The UW-Whitewater LTC mission includes six elements. Our “emerging technology exploration projects” align with the WE INNOVATE element. You may have seen calls to apply for these projects in the past (such as the current call for Spring 2018) without understanding exactly what these projects are. This blog post will explain a bit more as to the general purpose of these projects.

Various outlets (such as the Horizon Report) report on trends in higher education each year. Often these trends reflect instructional approaches that utilize new technological innovations. LTC staff members monitor, and examine, these short-term and long-term trends, and evaluate related technologies for potential use at the UW-Whitewater campus.

If a new technology (or a new application of an existing technology) appears to have potential to successfully meet a need that the LTC has identified through communication with instructors, the LTC makes arrangements to conduct a limited exploration of the technology with a small group of instructors. A call for applications/participants is then sent out to instructors across various channels (such as this LTC blog) with the expectations and requirements to participate in the project. Participants are then chosen based on several factors, including scheduling and the constraints of the particular technology or tool (ex. projected student enrollments).

Typically, at least as part of an emerging technology exploration project focused on instructional technology, instructors and students in the course employing the technology are surveyed based on their experiences using the technology. The feedback provided by students and instructors is used to determine future LTC support of the technology.

If you have any questions regarding the LTC’s emerging technology exploration projects, please contact the UW-W Learning Technology Center.