired Outcomes Ability to construct a simple web-based form Basic understanding of the potential uses of forms as related to data collection and web applications

Week Fourteen: Capstone Lesson Plan Student presentations of their final projects Desired Outcomes Opportunity for students to articulate their understanding of technology related issues and demonstrate the skills they have acquired over the course of the semester