Educause and Professional Development from HOME or the OFFICE

Readers,

I am always seeking neat professional development activities that I can integrate in my everyday (very busy) life without spending a registration fee.

The Educause website never ceases to amaze me, because they are always posting innovative videos. Only current members are able to access the videos that have been released during the past six months, but EVERYONE is able to access videos that are slightly older than six months.

Here are some of the videos to which EVERYONE has access:

Digital Content in Higher Education – Practical Findings

Textbook Affordability: Emerging Solutions in Ohio

A Tale of Two Redesigns

Enjoy!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Social Media Conference 2011 (#SMC2011) - 6 Awesome Reflections from the Conference

Readers,

The Social Media Conference reached over 200 people! We were very excited about our conference attendance and sessions!

Here is some of the press and blog posts from our conference:

Ms. Yvonne Mulhern (@misscybrarian), one of our TSMRI co-directors, recently created the following...

1 - A Storify Link for #SMC2011 - LINK

She has been an AMAZING person to work with this semester! I am SO glad that she is a co-director of TSMRI!

2 - Mr. Kurt Mogonye, wrote a flawless media release about #SMC2011! He also took MANY pictures during the conference and we are VERY thankful for him!

Here is his article - Tarleton hosts first social media conference

The J-TAC 2011

3 - Our student newspaper, the J-TAC, published a story titled, "Interest to Pinterest From recipes to wreaths, social media site encourages users to get crafty"

4 - Mr. Justin Carrell (a #SMC2011 Presenter) published a blog posted about our conference - LINK.


5 - Ms. Amanda Pape, an AMAZING librarian at Tarleton State University and #SMC2011 Presenter, wrote the following post on her genealogy blog, "Social Media in Genealogy and Family History: Tech Tuesday Tip". 

6 - One of our conference attendees, the Ambitious Cowgirl, wrote this post about our conference, "Sorry for not blogging!".

Do you have any suggestions for next year? We would like to make the conference BIGGER and BETTER next November! :)


Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Pinterest in Higher Education Series (#PinterestinHigherEd & Febreze Freebie Friday) - 5/5 Ways to Use Pinterest in the College Classroom Environment (My Pinterest Boards)

Readers,

Today is the DAY that I share my boards with you! Many of my colleagues (from my university and conferences) and a lot of my students are on the Pinterest website as well! Here's my Pinterest Account - Follow Me! :) 

I have 16 Boards and here are a few...

Academic Life and College

Millennial Research

Organizational Tips

Fantastic Food Ideas for Meetings and Home

Eco Ideas - Green Lifestyle

****I plan to work on a social media board and an infographics board very soon! :)

Also, here's a freebie, because it IS freebie Friday! I love to place a Febreze plug-in on the walls of my house and in my office. These plug-ins create a holiday ambiance for the students (as well as myself during the grading process).

Febreze NOTICEables Trade-Up Program ($3.50 Check via Mail)

Have a great weekend!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Pinterest in Higher Education Series (#PinterestinHigherEd) - 4/5 Ways to Use Pinterest in the College Classroom Environment (Cruising Boards)

Readers,

Yes, I am ENJOYING the Pinterest blog topic! As I write this post, I am pursing boards and pins to place on this post. I plan to post at least 15-20 blog posts that might be relevant for your college courses.

Here's a disclaimer - There are A WEALTH of boards created by primary and secondary teachers. USE these boards to create your higher education boards and gain ideas for your research. For example, here is a board from DoReMiGirl (I assume she is a elementary school teacher).

On her "Around the School Teaching" board, she has a few great ideas and infographics that can be used in various college classes.

Bucket List - Great for goal formation.

Bucket-O-Fun (Featuring ping pong balls) - Great for an extemporaneous speaking activity or reflection activity!

Just What Does Your State Do Best - Great for presentations

Here's another great board from Ryan Paul Smith titled, "Images for Presentations"

http://pinterest.com/ryanpaulsmith/images-for-presentations/

Enjoy! Please let me know if you find another board or if you have great ideas for the Pinterest website in higher education.

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Pinterest in Higher Education Series (#PinterestinHigherEd & Wandering Wednesdays) - 3/5 Ways to Use Pinterest in the College Classroom Environment (Gaining Teaching Ideas via Pinterest))

Readers,

This week's Wandering Wednesday post is focused on a local university, Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth. Their Center Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) always has a WEALTH of great and inspiring blog posts - LINK. In November, Amy Collier posted an awesome post titled, "Some Thoughts on Teaching with Pinterest"

In her post, she focuses on the following:

1 - Emphasis on visuals and visual appeal.

