2021

Academic Technology Survey Preliminary Results

Anonymous — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 19:13:31 +0000

Academic Technology Survey Preliminary Results Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 04/20/2021 - 13:13

Our team, with the help of our graduate assistants Michael Schneider and Matara Hitchcock, is well underway analyzing and preparing visualizations from ASSETT’s 2021 Academic Technology survey. We received responses from 1,006 undergraduates for the student version of the survey (for a 18.7% response rate), and 1,176 responses for the faculty version of the survey (for a 30.4% response rate).

Although analysis is ongoing, we’ve already found a few interesting preliminary results. One such example has to do with faculty and student preferences for various course delivery formats. Unsurprisingly, there was a strong preference for in-person classes, with 93% of faculty and 88% of students indicating they preferred these formats. One such example (see Figure 1 below) has to do with faculty and student preferences for various course delivery formats. Unsurprisingly, there was a strong preference for in-person classes, with 93% of faculty and 88% of students indicating they preferred these formats. However, both groups also indicated stronger preferences for fully remote classes (defined as meeting remotely and synchronously at scheduled dates and times) than for hybrid in-person classes (defined as a combination of in-person instruction with periods of remote and/or online learning). This finding tells us that both faculty and students were averse to the COVID-19-induced mid-semester transitions between in-person and remote learning, and a majority would have preferred to stay in one format or the other for the duration of the semester.

Figure 1: Faculty and student preferences for various course modalities, as defined by the �� Registrar’s office. Larger green bars indicate course types that are more preferred among respondents, and larger orange bars indicate course types that are less preferred among respondents.

We’ll be sure to share all of the results with you as soon as they’re ready later this spring. In the meantime, results from the 2018 iteration of the Academic Technology survey can be viewed here: /assett/about/assessment-reports

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Letter from the Advisor - April 2021

Anonymous — Tue, 20 Apr 2021 18:55:51 +0000

Letter from the Advisor - April 2021 Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 04/20/2021 - 12:55

Make Grading Fun Again: Grading Green Fashion

Whereas grading can often seem an arduous task, I was actually excited to grade this assignment this new assignment for sustainable fashion. This semester I, along with co-instructor Max Boykoff and TA Patrick Chandler, created a new pedagogical tool for exploring sustainable fashion for our Spring of 2021 upper-division under-graduate Creative Climate Communication course. For this assignment students were asked to visually communicate within their circle of influence how sustainable fashion can positively influence the environment and be aspirational. Each student created a sustainably sourced outfit (thrifted, hand-me-down, recycled, dumpster dived, clothing swapped, sewn from repurposed cloth…) as an expression of their personal style. They created a photo or video of themselves modeling this outfit while wearing a full-body Lycra green suit underneath. They were challenged with adding a pro-environmental personal message to this photo or video and post it on some form of social media or communication platform. There were asked to reach at least ten people within their circle of influence and document any responses or feedback received. Finally, they were asked to write an overall personal reflection on this once this example of Green Fashion was created, documented, disseminated, and responded to. This assignment addresses many key issues surrounding the science and art of what makes for effective climate communication.

Making pro-environmental fashion behaviors aspirational by showing them as influencing the norm for group behavior (Markowitz, 2014, page 71-2).
Students as trusted messengers of climate within their circles of influence (https://www.bu.edu/ise/2019/04/16/trusted-messenger/)
The Power of Ten as a framework for suitably scaling sustainability and climate action in response to the rapid need for transformation of systems, policies, and behaviors (https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ab9ed0/pdf)
Sustainable fashion as essential for reversing global warming given the fact that “if the garment business were a nation, it would be the fourth largest climate polluter on Earth” (2018).
Avoidance of emotional numbing by audiences through immediate, local solutions available to individuals and communities (Markowitz, 2014, page 32)
Visual communication through metaphor, such as Green Fashion, which helps translate abstract concepts into familiar terms

This assignment in a class of 44 students was able to reach over 3000 people with a vibrant, personal message inspiring Green Fashion and sustainable fashion behavior. Given the incredibly significant environmental impact of the fashion industry, it is essential for our survivability to radically reimagine our relationship with clothing. Our students are perfectly suited to this charge as powerful agents for change. This non-disposable assignment acknowledged that our students creative work in our courses can be towards authentic positive impact. It was a real treat to see the fun they had doing this assignment, to get a glimpse of their personal style, and to see how their circle of community received and responded to their messages. Their written reflections on the process completed the learning goals for the assignment by guiding them in critically engaging with the actions and outcomes of the assignment and their personal experiences throughout. And, it was a joy to assess their photos and written reflections, which was rejuvenating for us as educators.

