Penn State campuses bridge the gap between community and University through digital fluency

Penn State campuses bridge the gap between community and University through digital fluency

Faculty and staff at Penn State continue to go above and beyond the classroom to transform education, bridging the gap between the University and its surrounding communities. In the increasingly ubiquitous and changing world of technology, faculty are preparing students to move beyond digital literacy—the understanding of how to use the tools—to how they can achieve digital fluency.

Digital fluency is the ability to leverage technology to create new knowledge, uncover new problems, and to complement these with critical thinking, complex problem solving, and emotional intelligence to address the new challenges.

“In learning a foreign language, a literate person can read, speak, and listen for understanding in the new language. A fluent person can create something in the language: a story, a poem, a play, or a conversation. Similarly, digital fluency is the ability to create something new with those tools,” says Jennifer Sparrow, associate vice president of Teaching and Learning with Technology (TLT) at Penn State.

A new pilot program, Classroom 2 Community: Authentic Learning Assessment (C2C), hopes to foster digital fluency among students who take part in the project. C2C is an expansion of Penn State TLT’s open educational resources (OER) initiative to help faculty and students create affordable access to course content.

C2C assignments increase community engagement by asking students to solve problems with innovative solutions for positive change. Immersive technology such as virtual reality (VR) can take students into worlds they would never otherwise encounter. The use of these modern digital technologies provides students with experiences that weren’t possible in the past.

“Digital fluency is particularly powerful in community-based engaged scholarship projects,” said Jacqueline Edmonson, chancellor and chief academic officer at Penn State Greater Allegheny.

“Students see real-world opportunities to use digital tools, and their comfort with these tools can result in more impactful results as they strive to solve community problems. Students also gain a deeper sense of the ethical implications of the tools they are using as they make decisions about the data that is relevant and the consequences of the uses of particular forms of data,” Edmonson added.

By incorporating elements of digital fluency, C2C projects provide authentic learning experiences where classroom lessons directly impact real-life skills that can improve communities. Through a combination of using digital technology to create new knowledge and implementing soft skills such as critical thinking, creative problem solving, and collaboration, students can use their C2C experience to best position themselves to excel now and to meet the demands of the future workforce.

At Penn State, faculty and instructional designers from Teaching and Learning with Technology (TLT) are working side-by-side to design coursework that includes those types of elements and strategies. With increased access to real-life experiences, students earn essential experience that can prepare them to work in any number of professional settings and help them establish long-lasting relationships beyond college.

“We are enthusiastic about the Classroom 2 Community project’s potential to create positive changes on and off Penn State campuses throughout the Commonwealth,” said Angie Dick, learning design manager with TLT. “At the same time, it’s wonderful to collaborate with faculty in exploring new teaching and learning approaches to benefit the student learning experience.

Penn State Greater Allegheny students strengthen relationships with individuals with autism

penn state greater allegheny students with Band Together's founder John Vento

Greater Allegheny communications students pose with John Vento, founder of Pittsburgh’s Band Together.

At Penn State Greater Allegheny, Rosemary Martinelli, lecturer in marketing and communications, is working with Band Together, a nonprofit started by two Pittsburgh-based musicians to engage and employ—in DJ work and individual music-related performances—young men and women on the autism spectrum. Through this work, Martinelli’s students will do extensive research on autism as well as develop an understanding of public relations techniques and strategies.

Martinelli’s students will continue to work with her in COMM 471—Public Relations Methods during the spring 2020 semester to create a full-fledged, integrated marketing communications campaign for Band Together, complete with media and digital components.

“This is real work, similar to a PR [public relations] agency that has secondary audiences far down the road from what we do just within the 15 weeks,” Martinelli said. “Students can leave with experience; with something they can share and talk about with future employers. Being able to connect them with that organization, its mission, and the community as a whole. You can’t get that out of a book or a video, but you can get that out of a human connection.”

As part of their background research, students had an authentic learning experience in the world of autism. Using virtual reality headsets as well as programs Martinelli planned and coordinated with TLT, students had a glimpse into what daily life is like for an individual on the autism spectrum. There are also a series of Band Together events students will attend throughout the semesters to engage with individuals on the spectrum and to see how music and performance open them up and help them by providing employment opportunities. Through these events, students can better understand what autism is by learning to engage with individuals on the spectrum.

