UNC-TLT: Lessons Learned

I’m glad I had the opportunity to attend the 2008 UNC Teaching and Learning with Technology Conference in Raleigh. I attended several interesting sessions and picked up some innovative ideas. The conference provided a broad range of technological information for teachers in any discipline. Being in the comp/rhet field, I found “Taking Advantage of Technology in Structuring Online Rhetoric and Composition Courses,” most rewarding for designing a hybrid or 100% online course. In this session, the presenter demonstrated how teachers can move beyond the traditional course management system to design a course using http://sites.google.com/. The site allows a teacher to include icons strategically placed in a type of shadow box. These icons lead students to assignments, practice exercises, drop boxes, online class meetings, and tutorials. With the Google site tools anyone can easily and professionally design a virtual classroom. The nonlinear construction of the site creates a welcoming place where students can learn.