Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google


U Oklahoma Instructors Head to Academic Tech School

  • By Dian Schaffhauser
  • 01/08/15

Faculty members at an institution in Oklahoma will have the chance to take classes themselves during a tech expo this week. The University of Oklahoma (OU) Academic Technology Expo was launched in 2012 to help instructors at the school learn about existing and emerging technologies that could help them improve teaching and learning.

An event that drew 120 attendees to 10 sessions four years ago has grown to nearly 300 people and 40 sessions. Each class lasts 30 minutes and the day kicks off at eight with breakfast and ends with a reception at four.

The expo is put on by three departments, the OU Libraries, OU Information Technology and the Center for Teaching Excellence. Among the sessions: the adoption of open textbooks, cloud-based printing, use of tablets for exams in engineering courses and the integration of healthcare administration MOOCs into blended learning.

"The Academic Tech Expo provides an excellent opportunity for our faculty to hear from their colleagues about technologies that can enhance teaching and learning here at OU," said Vice President and CIO Loretta Early. "We created this event with the intention of bringing instructors from different disciplines together to converse and collaborate. We're thrilled that the event has grown so much in the last few years."

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • large group of college students sitting on an academic quad

    Student Readiness: Learning to Learn

    Melissa Loble, Instructure's chief academic officer, recommends a focus on 'readiness' as a broader concept as we try to understand how to build meaningful education experiences that can form a bridge from the university to the workplace. Here, we ask Loble what readiness is and how to offer students the ability to 'learn to learn'.

  • glowing brain above stacked coins

    The Higher Ed Playbook for AI Affordability

    Fulfilling the promise of AI in higher education does not require massive budgets or radical reinvention. By leveraging existing infrastructure, embracing edge and localized AI, collaborating across institutions, and embedding AI thoughtfully across the enterprise, universities can move from experimentation to impact.

  • row of digital padlocks

    2026 Cybersecurity Trends to Watch in Higher Education

    In an open call last month, we asked education and industry leaders for their predictions on the cybersecurity landscape for schools, districts, colleges, and universities in 2026. Here's what they told us.

  • Interface buttons of Generative AI tool

    Report: No Foolproof Method Exists for Detecting AI-Generated Media

    Microsoft has released a new research report warning that no single technology can reliably distinguish AI-generated content from authentic media, and that deepening reliance on any one method risks misleading the public.