2 - Easy collecting and sharing of topics, ideas, and interests.

3 - Easy management and organization of resources.

Here is her teaching and learning board on Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/amcollier/teaching-in-higher-ed/

Thanks for some amazing ideas!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Pinterest in Higher Education Series (#PinterestinHigherEd) - 2/5 Ways to Use Pinterest in the College Classroom Environment (Finding and Organizing Infographics)

Readers,

One way to use Pinterest in Higher Education is to search for and organize infographics! Lately, I have started to use infographics in my upper-level communication classes and also in the Texas Social Media Research Institute's (TSMRI) events/activities.

Now for definitions! A infographic is a pictorial representation of data in a potentially engaging format. <- Hey, I just made that up! ;) 

Personally, I think that infographics will replace conference poster presentations in the next few years! The images seems to be more engaging than a traditional poster format. Which is GREAT for conference presentations, because you want the participants to visit YOUR poster! :) 

Also, students can use their self-created, infographics on blogs and in their in-class presentations. The only downside is the preponderance of ink that might be used to create the "infographic poster".

Pinterest can be used to ORGANIZE your infographics! Here's an example of one user's infographic boards on higher education (among other issues) - http://pinterest.com/hexiaobo/infographics/

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Pinterest in Higher Education Series (#PinterestinHigherEd) - 1/5 Ways to Use Pinterest in the College Classroom Environment

Readers,

This semester, when I needed some downtime outside of the university, I started visiting the Pinterest website on my computer and iPad (thanks Melissa)! One of my students introduced me to this wonderful resource and I have been HOOKED on this pictorial social media networking website.


I always ask my students, "How can you use XYZ website as a scholarly or organizational tool as well as the social tool?" Now, I will have to ask myself the same question, "How can I use Pinterest as a research, classroom-based, or organizational tool?"


This week, I developed a few strategies and activities for using Pinterest as a social networking tool in higher education. Let me know what you think!


Sincerely,


J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Happy Finals Prep-Week! - Treat Yourself at Marriott Properties During the Winter Break!

Readers,

During the break, I plan to accomplish A LOT of tasks! Non-academic tasks include wrapping gifts and placing the ornaments on the tree. Academic tasks include finalizing the spring syllabi, answering students' e-mail, finding grants, and finishing tasks for the Texas Social Media Research Institute (TSMRI). 

Despite the full schedule, I plan to take advantage of some wonderful last minute reservations at a Marriott hotel (or two) during the break. My hotel stay is always relaxing and I am more productive at a Marriott desk than I am at my own desk (whether at work or at home). There are just so many distractions at home and at work! Sometimes, you just have to treat yourself! This is such a funny video!

If you are interested in the Marriott Rewards program, please click this link...

https://www.marriott.com/rewards/rewards-program.mi

If you need a referral, please let me know! - jennifertedwards@gmail.com

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Happy Finals Prep-Week! - The Mini-Mental Vacation (Professors and TV Series)

http://blog.hootmag.org/

Readers,

During finals prep week, I allow myself to do SOMETHING to veg out for a few minutes each day! This rest enables me to focus on other activities that comprise my daily mini-mental vacation! Every semester the mini-mental vacation is always focused on a different activity. Past semesters focused on television series (thank Netflix)! I admit, I love Bones, Law and Order, Criminal Minds, and Mad Men! Yes, I have reached the semi-middle-aged threshold that looks forward to the 5pm and 10pm news! 

This year, I focused my efforts on Pinterest (because I do not have time for anything else). :) Next week, I will focus on how college professors can use Pinterest in their classrooms.

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Happy Finals Prep-Week/Wandering Wednesdays - Frugal Scholar: Lessons from a Lifetime of Frugality

http://blog.hootmag.org/

Readers,

During this time of year, I am always searching for good deals for Christmas and for the month of January (which is always an economically LEAN month for our household). I am always reading frugal mommy blogs and frugal couple blogs to gain ideas and insight into how our household can save money. Here's my hidden secret, I also spend money on my "mobile classroom" at the beginning of each semester (even throughout the semester). The items that I purchase include the following: post-it notes, markers, in-class incentives, kraft bags for in class activities, books, etc.). 

Now, I am super excited to feature the following frugal professor blog (one of the first that I have ever seen). Introducing the Frugal Scholar Blog - http://frugalscholar.blogspot.com/. This author (who does not identify herself) describes herself as a, "pathologically frugal professor, wife, and mother".

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sado27/4917385326/

I will definitely follow her blog via Blogger and I cannot wait to discover which subject she teaches and for which university she is employed.

