Showing posts with label classrooms. Show all posts

Bell Tower Classroom Upgrades

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Information Technology Services in partnership with Academic Affairs has upgraded 15 of the most used classrooms in the Bell Tower to provide a completely refreshed technology package. These new spaces include hybrid technology with a room camera and microphone to allow for added flexibility and a better experience for our remote students.

 


These classrooms conform to the latest A/V technology standards and were developed in coordination with internal and external campus stakeholders. Student MSFT (Materials, Services, Facilities, and Technology) fee funds were used for this upgrade which represents the largest non-new construction classroom upgrade in our campus’s history. This installation and integration were professionally done and completed on schedule. We are happy to report that initial feedback from faculty who have used the new technology has been very favorable. We look forward to seeing this new technology advance the mission of CSU Channel Islands.


Seven Classrooms with Integrated (HyFlex) Technology Components Built-In

by Anonymous in , ,

Our campus now has a few more locations where remote participation in classes or meetings may be possible:

  • Aliso Hall 133 *
  • Aliso Hall 134 *
  • Aliso Hall 231 *
  • Aliso Hall 234 *
  • Bell Tower 1462
  • Del Norte 1500  
  • Sierra Hall 1344

*These are Chemistry and Biology laboratories used for lab instruction only.


Cameras, mics and speakers are installed in these rooms and may be controlled at the instructor’s station. A single camera is focused on the instructor's station and ceiling mounted mics will pickup voices in the room.  Using familiar tools like Zoom or Teams on the instructor's workstation, remote participants have a window into the classroom and can participate with their own Zoom/Teams capable computers logged into the instructor's meeting.

Instructors needing assistance in these rooms may contact the Shared Services Solution Center at 805-437-8552, or submit an ITS service request.

HyFlex-Capable Classrooms Coming Soon *Updated*

by Anonymous in , , ,

Dear Colleagues,

In an effort to provide creative ways to allow for remote instruction, ITS is exploring options where a hybrid flexible or HyFlex course format could be supported.

Five rooms that will be used for F2F (face to face) instruction for the Fall will have cameras, microphones and speakers installed which will allow in-person or online class attendance.   By utilizing permanently installed equipment and remote communication tools like Zoom or Teams, instructors will have the ability to interact with students whether they be physically on campus or remote.

The hardware needed for this solution will be brand new to CSUCI, but should integrate well with our existing computers and the control panels with which instructors are already familiar.  Equipment in these rooms should be fully operational by 9/25/20.  These rooms will be "proof of concept" rooms and will provide two slightly different equipment sets.  Faculty use of these rooms and input on them can greatly inform future purchases and installations.

The rooms identified for HyFlex are:

  • ALISO Hall 133 ----- Basic HyFlex (9/21: final configuration/calibration and testing)
  • ALISO Hall 134 ----- Level 1 HyFlex (9/25: installing document cameras, final room configuration)
  • ALISO Hall 231 ----- Level 1 HyFlex (9/25: installing document cameras, final room configuration)
  • ALISO Hall 234 ----- Basic HyFlex  (9/21: final configuration/calibration and testing)
  • SIERRA Hall 1344 ----- Basic HyFlex (9/21: final configuration/calibration and testing)

The main difference between Basic and Level 1 HyFlex is that Basic HyFlex rooms will have a single camera focused on the instructor and a ceiling mounted mic that will pickup the instructor's voice.  The Level 1 HyFlex will have cameras that the instructor can control and mics that will pickup sound in the room from instructors and students.

This is one of several efforts we are working on to help support remote instruction needs.  We are working closely with vendors and suppliers to expedite equipment purchases as quickly as possible, and will make another announcement when these rooms are ready for testing and use.

Thank you for your patience.


Adobe Creative Cloud 2019

by Anonymous in , ,

The Adobe Creative Cloud suite is now available for use on all faculty and staff university-owned computers, labs and classroom devices, and for all students.