Students also engaged with individuals on the autism spectrum through interviews as part of a collaboration between Martinelli, TLT, and staff from the ACRES (Adults Creating Residential & Employment Solutions) Project in State College, a nonprofit that helps adults with autism build a foundation for a productive, independent life.

Through a virtual meeting, the students and the adults on the autism spectrum were able to question each other, delve into the work being done through the ACRES Project, and share first-person accounts of what life is like for those diagnosed with autism. Martinelli hopes to continue the interaction by organizing a face-to-face visit in the spring semester with her students and the individuals with autism at the ACRES Project.

“This project makes the class fun and exciting because we are working on a real-life activity,” said Greater Allegheny senior communications student Monica Burke. “I have worked with children on the autism spectrum. They are some of the most loving and kind children you will ever meet. Being able to work with an organization that is helping children further their talents and dreams is amazing.”

Altoona nursing students create digital resources to enhance community health

penn state altoona students walk on campus

Students at the Penn State Altoona campus (pictured) are learning how valuable community health is through the creation of digital stories.

At Penn State Altoona, Delores McCreary, associate teaching professor in nursing, is helping students grasp the value of community health through the creation of digital stories and quick reference guides that provide information about how to care for patients from various cultural backgrounds.

Using H5P, a tool that allows users to create, share, and reuse interactive HTML5 content, nursing students at the Altoona campus are writing review questions. Written in the same style as the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX), an exam that students must pass to become registered nurses, these review questions will provide a continually evolving digital resource that future students can expand by adding more questions. McCreary is currently looking for opportunities to share the open educational resources with practicing nurses in the community.

“When students have a little more control over what they’re doing, they’re going to be more engaged in it,” McCreary explained. “It gives students a sense of contributing.”

Altoona senior Kennedy Stessney said the OER project has allowed her to become more involved in working with her peers and helped better prepare her for her future career. “I will be experiencing so many different cultures in the field of nursing when I graduate. I would never want to offend someone or disregard their values and beliefs, so this project helped me to understand what questions to ask and how to look for ways to individualize my care for each patient.”

From virtual reality headsets that bring students closer to understanding individuals on the autism spectrum to digital reference guides that captures the lessons learned from community health, Penn State’s Classroom 2 Community initiative is providing students with essential digital fluency skills. Students have the opportunity to address pressing societal challenges that impact them and their peers. Through the process, they are better equipped with the inherent capacity to navigate, collaborate, and create in digital spaces that go beyond the end of their courses.

For more information on the Classroom 2 Community initiative, contact us.

To learn more about how Penn State is working to provide accessible and affordable course materials for faculty and students, check out the open educational resources (OER) initiative.

Affordable Course Transformation at Penn State enters its third year

Affordable Course Transformation at Penn State enters its third year

Penn State faculty who participate in the third round of Affordable Course Transformation at Penn State (ACT@PSU) will continue the effort to provide greater access to higher education through affordable course materials. The call for proposals will open on Wednesday, September 25 and the deadline to submit is Monday, November 11.

“It was exciting to work on [ACT@PSU] because it gave me the resources to complete something I had planned for many years,” said Zachary Klingensmith, assistant teaching professor of economics at Penn State Behrend, when asked about his ACT@PSU project last year. “The ACT team introduced me to existing materials that allowed me to create something beautiful, useful, and free for my [ECON 102 and 104] students which will be used for many, many years to come.”

Published research has shown that open educational resources (OERs) are effective in increasing students’ end-of-course grades along with their potential to save student populations millions of dollars. Penn State is supporting the effort to develop OERs through ACT@PSU, a program funded by the Open and Affordable Educational Resources (OAER) Working Group which is charged by Penn State executive vice president and provost Nick Jones.

Faculty who participate in ACT@PSU receive a grant stipend, instructional design support from Teaching and Learning with Technology, and additional support from the Open Educational Resources coordinator and Open Education Librarian.

ACT@PSU will open the call for proposals on September 25. Interested faculty should visit Penn State’s OER website and click on “Schedule Consultation” in the top right corner and choose to meet in person or via Zoom with Julie Lang or Amanda Larson.

Following the consultation, an online application can be submitted along with a syllabus for the course intended for transformation.

