TALENT

TALENT - Teaching And Learning With Electronic Networked Technologies
by Hae Okimoto

Faculty are at the heart of education, for without them, who would teach and guide our students? Advances in technology now provide greater access to education via distance learning and also enhances and supplements traditional, campus based programs. The Distance Learning and Instructional Technology (DLIT) office has created TALENT, a faculty development program to help faculty apply technology in their classroom. Multiple options for faculty development are provided. For specific information on the components of TALENT, visit www.hawaii.edu/talent.

During the academic year, faculty may participate in the TALENT Faculty Development series. The three components to this series are described below. Scheduled dates and times are posted on the TALENT Web site.

Issues-based statewide discussions via Hawaii Interactive Television System (HITS). Topics include:

• Why teach on-line? Should I Use a Course Management Tool?
• Interaction and Community Building
• Student Interactions: E-mail, listservs (Unthreaded Discussions)
• Assessment and Testing
• Organizing for online or distance delivery
• Copyright Issues
• Video Based Access

Internet and hands-on lab based workshops on WebCT (the course management tool which DLIT supports). Upon request, DLIT has provided these workshops in an intensive, all-day format on campuses throughout the UH system.
Hands-on skills building workshops (i.e. PowerPoint, Web Page Creation, Graphics for Your Web site, Animation, E-mail, and Listservs for Your Course). These workshops are held at the Digital Media Center (DMC), located in Kuykendall 105. The DMC is a faculty development lab staffed by DLIT personnel.

The TALENT Show is a mini conference showcasing UH faculty currently engaged in online teaching. The TALENT Show is traditionally held during spring break and includes:

An opportunity to showcase what UH faculty throughout the system are doing in the area of online or technology assisted instruction.
An invited keynote speaker who provides a broader perspective on the theme selected for the year.
A resource fair of products and services.

The TALENT Summer Institute provides an opportunity for participants to learn about WebCT, and begin the process of creating their own online course or resources for their traditional courses. The TALENT Summer Institute is an intensive hands-on environment, analogous to a computer boot camp. Faculty apply for participation via the appropriate campus academic structure.

The commitments required of faculty accepted to the TALENT Institute include:

Participation as a student in a month long online course: TALENT 101
Attendance at the summer hands-on workshop
Sharing of course / experiences with interested faculty

TALENT 101 objectives:

expose faculty to online instructional issues
provide faculty with the experience of being an online student
discuss pedagogical issues

The assignments required in TALENT 101 provide for the basis of the faculty's own course development at the Summer Institute.

In addition to all of these formalized TALENT activities, faculty can receive individualized assistance from the staff of the Digital Media Center as well as faculty support personnel within the local campus. For more information on any of these programs, contact Hae Okimoto, Manager of Distance Learning and Instructional Technology at (808) 956-3504 or visit the TALENT Web site.