Digital

Innovative Digital Applications: The CSU Digital Ambassador Program

Overview

The CSU Digital Ambassadors Program seeks to transform teaching and learning opportunities within the California State University (CSU) system through the increased use of emerging and online technologies. With particular attention to pre-service science and math teacher preparation at the undergraduate and credential level, CSU Digital Ambassadors are faculty leaders who champion the use of educational technologies within their respective campuses, engage faculty and educational stakeholders in the sharing of best practices and strategies for campus-specific and K-12 outreach initiatives, and function as a centralized resource for their academic and educational communities.

For more information and questions, please contact:

Dr. Daniel Soodjinda, Assistant Professor of Liberal Studies and Teacher Education, Project Director of CSU Dgital Ambassadors Program dsoodjinda@csustan.edu (209) 664-6607

Roles of the Digital Ambassadors

The CSU Digital Ambassadors’ roles are to:

  1. Convey the instructional technology needs and milestones of the campuses.
  2. Launch and share programs across campuses to further enhance faculty and pre- and in-service teachers’ academic experiences through transformative educational technologies.
  3. Share best practices, co-create solutions with their counterparts on their campus and across the CSU system, and develop plans for sustaining the program.
  4. Serve as an online professional network, create avenues for collaborative research and curriculum development, and act as a unified hub of educational technology resources and academic perspectives from faculty and pre-service teachers across the CSU educational community.

E-Portfolios/Reports of the Digital Ambassadors 2014-15

This project is a first of its kind, focused on developing cases of digital applications in teacher preparation and specifically addressing the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics (CCSS-M) and the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). The processes developed and lessons learned in carrying out the program have significant implications for the many universities across California and the nation. The program provides approaches for preparing faculty to advance technology and pedagogical content knowledge for future teachers, with special attention to the science, mathematics, engineering and technology (STEM) disciplines.

The cases prepared by the 2014-15 CSU Digital Ambassadors are below, with links to their individual portfolios.

  1. Debbie Meadows, CSU Bakersfield
  2. Kathy Contreras, CSU Channel Islands
  3. Li-Ling Chen, CSU East Bay
  4. Cherie Ichinose, CSU Fullerton
  5. Stephan Adams, CSU Long Beach
  6. Sabrina Sims, CSU Los Angeles
  7. Matthew d'Alessio, CSU Northridge
  8. Donna Ross, CSU San Diego State
  9. Elizabeth Meyer, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
  10. Resa Kelly, San Jose State
  11. Jessica Parker, Sonoma State
  12. Daniel Soodjinda, CSU Stanislaus

Digital Ambassadors' Educational Tech Related Publications

  1. Adams, S., Bernal, E., Cole-Jackson, M., & Martin-Hansen, L. (2015, March). Training Teachers to Use Educational Technologies in STEM Using Field Experience at a Community-Based Organization. In Society for Information Technology & Teacher Education International Conference (Vol. 2015, No. 1, pp. 3021-3025).
  2. Chen, L. (2013). iPad integration strategies for teaching and learning. In T. Bastiaens & G. Marks (Eds.),Proceedings of World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, and Higher Education 2013(pp. 631-634). Chesapeake, VA: AACE.
  3. Meyer, E. J., Parker, J. K., Ross, D. L., & Soodjinda, D. (2013). Supporting technology integration in STEM teacher preparation: Case studies from across California State University campuses.
  4. Chen, L. L. (2014), Engaging Online Learners with Social Media Tools. Abstract published in the proceedings of Global Innovation Economic Congress (GIEC) annual conference, Dalian, China.
  5. Chen, L.L. (2015). Pedagogically Effective Online Instructional Design Model. In S. Carliner, C. Fulford & N. Ostashewski (Eds.), Proceedings of EdMedia: World Conference on Educational Media and Technology 2015 (pp. 1600-1603). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE).
  6. Chen, L.L. (2015). Flipped Classroom in a High School Health Class. In S. Carliner, C. Fulford & N. Ostashewski (Eds.),Proceedings of EdMedia: World Conference on Educational Media and Technology 2015 (pp. 1246-1251). Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE).
  7. Chen, L. L. (2016).  Impacts of Flipped Classroom in High School Health Education. Journal of Educational Technology System, 44(4), (in press).
  8. Jones, L. L., Kelly, R. M., & Orna, M. V. (2015). Visualization: The Key to Understanding Chemistry Concepts. Sputnik to Smartphones: A Half-Century of Chemistry Education.
  9. Pakter, A. & Chen, L. L.(2012-2013).  Texting for increasing parental involvement and student performance. Journal of Educational Technology System, 41(4), 353-367.
  10. Soodjinda, D., Parker, J. K., Ross, D. L., & Meyer, E. J. (2014). CSU Digital Ambassadors: An Empowering and Impactful Faculty Learning Community.Journal of Digital Learning in Teacher Education, 31(1), 35-42.

