Monday, July 9, 2012

People and Technology Supporting Students

Quite often we hear about a new electronic device that's going to change the way teachers engage their students. But the question that always seems to arise is how to use this new technology effectively. Here at the community college we are confronted with a wide variety of learning styles and life experiences making it difficult for the institution to meet the needs of its students. One college approach is to offer free tutoring services through the LAP (Learning Assistance Program). The LAP will soon go through some changes to improve the way it functions to support our students. One new approach involves the use of a smartpen. In this interview we talk about how we are using this technology to create an immersive learning experience with pdf files. Because words alone cannot fully describe the experience, you can download one of the documents using the URL below and see for yourself. To view this document with its integrated smartpen technology, you will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader 10.1 or above installed on your computer. Enjoy.

Sample Smartpen Livescribe Document

Sample Smartpen Livescribe Text

Entire Interview Audio(wma)
Entire Interview Audio(mp3)

Saturday, March 17, 2012

When will I have to use Math in Real Life?


Many faculty have heard that question asked many times. In this interview we hear faculty, students, and a parent discuss the applications of mathematics. Although it is widely known that math is everywhere, the focused application of mathematics here centers around careers in the rapidly growing allied health field.



Entire Interview Audio(wma)
Entire Interview Audio(mp3)

Friday, March 2, 2012

Riding on Passion and Purpose

For some returning students, the emotional barriers to learning mathematics are sometimes related to past negative experiences with mathematics. In this interview we are taken well beyond those emotional barriers to an area math faculty may seldom choose to think about. The student courage demonstrated here is tremendous and details the struggles that some of our students are confronted with. Through our Human Services Department and CAADE do these students continue to move forward through obstacles that lie far beyond the affect.

Another important college wide effort in supporting student learning is our tutoring centers. Following the prior interview is one of the college's math tutors who gives her perspective of student learning from a tutor's viewpoint.


Entire Interview Audio(wma)
Entire Interview Audio(mp3)