September 6, 2013
During last year’s e-Volution forum, Alan Buss, center, UW professor of elementary
and early childhood education, explained technological applications to Craig Shepherd,
left, UW professor in professional studies, and Terry Callaghan, Lab School teacher.
This year’s forum, “Finding the Balance: Technology and the Future of Education,”
is scheduled Sept. 13-14 at UW. (UW Outreach School)
Teachers and students can explore ways to use technology to enhance learning and connect
in the classroom during a free forum scheduled Friday and Saturday, Sept. 13-14, at
the University of Wyoming.
The theme of the fifth annual e-Volution: Technology in Learning Environments forum
is “Finding the Balance: Technology & the Future of Education.” Sessions are scheduled
from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday in the Wyoming Union and from 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturday
in the UW Classroom Building. A complete schedule, information about speakers and
a registration form are available by visiting www.wyoforum.org. Those unable to come
to Laramie are encouraged to attend online.
“As technology continues to play an increasingly large role in our lives, each advancement
changes the way we communicate, work and learn,” says Jeff McDonald, UW Outreach School
marketing and special programs director. “The same is true for applying new technologies
in the classroom, which has become a new frontier for education.”
The forum’s sessions are arranged so participants can customize their experience by
attending chosen topics of interest. Speakers will cover topics ranging from social
media, virtual labs and pedagogical perspectives to learning management systems and
hands-on demonstrations.
Gary Moore, professor of agriculture and extension education at North Carolina State
University, will give the keynote talk. He will open the event Friday morning in the
Wyoming Union West Ballroom with a discussion titled “Searching for the Wizard of
Oz in the College Classroom.”
“Anyone interested in innovative teaching, be it with technology or new teaching methods,
should attend this conference,” says Christi Boggs, Outreach School credit programs
assistant lecturer. “This includes K-12 teachers, college-level instructors and instructors
involved with professional development.”
Boggs says representatives from all of the surrounding states as well as most of the
Wyoming community colleges and UW are registered.
“We also have representatives from K-12 districts around Wyoming; it is a fantastically
inclusive conference,” she adds.
The UW Outreach School, Ellbogen Center for Teaching and Learning, UW College of Agriculture
and Natural Resources and UW Libraries sponsor the forum, offered in conjunction with
the Agriculture and Natural Resources Western Region Teaching Symposium.
Reed Scull, associate dean of the Outreach School, says, “This conference is all about
partnerships, both within the university and outside. This partnering is appropriate
because, to build an effective teaching and learning environment that is supported
by technology, no one person can do it alone. You need a group of supporters, and
the e-Volution conference is all the more powerful and relevant because of that.”
“There is a lot of discussion and thinking going on worldwide about the role of technology
in teaching and learning, and we benefit greatly from getting those perspectives,
whether they come in virtually or in person,” Scull says.
