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This is the final part of a five-part series recognizing Virginia Wesleyan faculty members who are currently doing work with the aid of development grants received during the summer of 2006
by Christina Foster '07
Faculty members Dr. Larry Hultgren, professor of philosophy, Mrs. Robin Takacs, Institutional Technology Coordinator, and assistant professor Ms. Ginger Ferris received two research development grants in the summer of 2006.
Hultgren used his grant to research the use of Personal Response Systems, or "clickers." These clickers are hand-held wireless feedback systems that are used mainly in information-laden classrooms.
"I am always looking for ways to engage students in my classes, to help them move away from being passive note-takers and to become more active learners," Hultgren said.
Hultgren explored the ways this new technology might improve teaching and learning, as well as the possibility that students may interact more as a result of the clickers. He found that while the clickers are available for any school to use, larger university lecture courses are utilizing the new technology more than smaller colleges like Virginia Wesleyan.
"Currently, it is being used in larger university lecture courses where emphasis is upon content or where the subject matter is less nuanced," said Hultgren. "I wanted to see if it could be used to enhance active learning in courses that require more judgment and comparative analysis from students."
Hultgren found that this technology has a low learning curve –- everyone can operate the clickers. Furthermore, he hopes that the new technology clickers will offer numerous other educational possibilities beyond the obvious learning purposes.
"I am planning to integrate the use of this technology into my 'Environmental Ethics' and 'Ethics and Healthcare' courses to see if it supports more active and engaged student learning," said Hultgren.
Takacs is an adjunct professor who teaches courses in the PORTfolio Program. The Program was created and implemented at Virginia Wesleyan in 1998 and originally started with 25 students. Since then, with the help of the late Dr. Thomas Fanney, the Program has grown and now accepts 50 students.
"It's a program, not a major," said Takacs. "We look at how we were raised and how that shapes us as a person, how that's affected us now."
Students take PORT 121: Self and Circumstance, which uses a psychology perspective to focus on the self. The students also develop their own Web page and electronic portfolio.
A faculty grant was given to the PORTfolio Program because, according to Takacs, it needed a facelift.
"We wanted the freshmen to endure a service learning component class during winter session but it wasn't a part of the original program," said Takacs.
The winter session service project for 2006 was about poverty in Hampton Roads and beyond, which Ferris will help coordinate. Another improvement to the program was that now the first semester of the program, PORT 121, flows into the second semester of the program, PORT 122: Liberal Arts Seminar.
"It's a pretty successful program," said Takacs. "These grants allow the faculty to reflect on what they've taught and you put all your energy into making something better."