Athens State University - Comprehensive Standard 3.4.12

Athens State University (ASU) currently utilizes several forms of technology that support the institutional mission and goals and the University’s emphasis on teaching and learning. The technology and software platforms used by the University have been chosen to aid in accomplishing the institutional objective to provide students with a variety of course formats and options that respond to their needs and enhance learning. The primary software platforms and applications currently being used are:

Each of these applications provide different and essential capabilities that support the variety of course formats being offered by the University: traditional classroom (day, night, or weekend); distance learning, where all course content can be accessed and requirements completed off-site; and blended, a combination of traditional and distance learning.

Blackboard is the course management system chosen and utilized by Athens State University to provide online access to course materials for every course, regardless of format. Blackboard provides online tools including class email, chat, discussion boards, test and quiz creation and deployment, gradebook, assignment submission and other tools that faculty can use to enhance learning in all courses. Students can access Blackboard through the link provided on the Athens State Blackboard webpage.

Students have access to training in the use of Blackboard in a variety of ways. Students can access tutorials by selecting the “Blackboard Basics” link on the Athens State Blackboard webpage. Students can choose to install the Macromedia Authorware Web Player on their local computer, which allows them to view two interactive tutorials: “Introduction to My Institution”, or “Taking Courses with Blackboard”. If a student prefers not to download the Macromedia Authorware Web Player, the student can view a pdf instructional guide to Blackboard entitled “Getting Started with Blackboard”.

To provide additional access to Blackboard training, new students registering for courses for the first time at Athens State will be automatically enrolled in a “Blackboard Student Orientation Course” starting in Summer 2010. This orientation course uses the Blackboard Student Orientation Course Cartridge, designed by Blackboard. Students will be able to access this course anytime they log into Blackboard during their first semester at ASU. Since students will be required to log into Blackboard for all course formats during the semester, this orientation course will serve as a handy reference for them as they familiarize themselves with the use of Blackboard.

LiveText is a Web-based subscription that allows users to create and submit projects and assignments on-line. Used primarily by students in the College of Education and the College of Business, LiveText allows creation and long-term storage of electronic portfolios, projects, and documents. Additionally, LiveText allows faculty members to assess student work and give students feedback online, and allows the University to collect and aggregate data for program evaluation and improvement.

LiveText training is made available to students in several ways. Instructors may discuss the use of LiveText in the context of specific classes. In addition, online training is made available to College of Education students via Blackboard in the “Department: ED” organization. In this organization, several recorded Tegrity (see below) lectures concerning the use of LiveText are available, as well as instructional documents. For many of the Education classes, instructors make copies of the Tegrity lectures available to students directly in the Tegrity menu for the particular class. Access to many of the LiveText training materials and lectures is also available to all students via a dedicated ASU webpage.

Respondus LockDown Browser is a special web browser designed to provide some level of security for students taking online tests or examinations in Blackboard. This secure browser prevents students from printing, copying, or accessing another URL or application while taking tests. Tests to be taken in Blackboard may require LockDown Browser at the instructor’s discretion. If the test requires LockDown browser, students cannot take the exam using a standard Web browser.

Instructions on the use of LockDown browser are made available to students through links on the ASU Blackboard webpage. Here students can access a “Student Quick Start Guide”, “FAQs about LockDown Browser”, and a guide to “LockDown Troubleshooting”. In addition, a link is provided on this webpage that allows students to download LockDown Browser.

SMARTHINKING is an online tutoring, writing, and homework help service made available to students who may need additional assistance in order to succeed in ASU courses. Through this service, tutors are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, in a variety of subjects. ASU Faculty can add a direct link to the SMARTHINKING service in the Blackboard course container for a specific course. This link can then connect students to E-structor® Certified tutors. No training is required for students to use this service; the link available in Blackboard simply connects students to the online tutors.

Student Webmail, administered through Microsoft Outlook Web Access, is one of the primary avenues by which students can communicate freely with instructors and other University personnel to support learning as well as administrative and social needs. Each student is assigned a personal webmail address upon entering the University, and can log into the webmail account from any computer with Web access. All e-mails sent using Blackboard e-mail tools are routed to student webmail accounts.

