Blended Learning: Education Innovation & Productivity

By Karen Vignare
Director, MSU Global Ventures
Michigan State University

Blended learning is the "new" buzz in higher education. Many educational researchers have discovered that online learning environments are particularly useful for communications and collaboration. When you add in management and administrative tools available in most course management systems today online learning environments are fairly robust. But giving up the classroom seems a little drastic and premature. The result is using both environments-online and face-to-face-in a planned and pedagogically opportunistic way. Yet, the research on and about blended learning is less convincing than online asynchronous education. Still, many of us almost instinctively think blended learning will be good for higher education. Why?

Apple Announces iTunes U for Campus Podcast Distribution

Apple Computer has announced a partnership program between Apple and colleges and universities to host and distribute audio and video lectures, podcasts, and vidcasts for access by enrolled student. iTunes U is a free service that provides and environment that enables faculty to upload their podcasts based on the technology used for the Apple iTunes music store. (Apple) Find out more.

Questionmark and ACT Offer Secure Assessments Through ACT Test Centers

Questionmark and ACT have partnered to deliver online assessments at 220 ACT Assessment Centers using Questionmark's Perception Assessment tool. The partnership allows distance learning programs to provide secure exams, quizzes and other assessments to students enrolled in programs outside the bounds of the campus. (Certmag.com) Read more

DOJ Gives Nod to Blackboard, WebCT

The US Department of Justice announced clearance for Blackboard and WebCT to complete their merger. (Campus Technology) Read more

Seeking Win-Win-Win Outcomes: The Case of WebSurveyor

By Mark Mitchell, DBA
Chair, Dept. of Management, Marketing and Law
Professor of Marketing
E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration
Coastal Carolina University

Coastal Carolina University is a public comprehensive liberal arts institution located in Conway, South Carolina, just nine miles from the Atlantic coast resort community of Myrtle Beach. Located in one of the fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the nation, the campus primarily serves its immediate operating area known as the "Grand Strand." Currently, the university serves over 7,600 students. The E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration has approximately 35 full-time faculty members serving over 1,900 students in Accounting, Economics, Finance, Management, Marketing, Professional Golf Management, and Resort Tourism Management.

The Wall College of Business is accredited by AACSB - The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. AACSB accreditation is a mission-driven process of continuous improvement modeled after the Malcolm Baldridge Quality Award (given annually by the U.S. Department of Commerce). Accredited institutions, such as Coastal, seek to fulfill their missions while continually assessing themselves against competitive, peer, and aspirant institutions as well as published accreditation standards.

The mission of the E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration is to educate each of our students to have the qualities and attributes essential to his/her progressive and continuing development throughout careers in private, public, and non-profit organizations in a globally competitive and diverse environment. Inherent in this mission is our commitment to the following objectives:

• Teaching - We will teach the core business functions through applied, experiential, and active learning strategies facilitated by appropriate technologies.
• Intellectual contribution - We will create and disseminate knowledge in business, which includes learning and pedagogical research, high value added contributions to practice, and discipline-based scholarship.
• Public service - We will provide professional expertise to benefit the local, regional, national, and international community.
• Stakeholder involvement - We will actively promote an open and collegial environment that includes input from students, staff, alumni, employers and other institutional stakeholders.

Digital Library Initiatives: Next-Gen Libraries

Keeping a history of peace studies. Cataloging audio and video broadcasts important to the Northwest. Digitizing images and other documents older than the state of California. All of these efforts are important steps toward preserving the history of our nation’s development. And all of them are going on right now, thanks to various digital library efforts.

As digital repositories continue to evolve, keep your eye on these projects. They may serve as the models for your own digitization initiatives. Read on!.(Campus Technology) Read more

From the Reader Response Forum

Creating the Classroom of Tomorrow

Posted by: jmoney

Exchange ideas on the latest enterprise technologies and discuss the dilemmas of implementation and budget issues.