Harrisburg leads OER innovation in geology courses

Harrisburg leads OER innovation in geology courses

Open educational resources (OER) are transforming the landscape of higher education, allowing for more accessible and affordable learning. At Penn State Harrisburg, geology students are using digital rock kits and an open-access textbook in place of traditional rock packages and text, a change that has fueled student engagement.

Through a partnership between Penn State Teaching and Learning with Technology (TLT) and the Penn State University Libraries, the ACT@PSU program revolutionizes faculty use of the traditional textbook. ACT@PSU supports instructors who want to teach courses through OER. With the assistance of Julie Lang, OER coordinator for TLT, and Dan Poeschl, multimedia specialist for The Center for Teaching Excellence at Penn State Harrisburg, the transformation of geology classes at the Harrisburg campus began in fall 2018.

“When the center purchased the Agisoft PhotoScan software, we created 3D rocks to replace the rock kit ultimately,” said Jennifer Sliko, assistant teaching professor of earth and geosciences at the Harrisburg campus. “In the future, we will have the rock kit as a recommended but not required resource.”

Poeschl photographed rocks from the traditional kit then uploaded them into the software to create 3D models accessible through SketchFab, where people can share 3D models just like they would YouTube videos. “The software’s primary function is to scan and create 3D models of real-life objects quickly. Its most popular use is by game designers. They can quickly and efficiently populate an open world video game without painstakingly creating a bunch of custom objects.”

By the project’s end, Poeschl had created 43 models. Some reflective, transparent rocks like quartz didn’t translate well in the 3D space, but there will be alternative ways Sliko can teach with these rocks in a digital realm.

Initially, Sliko sought out an online replacement for the rock kit to solve the issue of academic integrity. Each year, the campus bookstore bought back the kits from students, and students could pass on the identification of each rock to the next class.

With the 3D rocks, Sliko can change the labeling each year. “In 2018, ‘Rock A’ might be granite, but in 2019, ‘Rock A’ will be a completely different rock specimen. It reduces the burden of the textbook purchase and minimizes cheating from semester to semester.”

Affordability also plays a significant role in switching to OER. By fall 2019, Sliko plans to have her course become completely OER-based. Physical rock kits are costly, with not many used options available. Students in Sliko’s course now have an online textbook they use to reference for rock identification.

Student engagement has significantly increased over previous semesters. Students are researching online and engaging more with their classmates to identify the rocks.

In the 3D space, students can zoom in and out on the rocks and easily manipulate and identify them based on color and individual mineral grains. The effect is the same as though the students were looking at the stones through a hand lens. Plans for improvement include digital representations of other methods to test rocks and minerals, such as reactions to acids and magnets.

The advantages of using digital rock kits and an open-access textbook will extend far beyond the Harrisburg campus. Other instructors can use these models for their online classes as well.

Sliko said, “Having that innovative technology as we move forward becomes more crucial because the students expect it. In online classes, it’s a nice way to enwrap their attention.”

University of Oklahoma professor to give talk on open educational resources April 8

University of Oklahoma professor to give talk on open educational resources April 8

Over the past several years, there has been an increase in students requesting and using open educational resources (OER) to replace high-cost traditional course materials. A new trend is emerging where students are not only consuming OER, but also creating it. At Penn State, Teaching and Learning with Technology (TLT) offers resources to expand the OER initiative.

On Monday, April 8, from 11 a.m. to noon in The Dreamery, TLT will be hosting Julie Ann Ward, assistant professor of 20th and 21st Century Latin American Literature at the University of Oklahoma (OU). Ward will discuss her experience editing a student-created open educational resource, Antología abierta de literatura hispana. There will be a Q & A period, and the discussion will be available to access remotely via Zoom.

In fall 2016, with the help of the OU Libraries’ Alternative Textbook Grant, groups of four to five students in Ward’s Introduction to Hispanic Literature and Culture course selected ten texts from the fifteenth to the twentieth century to include in a critical edition. Ward wrote about the project in A Guide to Making Open Textbooks With Students, a recipient of the Open Education Consortium’s 2018 Open Education Award for Excellence. The book serves as a handbook for faculty interested in involving students in the creation of open textbooks.

To learn more about open educational resources, visit the Open Educational Library and the Open Pedagogy Notebook. If you are interested in learning more about how to get your students involved in the creation of OER, contact L-OER-AT-PENN-STATE@lists.psu.edu.