Her recent posts in the months of November/December include:

Pre-Finals Week/Wandering Wednesdays - More Specials I Will Not Avail Myself Of: Black Friday and Beyond

Cheap Gifts for Your College Student, Adult Child, or Yourself: Rice Cooker and Slow Cooker

Gifts for Teachers: FRUGAL Gifts for Teachers, that is

Enjoy!

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Happy Finals Prep-Week! - The Long-Semester To Do List

http://blog.hootmag.org/

Readers,

I am very excited about next week...finals week! While preparing for finals week, I have to persist through my end-of-the-semester to do list. This list usually includes:

- Saving several blackboard data files in PDF format.

- Clean my office "pantry" (a clear Rubbermaid box with snacks) and refrigerator.

- Finish grading extra credit assignments.

- Distribute pre-finals grades to students.

- Return library books and other "borrowed" items.

- Save blackboard courses and place data back into the course repository.

- Plan the Communication Department's Winter Party.

What is on your end-of-the-semester to do list?

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Social Media Conference (#SMC2011) - Weekly Planning Meeting Healthy Snack List - Popcorn Indiana, Kroger, Sprouts, Ozarka Water

Readers,

This weekend, I was able to gain a few extra hours of sleep (this is the rest that I lost during ECW2011). I am so thankful for wonderful faculty, interns, and an amazing conference! 

Throughout the semester, the interns requested to plan the end of the year party and I kindly obliged, because I used a lot of my personal funds to purchase snacks for each of the meetings. However, I do have to point out Ms. Mulhern and Dr. Maben's generosity during some of the meetings this semester! They were amazing!

Later, I discovered that this party had a distinct theme. ;) I will post more about this themed party later. :)

Usually, I shopped at Kroger (Granbury, TX) or Sprouts (Fort Worth, TX) the night before the meeting to make sure that I had fresh snacks and healthy foods to bring to each of the TSMRI meetings.

   

Usually, our weekly snacks consisted of the following:

- Popcorn Indiana - Cinnamon Sugar Popcorn (This was a FAVORITE among of the 15 members of TSMRI.) - http://www.popcornindiana.com/

*In fact, I called the Popcorn Indiana company to see if they would be interested in providing samples or coupons for the Social Media Conference next year!

- Crunch Pak - Apple Slices (http://www.crunchpak.com/)

- Oreos

- Ozarka Water (http://www.ozarkawater.com/)

*We always had a gallon of cold Ozarka Water on our meeting table. 

- Vegetable Trays

- Fruit Trays

- Cupcakes

Overall, we were FULL by the end of each meeting and we remained relatively healthy throughout the semester.

I hope that we are able to gain meeting sponsors and event sponsors throughout the year! Does anyone want to function as a food sponsor for the Texas Social Media Research Institute or the Social Media Conference 2011? :)

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Social Media Conference 2011 (#SMC2011) - A Wonderful Event Sponsored by the Texas Social Media Research Institute (TSMRI) (Conference Recap)

Readers,

Today was the BIG day! Here are several highlights and wonderful pictures from the event:

- #SMC2011 Registration began EARLY in the morning!

- We had an amazing presentation from Ms. Rossi-Scott, a lawyer who specializes in school law (she is based in Fort Worth/Arlington).

- We awarded TWO iPod Touch devices to conference attendees!

- Our university president, Dr. Dottavio welcomed conference attendees during our dessert reception!

- The Stephenville mayor, Ms. Nancy Hunter, welcomed conference attendees!

Here's our wonderful team!

Here is the registration form for the event!

http://www.tinyurl.com/SocialMediaConference2011Reg/

We have an amazing group of interns and faculty who are dedicated to this great event! More information about this event will be posted soon! :)

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Social Media Conference 2011 (#SMC2011) - Tomorrow is the BIG Day!

Readers,

Tomorrow is the BIG day! One of my colleagues is traveling from New Orleans, LA to Stephenville, TX to attend the Social Media Conference and I am SUPER excited to see her! Dr. Lora Helvie-Mason is amazing! I cannot wait to HEAR her presentation!

Here are the final documents for the conference:

Conference Session Titles and Abstracts - LINK

Final Conference Schedule at a Glance (HTML Format) - LINK

Final Conference Schedule at a Glance (PDF Format) - LINK

PS - I cannot WAIT to sleep more than four hours on Saturday! This week has been rewarding, but very exhausting!

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Social Media Conference 2011 (#SMC2011) - How We Marketed/Promoted the Event

Readers,

I thought that this would be a great time to share our marketing methods for the conference. 

