CFP Open for Emerging Tech for Online Learning Symposium: Submission Deadline Dec. 10

Emerging Technologies for Online Learning Symposium
As a member of the 2013 steering committee, I invite you to submit a proposal for the 6th Annual Emerging Technologies for Online Learning International Symposium, to be held April 9-11, 2013 at The Planet Hollywood Resort in Las Vegas, NV. The Emerging Technologies for Online Learning International Symposium, a joint Symposium of Sloan Consortium and MERLOT, is designed to bring together individuals interested in the review and evaluation of online teaching and learning technologies. Proposals for presentations must be submitted by December 10, 2012 at http://sloanconsortium.org/conference/2013/et4online/call-for-presentations.

The ET4Online Symposium offers you an opportunity to study best practices, understand applications, discover new technologies, and connect to others who share a love for and belief in the promise of educational technology. In 2012 the symposium developed a new mission statement designed to emphasize the innovation and invention that is the focus of the conference: A conference devoted to the emerging and innovative uses of technology designed to improve teaching and learning online. Symposium tracks highlight and demonstrate research, application and effective practices and noteworthy technological tools in the following areas:

  • Learning Spaces and Communities
  • Open and Accessible Learning
  • Evidence-based Learning
  • Faculty and Student Development
  • Innovative Media and Tools

Faculty, students, instructional designers, instructional technologists and academic administrators are encouraged to submit proposals which are engaging, informative and interactive. These sessions can be targeted to all attendees or beginners, intermediates, or experts.

If you are interested in submitting a proposal for this conference, plan to join us for our FREE webinar “Five Tips on How to Submit a Successful Conference Proposal”. The goal of this webinar is to assist you in submitting a successful abstract to the Call for Presentations.

November 29, 2012 – 3:00pm – 4:00pm (Eastern Time)

For today’s educator, selection as a conference presenter is often required in order to attend a conference. For every online learning conference, educators submit and conference committees evaluate hundreds of proposals in order to create a robust program for conference attendees. The number of proposals accepted for a conference depends on program size, topics covered and quality of abstracts submitted. Join this free webinar to learn from experts on the Sloan Consortium and MERLOT Conference Team what they are looking for in proposal submissions. Topics covered will include the importance of topic selection, what reviewers look for in a proposal submission, and tips from track chairs on how final selections are made. Please login or register to sign up for this webinar.

Designing an Exemplary Online Course: Blackboard Announces Open Online Course to be Offered

Let's build a better education experience

Blackboard has announced a new open online course “Designing an Exemplary Course,” as part of the CourseSites Open Course Series. The course will run from September 26th – October 17th, 2012. Registration is free and opens Wednesday, September 19th.

Whether you are just getting started or are an advanced online educator, this course will provide you with a framework to help identify and apply best practices for designing engaging online courses.

You will learn from 11 instructors and instructional designers including distinguished Exemplary Course Program (ECP) Directors and several of the 2012 ECP winners. Using the Blackboard ECP Rubric as a guide, the course will focus on the four critical elements of a course: design, interaction and collaboration, assessment, and learner support.

You will have the opportunity to participate in weekly live, online sessions, learn with peers in focus groups, and complete optional assignments to aid your course development and improvement. A panel of course design experts will facilitate each group to provide you with valuable feedback.

The learning environment will offer learners the flexibility to choose their own learning outcomes and time commitments based on individual needs. To maximize benefits of participation, optional homework assignments will be provided each week to apply concepts to build out one’s own course structure and materials. The course will provide a framework for forming collaborative teams.

For more details or to sign-up to be notified when registration opens, click here.

Honored to Accept 2012 Blackboard Catalyst Award on Behalf of My NIU Colleagues at BbWorld 2012

One of the many highlights for me from BbWorld 2012 was to accept on behalf of all the colleagues I work with at NIU, the 2012 Blackboard Catalyst Award for Community Collaboration. This award recognizes leaders within the Blackboard user community who encourage collaboration, and share advice, insight, content, and effective practices with fellow educators outside their own institutions.

Accepting the award from Ray Henderson
Accepting the 2012 Blackboard Catalyst Award from Ray Henderson, President and Chief Technology Office, Blackboard

Our center was recognized for its long history of collaborating with others in the support of teaching with technology, sharing advice, insight, and best practices. This was the second year in a row our Center was recognized with a Blackboard Catalyst Award, with last year’s award being for excellence in professional development.

I am indeed blessed to work with an amazing team of colleagues at NIU and look forward to the future as we together we continue to make every effort at being “catalysts” in support of the the teaching mission of NIU.

Like Dr. Jason Rhode? Get Connected on Facebook

Jason Rhode, Ph.D. on Facebook
I’ve made a few tweaks to my Facebook page and moving forward, plan to be more intentional about making sure my Facebook page includes the same content and updates that I post more regularly to my blog.

So, if you prefer to keep in touch via Facebook, please go ahead and like my Facebook page. I look forward to hearing from you, via whatever social platform you prefer 🙂

2012 Presidential Award for Excellence

Jason Rhode receiving Presidential Award for Excellence from NIU President John Peters

I was honored to have been nominated for, and having received, the 2012 NIU Supportive Professional Staff Presidential Award for Excellence in recognition of “excellent performance and significant contributions to Northern Illinois University.” Only four such awards are given each year to NIU staff and the award can only be received once…so it was quite a humbling experience to have been honored in this way.

The best part of receiving the award was that my family was able to be a part of the awards ceremony, even though I think my two little girls had the most fun climbing up and down the stage before the ceremony 🙂

Rhode Family with NIU President John Peters, April 17, 2012

I look forward to many more years of serving the faculty and staff of NIU…forward, together forward!