eLearning at Ferris State University
Written by: Dr. Tracy Russo, Senior Design Consultant References: 5:51am Manton Consolidated Schools will be closed due to the impending storm... My first thought (like many humans), an hour extra sleep! I'll work from home rather than risk the 55 mile drive to work.6:45am Gypsy, my dog, expressed different thoughts. "Mom, mom, time …
Continue reading Teach like a dog: Beauty is in the eye of the beholder
I’m biased, I’m not patient, and I live in an industry with an innovation and adoption cycle that has never been sustained for so long in human history. The Innovation Adoption Lifecycle has been the mantra for technology my entire life. The only problem with this is that as soon as the Early Majority is …
“Innovation” is a buzzword that some people love to hate. As a technologist, I find the word relevant, but I struggle with the applied meaning. The word shows up everywhere, most notable in vision and mission statements. It is Ferris’ vision to be “the preferred choice for students who seek specialized, innovative, career- and life-enhancing …
Would you be surprised to know that Ferris State University has multiple eSports teams? Over 100 students self-organize, practice, and play competitive matches against students at other universities. There are pre-seasons, tournaments, qualifiers, scholarships, playoffs, coaches, stadiums, millions of dollars in scholarships, and matches broadcast online constantly. Currently, Ferris State University has seven competitive teams …
Continue reading Online Student Recreation: eSports @ Ferris
Engaging students in online courses happens by design, not by chance. The Community of Inquiry (CoI) model asserts that social presence is not only important (Garrison, Anderson & Archer, 2000), but that “there are things the instructor can do to help design for and elicit social presence through teaching presence” (Lowenthal & Mulder, 2017). Using …
Continue reading Reincarnation: Breathe Life into A Dead Online Course Using Video
During her 2012 Ted Talk entitled “Connected, but alone?” Sherry Turkle proclaimed, “technology is making a bid to redefine human connection.” Because we have learned to rely on technology to compensate for feelings of vulnerability, it has become increasingly common for humans to be satisfied with the false sense of connection provided by technology and …
As I was designing my course last summer, I could not help but to wish that all of my students learned like me because it would make my life easier when prepping my course. I reflected on all of my scholarly success, how hard I worked to get where I am, and how these students …
