Campus Event for National Distance Learning Week
In conjunction with National Distance Learning Week, UNL and EE&O will be hosting numerous campus activities during this week (November 9 to the 12). You are invited to attend any and all of the activities. For a complete schedule of events and to RSVP, please visit http://eeando.unl.edu/ndlw/.
New Director of Independent Study High School
EE&O is pleased to announce Barbara Shousha (472-4424, bshousha2@unlnotes.unl.edu) as our new Director of the Independent Study High School. Barbara brings experience in the areas of operations, budgeting, customer support, and strategic planning. Barbara is charged with planning and directing the activities of the ISHS online and distance educational programs. Her outstanding leadership skills will help to develop and execute upon a continued vision for the ISHS.
NEW COURSES FOR INDEPENDENT STUDY HIGH SCHOOL
AP Calculus AB
The Independent Study High School (ISHS) recently released a new Advanced Placement (AP) course–AP Calculus AB. The course is designed for 12th grade students who have completed at least two years of Algebra and one year of Geometry.
Course units begin with an introductory video. Each lesson contains a multimedia presentation that provides the "lecture" portion of the course. Discussion questions give extra practice in solving problems and include hints and tips for working through the problems. Open Response Quizzes provide practice for the types of problems that will appear on the AP exam.
At the end of each unit, students complete a project involving complex and comprehensive problems, which they submit electronically. Open-book evaluations and closed-book progress tests complete the assessments. AP Calculus AB prepares students to take the AP Calculus AB exam from College Board.
AP Environmental Science
ISHS's Advanced Placement Environmental Science course will be accepting its first student enrollments this month. This multi-media based course covers all of the material outlined by the College Board as necessary to prepare students to pass the AP Environmental Science exam.
The course is designed to acquaint students with the physical, ecological, social, and political principles of environmental science.
Multimedia presentations provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) add valuable insight into the concepts presented. Each NOAA element contains a Global Impact presentation, an Explore interactive activity, self-check activities, and a discussion question. Using both simulated and hands-on labs, students analyze and interpret information and statistical data using appropriate mathematical calculations. The hands-on labs, part of the graded projects for the course, provide valuable practice for the Free-Response questions that will be on the AP Environmental Science exam. Open-book evaluations and closed-book progress tests complete the assessments.
The release of these two advanced placement courses brings to four the number of advanced placement courses available to students through UNL’s Independent Study High School. Content modules in both courses were developed by the National Repository of Online Courses (NROC).
UNL Distance Education Milestone Rates Media Coverage
UNL's 100th anniversary of offering Distance Education and the events scheduled for the National Distance Learning Week celebration have been highlighted in recent media coverage.
The ABC affiliate, channel 8, KLKN-TV, interviewed Dr. Larry Dlugosh, chair of the Department of Educational Administration, for a piece on the history of his department’s involvement with Distance Education. Dr. Dlugosh was featured in a piece which aired during the channel 8 News block on November 4.
NEWS NET NEBRASKA, a student –produced multimedia news service of the College of Journalism and Mass Communications, produced a story which ran on their site at http://www.newsnetnebraska.org EE&O staff members Sydney Brown and Laura Wiese were interviewed for the story along with CoJMC lecturer Trudy Burge.
EDAD receives 2009 UCEA Great Plains Region Innovations and Contributions Award
Dr. Larry Dlugosh, Chair of Educational Administration Chair, Dr. Jody Isernhagen and Dr. Donald Uerling, faculty in UNL’s Educational Administration Department, College of Education and Human Sciences, and Instructional Design Technology Specialist, Laureen Greenwood, recently received the University Continuing Education (UCEA) Great Plains Region Innovations and Contributions Award for their implementation of internet-based video conferencing for doctoral dissertation proposals and defenses, and advising meetings. This award honors activities that demonstrate innovations and contributions to the field of adult and continuing education. Criteria include uniqueness, quality, service provided, contribution to continuing education, and replicability by other institutions.
Using web-based video-conferencing allows students at a distance to continue pursuing all phases of an advanced degree from UNL without having to travel to campus for advising meetings or doctoral defenses. Not only have students found this method extremely flexible but it also provides them with more opportunities for interaction with their advisors.
Dr. Kevin Lee receives 2009 UCEA Great Plains Region Excellence in Teaching Award
The University Continuing Education Association (UCEA) Great Plains Excellence in Teaching Award is presented to individuals who have provided outstanding teaching, course development, mentoring of students, and service to continuing education, including distance education.
Dr. Kevin Lee, Research Associate Professor with UNL's Department of Physics & Astronomy, College of Arts & Sciences, was recently presented with this award. Dr. Lee has a long-standing and continuing commitment to excellence in teaching, mentorship, and service to distance education. In addition to exploring innovative approaches to teaching online, Dr. Lee is an enthusiastic supporter of incorporating technology into his on-campus courses to enhance student learning.
One of Dr. Lee's award nominators said of him, "He has made major contributions to distance education through sound and well-considered use of web-based tools designed around the best physics and astronomy education pedagogy. His work has made an enduring impact at UNL through the development of new distance education courses delivered to three distinct audiences (high school, undergraduate, and graduate students) and the rise to national prominence of the Research in Astronomy Education Group at UNL."
Beth Zager receives 2009 UCEA Support Specialist Award
Beth Zager, Project Associate within EE&O, was recognized by the University Continuing Education Association (UCEA) Regional Award Committee with their Support Specialist Award. Beth attended the UCEA Regional Conference last week to accept her award in person and to take advantage of the professional development opportunities afforded by the conference.