Training in the use of Microsoft Outlook is made available to students on the Information Technology (IT) Department’s “Help” webpage. Here students can access user resources such as the “Outlook Web Tutorial” and “Outlook on the Web Self Help” guide, in addition to other resources and technical support links related to other technologies and services used by the University.

Tegrity is an instructional tool that allows ASU instructors to create multimedia presentations that can be accessed by students o online in an asynchronous fashion, thus preserving some elements of the traditional lecture class format in courses offered in distance learning formats. In most cases, students access these presentations via a designated link within a specific Blackboard course container. After a presentation is captured and made available to students by the instructor, students can log into Blackboard and access the Tegrity link. This link takes the student to a menu listing the Tegrity sessions that are available for the course. Students can then select and view a session directly via the Web browser, or elect to download a session for later viewing on their iPod, MP3 player or cell phone. Using their platform of choice, students may view these sessions anytime, and can review or replay certain portions of a session to focus on areas that require more time to fully comprehend. This increased flexibility and round-the-clock access to class content serves to increase student retention and enhance learning in all class formats where it is utilized.

Resources related to the use of Tegrity are made available to students on the ASU Blackboard webpage. Students may access the “Tegrity Wizard: Components Test”, which determines whether a student’s computer has the components needed to run Tegrity. Students can access a Tegrity troubleshooting guide and Tegrity training and student support resources via additional links on the ASU Blackboard page.

Wimba is an online web conferencing service that allows students to enter a “live classroom” where they can speak with and see the instructor and each other using their computer if equipped with a headset microphone and webcam. It also enables students to communicate with one another using text chat, view PowerPoint slides, access the Web, share a whiteboard, and discuss and present materials to peers.

The Wimba system also offers Voice Board, an audio discussion board where instructors and students can post recordings that are linked together in a discussion thread. The system also offers voice e-mail that allows faculty and students to create and send e-mails that include both voice and text messages. The system also includes Pronto, an instant messaging (IM) and voice chat tool that allows students to communicate with classmates at any given time. While it offers many similar features as other instant messaging tools such as AIM and Yahoo Instant Messenger, it eliminates the need to search for contact information on classmates. Classmates are automatically added to a user list, and one can send instant messages and use voice chat with a single user or multiple users at the same time.

Students have access to the "Wimba Participant Guide" on the ASU Blackboard webpage. Faculty provide training materials and videos to students that are appropriate for the specific courses that utilize Wimba. In addition, faculty using Wimba typically provide orientation sessions to familiarize students with the feature and resources in Wimba that will be used in the particular course.

All of the training resources described above are also available to ASU faculty. In addition, workshops for faculty training on specific technology resources and platforms are regularly scheduled by the Center for Instructional Technology (CIT). Schedules for these workshops are periodically disseminated to faculty via campus e-mail.

In addition to resources and training provided to students, the University also asks students to assess whether they are ready to enroll in courses that have distance learning components. The Distance Education Course Survey, available to students under the “Should I Take an Online Course” link on the ASU Academics webpage, asks students to assess whether they have certain skills and resources at home that will be needed for them to succeed in distance education courses. The students' “score” on the assessment triggers a response indicating whether the students should be successful in distance learning courses or should reconsider enrolling in distance education courses. Results of the Distance Education Course Survey indicate that most students feel they possess the necessary skills, have adequate home resources, and realize that distance education courses require superior time management skills and often require more work.

Since Athens State University is an upper division institution, it is expected that students entering Athens State University will have a basic knowledge of Microsoft Windows, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and e-mail/Web browsers from completing CIS 146 Microcomputer Applications at an Alabama Community College System (ACCS) institution or its equivalent at another institution. These fundamental computer skills are important to the success of students enrolled in ASU degree programs where a variety of technology services are used to support learning and provide better access to course materials and learning resources. Athens State University provides several open lab facilities where students can access these computer and technology resources when on campus. An open computer lab has been established in the newly renovated Waters Hall building. Computer resources are also available in three classroom/labs in Chasteen Hall when classes are not scheduled in them. The ASU Library provides 15 computer workstations for student use. In addition, computer facilities are provided at the University Centers at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville and at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville.

Specific questions on the Graduating Senior Exit Survey (GSES) concerning technology use and technology support indicate that student satisfaction with the technology used by the University to enhance courses is high, and that students’ use of technology training is greatly improving.