Tea Cup

Technology Enhances Academic Communication in University Pedagogy
Traditional office hours provide a confidential place where students and faculty can discuss grades, assignments, and more. Incorporating technology into office hours allows faculty to be innovative with scheduling and hosting meetings with students and sets an example for communicating with technology that aligns with the University’s core values. Collaborative research by CAS, Art & Design–Chris Matusek​ and CIDAT—Molly Caldera, Yue Ma, and Nathaly Gal.

SXU Core Values

  • Respect: Face-to-face meetings are important with students as they create connection, expand learning and engagement, and can increase communication. By extending these face-to-face meetings into the virtual space we value other's time, individual student schedules, and increase accessibility for both traditional and non-traditional students.
  • ​Excellence: The use of technology as an extended means of communication allows us to consistently strive for exemplary outcomes. It opens students up to practice using new technologies to connect in a professional manner - a life skill that is necessary for today’s market. 
  • Compassion: Helps ease fear or nervousness that some students have of connecting via face-to-face or via email; Students can reach out from the comfort of familiar spaces. Also, allows students to be more open to asking questions and seeking help. 
  • ​Service: Expanding our communication with students we recommit our call for service and the well-being of our community. Extends access to resources and assistance.​
  • ​Hospitality: Openness to using technology as a way to connect allows us to be attentive listeners together from wherever we are located.​
  • Integrity: Move at the pace of emerging technologies within the scope of SXU’s mission allowing us to make stronger connections to the community we serve.
  • Diversity: Addressing diverse student base to meet a wide range of needs. 
  • ​Learning for Life: Opening students up to embrace the ever-changing face of technology without fear encourages students to pursue knowledge and truth throughout their lives in ways that improve our communities and ourselves and that strengthen our understanding of each other.
Read more about SXU Core Values.

Office Hours and the Next Generation

Office hours are key to student success. It can improve teaching and learning: it allows for deeper understanding, coaching, one-on-one assistance, and fosters connection.​

​Supplementing office hours with technology can extend these learning and teaching opportunities. Some benefits of including technology:
  • Ease and flexibility of communication
  • Not being tied to one location / space
  • Can alleviate anxiety by meeting in a neutral space or virtual space
  • Allows for extended meeting times when students might have more availability - like evenings. 
  • Personalizes communication method to suit individual student needs, this can help student's feel respected and welcome.
  • More engagement and productivity from students. Especially those that may not feel comfortable interacting face-to-face
  • Teaches students alternative, professional ways to communicate -  so necessary in today's job market
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​GEN Z STUDENTS SEE TECH AND CREATIVITY AS IMPORTANT AND INTERSECTING ASPECTS OF THEIR IDENTITIES.
  • Both students and teachers agree that growing up in the age of technology is the defining characteristic of Gen Z – and technology provides more digital tools and outlets for creativity.
  • Gen Z students are most likely to describe themselves as “creative” and “smart.”
  • Gen Z students think they are more creative than past generations and say that they are “always looking for a better way to do something.”
Read more about Gen Z at Adobe Educate.

Communication Types and Technology

Communication Styles
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Canvas
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G Suite
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Other Technology
Scheduling
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Appointment Scheduler
  • Streamline appointment scheduling by blocking off time slots that students can sign-up for in their own time. 
  • Allows for single-person or group sign-up
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Google Groups
  • ​Organize an event with a group by sharing a calendar, event invitation, or list of group members.
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Doodle
  • Send days/times to a group of people to determine the best date/time to meet
  • Free service
Digital Conversation: Asynchronous
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Announcements
  • Broadcast information to all members of a course
  • Can delay posting announcements using the scheduling feature
  • Appears on Canvas homepage / announcements section
  • Email is sent to students inbox (if default settings were not changed)
  • Reply and liking announcements can be turned on
Conversations - The Inbox
  • Operates like a messaging system inside of Canvas
  • Private - one-on-one
  • Retains history
Discussions
  • Also called “Sandbox,” “Student Lounge,” and “Hallway”
  • ​This non-graded no-due-date discussion is a place where students can post questions or comments to the entire class–either the instructor answers or peers answer each other.
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Blogger
  • An online journal 
  • Can be used to extend the conversation outside the classroom, or as a place to document research and share information
  • Privacy enabled - you choose with whom you share content.
Sites
  • Create sites to share information with students
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SXU Email
  • Students have Google accounts and have access to all of the Google productivity apps.
  • Students and instructors have to wait for responses.
Weebly for Education
  • Easily create a classroom website & blog
  • Manage your students' accounts
Bubblier.us
  • Using Bubbl.us you can create colorful mind maps, which can be saved as an image or HTML. They can also be shared and emailed with others.
Digital Dialogue: Synchronous
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​Chat
  • Real time and offline communication
  • Group discussions, open to entire class
  • Great for virtual office hours - class conversation with instructor, group discussions between peers, and study sessions
  • Retains history
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​Google Voice
  • Telephone service with call forwarding; receive voice calls, text, and voicemail
  • Forwards calls to your cell phone
  • ​Some features: screening calls, do not disturb feature, call recording, custom greeting, message archive, and notifications - badges and email notifications
  • Apps: iOS, Android, Web​
Google Chat
  • Real time interaction
  • Allows for single-person or group interaction
  • Chat is featured in many of the productivity apps (Docs, Slides, Sheets, Hangouts, etc.)
  • Notifications
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Video Conferencing
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Conferences - a.k.a. The Big Blue Button
  • Great for virtual lectures, virtual office hours, and student groups
  • Real time communication
  • Chat with the group or individuals during the meeting
  • Share desktop, PowerPoint, and webcam
  • Record your meetings and save to Canvas for up to 2 weeks
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Google Hangouts - G Suite
  • ​Voice and video conversations from most computers or mobile devices
  • Real time communication
  • Great for virtual office hours, group discussions, and study sessions, training/tutorials using screenshare
  • Has integrated chat
  • Apps: ​iOS, Android, Plug-in, Chrome extension​​​
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Zoom
  • Video conferencing tool 1-1 or group meetings
  • Basic accounts allow for free 40-minute meetings for groups of 3 - 100 people.
  • Pro accounts allow for unlimited meetings of any size
  • Share your desktop, browser window, Airdrop device, or connected mobile device.
  • ​Record your meetings and save to the cloud or to your local device
  • Use your personal meeting ID as a personal virtual room.
Apps and Support
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Canvas Apps
Canvas Support
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G Suite
G Suite accessibility features and Support 
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Zoom
​Doodle
SXU Open Education Resources

Building a Strong Network for Your Students

Successful communication and collaboration extended outside the walls of a traditional classroom can foster greater learning opportunities. It allows students to feel connected to you and their classmates, improves productivity, "attendance", etc. It can also increase retention and alleviate stress and anxiety. 

Resources

Tech is ever changing:
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