Office of Educational Technology
May 2015 OET Newsletter
The H: Drive Saves the Day
Whether you are on or off campus, using a Macintosh or Windows computer, saving files to the H: drive will protect your data.
The H: drive is a storage area on an OET server, reserved for CEHD unit and staff files. OET recommends that faculty and staff save their files to the H:drive, to protect important information from accidental deletion, corruption or inaccessibility.
Unlike local or external computer hard drives, files on the H: drive are backed up per CEHD’s backup policy, ready to restore, if they are accidentally deleted or lost.
Have You Checked Your Links Lately?
Did you know your website’s search rankings and usability can be affected by broken weblinks? OET recommends you check your links, using a free tool such as Dead Link Checker. This link checker allows you to check one page or an entire site. The subsequent report lists all the dead links and will take you to the exact page for repair.
Accessibility: PowerPoint
It is important that we create files that are accessible to everyone, whether they have a disability or not. Regardless of what browser or technology we use when creating online files, websites or PowerPoint presentations, we should look for methods to eliminate barriers to learning and interaction.
Legislation such as the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 508 of the United States Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and emerging legislation that includes technological advance such as the TEACH Act, guide the development of accessible materials.
In the next few issues, we will provide tips on how to make different file types accessible. This month, we start with PowerPoint.
PowerPoint is one of the most popular tools used in the classroom and office, and a presentation’s accessibility depends on whether everyone can access its components such as video, text, and images. For example, alternative text (ALT text) allows people who use screen readers to identify and understand images. Microsoft lists steps to take to create accessible PowerPoint presentations. After completing these steps, you can use Microsoft’s Accessibility Checker, built into PowerPoint, to determine if your presentation is accessible.
Laptop Cart
The Office of Educational Technology maintains a laptop cart for instruction that may be reserved by CEHD faculty and staff for use in Willard Hall Education Building. The cart contains 20 Dell Latitude E5430 Windows 7 laptops, each with 8 GB of RAM and an i7 processor. To reserve the laptop for a class, complete and submit the cart reservation form. Reserve the cart for one event or for multiple sessions.
The Summer Faculty Institute 2015
Registration is now open for the Summer Faculty Institute 2015 June 1-4. The Institute focuses on the latest research and technological advances in classroom and online instruction. Featured themes this year are community engagement, critical thinking, digital humanities, digital storytelling, and engaging difference.
Get Instant Feedback with Poll Everywhere: Educational App of the Month
With Poll Everywhere, you can create polls for instant student feedback to assess learning and stimulate conversation. Poll results are shown in real time, either embedded in a presentation or on the Poll Everywhere website interface. Poll participants can text message a number, use a custom URL or use Twitter to respond to polls on any device—laptops, tablets, or mobile phones. You also can ask open-ended questions and customize the look of your result charts. Up to 40 responses are free under the higher-ed plan.