Wednesday, April 5, 2017

Waterloo gets eCampusOntario funding for projects

The Province of Ontario has announced funding that will support colleges and universities in developing new and innovative approaches to online learning. This year, 45 recipients will receive a broad range of research and innovation grants through eCampusOntario to explore technology-enabled learning and highlight best practices in student engagement. These new investments are intended to further position Ontario as a leader in the development of evidence-based strategies for online learning.

"Our government wants Ontario students to have access to high quality education and training so that they have the skills they need to get the jobs of today and tomorrow," said Deb Matthews, Ontario's Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Development and the Minister Responsible for Digital Government. "Investing in innovative educational methods like technology-enabled learning is one of the ways we can make sure we’re providing learning options for students that will help them succeed."

The University of Waterloo was awarded $923,268 for the following projects:

Open Content Initiatives

Open Data Structures: open-content textbook, videos, and online exercises ($97,390)

Carleton University, the University of Ottawa, and the University of Waterloo will partner to enhance the already successful eTextbook, Open Data Structures by adding approximately 80 interactive and accessible videos and online exercises. Each interactive module will be self-contained, so it can be used as a resource by instructors working from any textbook.

Introduction to Heavy Civil Engineering Operations and Equipment Management ($99,500)

In this collaborative project between the University of Toronto, the University of Waterloo, and Lakehead University, a set of learning modules will be developed to support the teaching of an introductory course on Heavy Civil Engineering across all Civil Engineering programs in the province of Ontario.

Online Program Development

Graduate Diploma in Climate Risk Management ($330,000)

Waterloo and Wilfrid Laurier University will partner to create a Graduate Diploma in Climate Risk Management (GDip CRM); it will be the only university level graduate diploma program of its kind in Canada. The fully online, direct-entry program will be designed to meet the needs of early to mid-career professionals tasked with climate change risk management and adaptation as part of their regular professional duties.

Research and Innovation Projects

Assessing the Impact of Online Learning: A Model and Case Study ($99,930)

Waterloo will develop an evaluation model for assessing the impact of credit online courses and programs, and apply that model within the University.

Developing and Assessing Methods for Guiding Students to use Online Content Effectively ($99,726)

This project will develop an accessible set of assessment methods instructors and educational developers across Ontario can use in their personal online courses to improve the effectiveness of online content in supporting student learning.

An Investigation of User Experience Design for Learning (UXDL) Principles in Online Learning ($99,907)

Waterloo will conduct a research study that qualitatively examines students' perspectives of online learning.

Foundations of Academic Success: Innovative Mobile Learning to Enhance Academic Integrity ($96,815)

The Foundations for Academic Success project aspires to improve student engagement with academic material by exploring mobile learning to better resonate with the current student population. The objective is to develop strategies for enhancing student academic integrity (AI) knowledge and understanding by employing open access mobile technology with an innovative pedagogical approach.

Conrad launches part-time MBET program

This is an excerpt of an article that originally appeared on the Conrad Centre's website.

The Conrad Centre has launched a part-time version of its Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology (MBET) program, designed for individuals who want to develop the skills to lead change and launch new ideas while balancing full-time work. Course material will be delivered in weekend sessions over three years, with the first cohort starting classes in September 2017.

The MBET program is a graduate business degree for entrepreneurs which combines interdisciplinary courses with practical experiences in venture creation and commercialization. The new part-time program's weekend format offers greater flexibility for students to develop their entrepreneurial skills with the mentorship of acclaimed faculty and industry leaders, while applying this learning to their workplace or venture in real-time.

Read the rest of the article on the Conrad site.

School of Computer Science celebrates 50 years

On March 31, the David R. Cheriton School of Computer Science kicked off a year of celebrating it's 50^th anniversary with a panel of distinguished alumni. 

Members of the School were invited to join alumni panelists Kellogg S. Booth, Professor Emeritus, Department of Computer Science, University of British Columbia, Joanne McKinley, Software Engineer, Google, Sylvia Osborn, Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science, Western University and The Honourable Liz Sandals, MPP, Legislative Assembly of Ontario, to reminisce and hear stories of their unique experiences at Waterloo.

The panel is available for viewing via the ITMS studio.

Wednesday's notes

St. Paul’s GreenHouse will be announcing the winners of this year’s Big Ideas Challenge as well as the recipients of the Social Impact Fund during the end-of-term Social Impact Showcase event today.

The Big Ideas Challenge rewards promising social ventures with funding and fellowships in the GreenHouse program. The Social Impact Fund supports current GreenHouse students so that they can move their social venture projects forward.

The event is open to the community. Food and refreshments will be served. Please register in advance for this free event. The showcase takes place at 4:00 p.m. in Alumni Hall at St. Paul's.

The Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL) has extended the inter-library loan (ILL) period of OCUL items to OCUL patrons. Beginning immediately, University of Waterloo Library users will now be able to borrow OCUL items for up to 6 weeks. Items from the University of Toronto will have a loan period of 5 weeks. Learn more about this change on the Library's website.

Human Resources is reporting that retiree Christian Gendron died on March 22. Gendron started at the University in October 1960 and retired under the Special Early Retirement Program in July 1996 as Science Shops Manager. He is survived by his spouse Hannelore Gendron, also a Waterloo retiree.