Markowitz, Ezra, et al. (2014). Connecting on Climate: A Guide to Effective Climate Change Communication. Center for Research on Environmental Decisions, Columbia University, p. 32.

Siegle, Lucy (2018) ‘Ten ways to make fashion greener’ The Guardian June 24.

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Letter from the Advisor - February 2021

Anonymous — Mon, 22 Feb 2021 23:12:22 +0000

Letter from the Advisor - February 2021 Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 02/22/2021 - 16:12

Highlighting Undergraduate Student Contributions to ASSETT Innovative incubator

I invite you to watch this video in English or Spanish on how to create a Moving Mural. This was created by Elise Rosado, one of the undergraduate students supporting the Innovative Incubator. Elise and I worked together to create a video that introduces the medium of the Moving Mural that animates a visual message within the larger context of a public performance. I contributed the images, video, and a script, and Elise brought her narration and editing skills to create this lively and highly engaging video. She even translated the narration and created a version in Spanish. She was sure to include subtitles on each version to increase accessibility of this resource. Her animated illustrations throughout the video cleverly enhance the aesthetic of this public performance medium, the Moving Mural.

I take this opportunity to share my enthusiasm for the excellent work being done by the team of undergraduate students who are supporting ASSETT’s Innovative Incubator. As an ASSETT Innovative Incubator member of the Collective to Advance Multimodal Participatory Publishing (CAMPP) group, I have been working with other faculty and ASSETT staff to explore multimodal publishing collaborations with undergraduate students. Each of us within our group are designing and implementing mostly open-source online offerings that feature the incredible work of our students. Personally, I feel like my own approach to teaching has been invigorated by this notion of creating non-disposable assignments. As someone who works in sustainability and climate change solutions, this approach doubly appeals to me. I have been designing my courses to include student contributions within this larger Open Educational Resource (OER) that I am developing. I am creating an OER for creative climate communication entitled Enacting Climate: Creative Classroom Activities for an Equitable, Survivable and Thrive-able Future. This video created by Rosado will be included within this OER as it feature student work with the Moving Mural, one creative activity for enacting climate solutions. This video highlights how the Moving Mural celebrates and amplifies the importance of supporting young women from around the world in achieving a high school education. Supporting women’s education and access to family planning is among the top solutions for reversing global warming.

Since the work of ASSETT is supported by the Arts and Sciences undergraduate students for A&S undergraduate students, it is a pleasure to celebrate the participation and contributions of A&S undergraduate students to ASSETT initiatives. Congratulations, Elise, on your excellent work!

Warmest Regards, Beth Osnes

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Join Student Book Club in Reading RANGE by David Epstein

Anonymous — Wed, 17 Feb 2021 21:24:32 +0000

Join Student Book Club in Reading RANGE by David Epstein Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 02/17/2021 - 14:24

No matter what kinds of progress you’ve made, you probably feel behind in some capacity. When there are people your age already starting businesses or writing best-selling books, it’s easy to lament your lack of specialization.

ASSETT’s Student Technology Consultants are running an interactive book club on Range, by David Epstein. We’ll address the myth of the early head start and the benefits of a “sampling period,” where one tries new things and builds range. Learn how this mindset can be more successful (and less stressful) than early specialization! We hope to provide a community for undergraduates in the College of Arts & Sciences to discuss their career and future mindsets.

All four meetings will be held Monday nights, 7-8 p.m. MST, on Zoom. ASSETT will provide Kindle copies of Range to all participants, and the book club will meet for the following schedule:

March 15: This is our introductory virtual meeting. We will distribute the e-books, make brief introductions, and watch a relevant TED talk.
March 22: This will be our first content discussion, focusing on the first third of the book.
April 5: This will be our second content discussion, focusing on the second third of the book.
April 19: This will be our final meeting, where we’ll discuss the final section of the book and overall takeaways.

Interested participants should fill out this form: https://forms.gle/Uu2J4v1QUkYQ8QpW7
E-book codes are limited to twelve participants, all of whom must be a student of or enrolled in a course in the College of Arts & Sciences.

Students who miss the first meeting are still encouraged to reach out, since there may still be space!

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