Digital Ambassadors' Resource List

We want to share the vast resources the Digital Ambassadors used over the 2012-2013 academic year. Below is an annotated list of the platforms, software, applications, and tools that were important in helping these educators think about exciting new ways to teach and new opportunities for students to demonstrate their learning.

Interactive Software:

Geogebra:
Free, interactive software for geometry, algebra, statistics and calculus

National Library of Virtual Manipulatives:
Library of uniquely interactive, web-based virtual manipulatives or concept tutorials for mathematics instruction

Geometer’s Sketchpad:
Software for teaching mathematics using interactive whiteboards.         

Wolfram Alpha:
Search engine that provides access to the world’s facts and data and calculates answers across a range of topics, including mathematics and science

Google in Education STEM Tools:

Main Page:
Additional Google tools to collaborate and share resources in classrooms to improve teaching and learning

Trimble SketchUp:
3D modeling program for a broad range of applications designed for engineers, architects, filmmakers, and related professionals

Google Fusion Tables:
Additional experimental data visualization web applications to gather, visualize, and share larger data tables

Coding Applications:

Xcode:
Suite of tools for developing software on Mac OS X

MIT App Inventor:
Create and develop applications for Android phones using a web browser

Brainstorm and Mind Mapping Tools:

Popplet:
Tools that allow users to visualize and share ideas, graphic organizers, timelines, and other forms of visual organizations

Twiddla:
Online collaboration tool that uses a virtual whiteboard

Bubbl.us:
Teaching tool that allows the user to make graphical representations of ideas

Innovative and Interactive Presentation Applications:

Prezi:
Web-based presentation application and storytelling tool that uses a single canvas instead of traditional slides

SlideRocket:
Online presentation platform that lets users create, manage, share and measure presentations

Voicethread:
Web-based application that allows users to place collections of media like images, videos, documents, and presentations at the center of an asynchronous conversation

Google presentation:
Google tool that is a free, web-based word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, form and data storage service

Screencasting:

Screencast-o-matic:
Web application that creates free screencasts on Windows, Mac, and Linux operating systems

Jing:
Captures anything on the computer screen, as an image, or short videos, and lets the user share the applications instantly

ScreenFlow:
Record the computer screen, edit videos, and share with the world instantly on Mac

Screenr:
Instantly screencast and record videos to publish around the world

Real-Time Feedback Applications:

Google Moderator:
Google service that uses crowd sourcing to rank user-submitted questions, suggestions, and ideas

Polleverywhere.com:
Audience response system that generate participant responses and promote discussion

Social Media Tools to Connect:

Twitter:
Type of micro-blogging where educators update their followers with information, resources, and tidbits using 140 characters, a URL, and/or a picture

Google+: 
Multilingual social networking and identity service that help share and discover places and information

Pinterest:
Pinboard-style photo-sharing website that allows users to create and manage theme-based image collections

LinkedIn:
Business-orientated social networking tool that extends users existing network of trusted contacts

Google Web-Based Office Suite:

Google Docs:
Web-based word processor that collaborate and share resources for creating docs, forms, spreadsheets

Google Earth:
Virtual globe and map information that promote geospatial awareness

Google Draw:
Online tool that collaborate and create representations