- Our wonderful Marketing and Communications Department (Tarleton State University) posted an article focused on our conference. - LINK

- A great article was written about the conference by our campus newspaper, the J-Tac. - LINK

- Flyers were distributed across campus

- We were featured on the downtown marquee!

- Every student, faculty, and staff received e-mails from TSMRI in August, September, October, and November reminding them to register for the conference!

- We posted the conference on a WEALTH of social media, information sciences, and communication studies websites.

- We used social media (i.e. - Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, etc.) to communicate with potential attendees and sponsors!

Do you have any suggestions for next year? We would like to make the conference BIGGER and BETTER next November! :)


Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Social Media Conference 2011 (#SMC2011) - The T-Shirt Design (Thanks AdobeEducation) & Our Social Media Outlets

Readers,

Today, we have THREE more days until the 2011 Social Media Conference and I wanted to show our t-shirts! 

I designed the conference logo this summer using Adobe Photoshop (as part of the Adobe Creative Suite). Yay for great software! 

Here are our social media outlets:


Here are our Twitter hashtags - #TSMRI & #SMC2011


Our blog - http://tsmri.blogspot.com/


Our Facebook Account - http://www.facebook.com/TSMRI


Our Linked In Event - http://events.linkedin.com/social-media-conference-texas-847198


Our Foursquare Check-In Link - LINK

Check us out during the conference! Our faculty and interns are AMAZING!


Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Social Media Conference 2011 (#SMC2011) - Countdown to the BIG Event!

Readers,

This week, I am focused on teaching my classes while preparing for Friday's Social Media Conference! A few professors and I thought of this idea last May and now the conference week is FINALLY here! Unfortunately, I do not think that I will be able to sleep much this week, but I am EXCITED about this great event!

Here is the registration form for the event!
http://www.tinyurl.com/SocialMediaConference2011Reg/


We have an amazing group of interns and faculty who are dedicated to this great event! More information about this event will be posted soon! :)

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41

Interactive Assignments and Activities for Undergraduate Classrooms (Post 5/5) - "But Why Do I Have to Take This Class"

Readers,

This week is dedicated to interactive assignments and activities for undergraduate classrooms! :) I am highlighting some activities from our university's 8th Annual Excellence in Teaching Conference.

Here is our five highlighted activity! - "But Why Do I Have to Take This Class" by Tracey Holley (I am so proud of her! She is my colleague in the Communication Studies Department!)

A Small Description of the Activity:

Instructors of General Education courses face an uphill battle with student mentality.  Each semester for twenty-three years I have launched the first day session with an query as to why the students have chosen to take my class.  Each inquiry has resulted in the same response; they did not choose to take my course, it was forced upon them in the guise of a "requirement."  After approximately 186 repetitions of this question I have come to two conclusions: 1) simplified, students do not want to take my class.  If given a choice they would enroll in underwater basket weaving before Fundamentals of Communication. Students do not see an inherent use for the theories or skills associated with Communication studies.  2) It is my job to not only engage the student in a class that begins with a preconceived notion of uselessness, but to inform the student of not only the necessity of obtaining the skills and information the course provides, but the helpfulness of applying that knowledge in their everyday lives.

I plan to present my techniques for involving students in a core class from day one.  These techniques include perception quizzes, critical listening skills, critical reading, and cultural applications of skills. However, these skill are not presented to the student with the single objective of involvement, but also to ensure they understand the link between core classes and critical thinking/reading skills.  A final objective of these techniques is to enable the students to apply their knowledge to various situations, not just academia.

Activity Handouts:

http://online.tarleton.edu/fdi/EIT_SC/Holley_PP.pptx

http://online.tarleton.edu/fdi/EIT_SC/Holley_PP.pdf

Supplemental Material:

Ms. Holley used to ask her students why they are taking the course.   However, now she provides the students with quiz questions

- Examples - math, ... brain teasers

- Test their Frame of reference - 'take from' vs 'subtract'

- Critical reading and listening - animals on Moses' ark

- 'A bird in the the Hand' - stereotypes and perception process

- Nonverbal - nickels and coins

- Frames of reference - eg., napkin and serviette

- Repetition signifies importance - wood burning stove

- Gestures = importance

- Thought process

- Show them the necessity for the course and why it is required

- Recommended book to read is The Disappearing Spoon

- (See attached PowerPoint)

What do you think about this activity?

Sincerely,

J. Edwards

Millennial Professor - Jennifer T. Edwards, Ed.D.

Become a fan of Millennial Professor on Facebook - http://goo.gl/gnN41