I'm not in at the moment, but you can leave me a message.
Welcome to South Mountain Community College. This is my 8th year at SMCC, and I'm just coming back after a year on sabbatical. I spent my year finishing up my doctoral dissertation on the effects of hybrid courses on retention and student satisfaction.
I have been teaching for 16 years. I taught 2 years at Deer Valley HS, 2 years at Westwood HS, and 4 years at Central Arizona College before coming here. Before starting my teaching career, I studied communications at Phoenix College. I earned my B.A. degree in English Literature from California State University, Bakersfield in 1989, and a M.Ed. degree in English Secondary Education from Northern Arizona University in 1993, and I just recently finished my doctorate in Instructional Technology and Distance Education at Nova Southeastern University.
I am a big advocate for the use of technology in the classroom, and I have some links below to share some of what I've learned and what I use.
- I started using blogs in my classes last summer. "A blog is a web page made up of usually short, frequently updated posts that are arranged chronologically—like a what's new page or a journal." I use a FREE website called Blogger.com and LiveJournal. "Blogger offers you instant communication power by letting you post your thoughts to the web whenever the urge strikes." And it's free. Here are few samples: My Freshman Composition Blog and a student example. LiveJournal is similar, but it also allows for students to connect to you and each other creating a social network that revolves around class content. Here is our Freshman Composition Community Page using LiveJournal.
- Blackboard (Bb) is the backbone for all that I do with technology. Students need a place to meet. Bb is a course management program that lets faculty tie it all together. Our sites are located at http://bb.dist.maricopa.edu/.
- Wikis are a great way to get students involved in the learning process. A wiki is a kind of free form website that is easy to edit. I use wikis in my classes for student writing portfolios and for student presentations. You can view our ENG101 wiki to get some ideas. Check out PBWiki for you own wiki.
- Podcasts having been finding their way into classrooms across the nation. I use podcasts to share lectures with students who missed class. My podcast feed is below.