Providence, R.I.--The technological advances taking place at Providence College were the focus of a session at the recent Campus Technology 2009 national conference in Boston.

Campus Technology is the only monthly publication that focuses exclusively on the use of technology across all areas of higher education. The annual summer conference gathers leading experts in technology for higher education to guide faculty, information technologists, and campus administrators into using the latest in technology in teaching and learning.

Siobhan Ross-Humphries, coordinator of PC's Instructional Technology Development Program (ITDP), and Dr. Robert B. Hackey, professor of health policy and management, led a pre-conference workshop on "Using Wikis in Courses." The national conference came on the heels of Hackey and Ross-Humphries presenting at a Northeast Regional Computing Program last spring.

A wiki is a Web page--managed by many people--that can include text, links, images, video, and more. Hackey and Ross-Humphries focused their presentation on how wikis can be used for group projects, co-creating reference material, and collaborative class note-taking.

The session was attended by faculty and administrators from Vanderbilt University, the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, and New York University, among others. There were also representatives from Canadian, Egyptian, and Guatemalan higher-education institutions.

"People were really impressed with what's happening on campus," Hackey said. "It was great visibility for PC. When it comes to instructional technology, PC is a leader, not a follower."

Growing technology use on campus
Over the past couple of years, the ITDP has introduced wikis, personal response systems (clickers), and blogging software for use by faculty members.

"I absolutely love showing faculty different ways that both their colleagues on campus and faculty at other institutions are using new technologies to engage and excite students," Ross-Humphries said.

Hackey has used wikis in his classes for three semesters and has engaged students by incorporating blogs.

"Students really like the blogs," he said. "I particularly like that students feel a greater sense of accountability by putting material out there on the Web. Many students liked the fact that these assignments have a different feel and allow for more creativity."

He added, "Lots of other institutions are just now beginning to explore these technologies. Others at the conference were really impressed with our description of our typical classroom at PC. Overhead LCDs, walk-around computer keyboards, and SMART boards are far from the norm elsewhere."

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