Access the Creative Cloud suite using your CI or Dolphin email address recognized as a Federated ID with Adobe.  All current members of the university have 2 GB of space available.

University members may also purchase a license for the Creative Cloud suite for personal computers via csuci.onthehub.com  This one-year license to use the software on personally owned machines comes with 20 GB of storage.

The commonly-used Adobe Creative Cloud 2018 products are installed on faculty and staff office computers by default. If the 2019 version is needed please log a service request in the IT Solution Center portal  and your IT Consultant will install it for you.

New instructional computers, Spring 2019

by Anonymous in , , , ,

We are pleased to announce that new computers have been installed in the following classrooms or labs:

  • Aliso 231
  • Bell Tower 2716  
  • Bell Tower 2684 
  • Sierra 1222 
  • Sierra 1232 
  • Topanga 1976 

There are also several rooms with new instructor computers or projectors installed. In most cases this equipment was specified and funded by Materials, Science, Facilities and Technology (MSFT) fee proposals submitted about a year ago, intended to refresh aged equipment. As we work toward bringing all classroom technology up to current standards we will appreciate your thoughtful feedback on the performance of the equipment in these rooms.

As always, if you have any trouble with this or any other classroom computer please log a help request, or call the Solution Center at: 805-437-8552

Desktop computers without DVD players are here

by Anonymous in ,

With the rise in popularity of smaller computing devices manufacturers are building computers that are lighter and less expensive.  One tradeoff with this trend is the elimination of CD/DVD drives.  If you use a computer that does not have a built-in DVD drive but you need one, please contact Dawn Canfield who can arrange a loaner DVD drive for you.


We are currently running a pilot of DVD-less computers in the Del Norte classrooms.  The new instructor machines in this building are small form factor computers mounted directly behind the monitors and they do not have DVD drives.   We’d very much like instructor feedback on these machines to help us plan for the future.  Please send your comments (and/or requests for external DVD players if necessary) to Dawn Canfield.

Software upgrades in teaching spaces, Summer 2018

by Anonymous in , ,

We are pleased to announce that instructor and student workstations in our computer labs and classrooms will be upgraded to Windows 10 and Office 2016 over the summer!

With this change may come the need for instructors to update course syllabus or digital files to reference and be compatible with Windows 10 and Office 2016.  T&I will do phased upgrades in all teaching spaces on a weekly basis after commencement 2018.

Related to this, please know that it is always preferred for T&I to have as much notice as possible about other software needed for teaching in the labs.  If you anticipate needing software in a computer lab or classroom that is not currently provided please contact User Services Manager, Dawn Canfield (x2643) to discuss.  T&I’s deadline to request software for the Fall semester is July 16, 2018.  Requests that can be accommodated will be included in the Fall 2018 standard configuration.  Computers may not be reconfigured again until the Winter 2018 break period.

Best practices for file access from shared instructor workstations in classrooms and labs

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We're pleased to share some best practices for instructors or presenters who use the shared instructor workstations in CSUCI's shared classrooms and labs.

The recommended way to access files in our shared teaching and learning spaces (classrooms and labs) is through CI’s cloud-based, web accessible repositories: Dropbox@CI, CI Learn (Canvas), and CI Docs (Google). These repositories are configurable to allow users to organize and share files as needed. The strategy to provide cloud-based file sharing that is secure, robust, and scalable is preferred over maintaining on-site network share drives.

In shared classroom/lab environments, consistent and reliable workstations with little personalization are necessary to ensure that:

  • each user has a predictable, consistent experience in the classroom;
  • hardware can be quickly and easily replaced in hot swappable fashion as necessary; and
  • resource allocations (disk space) are protected and controlled to provide the best performance possible for all users. 

With the trend toward using cloud-based file repositories comes the need for users to be aware of the capabilities and limits of these services when accessed from shared computers. In addition to sharing files through the CI supported web services, instructors and students can also access and edit files in the classroom from their own USB drives.

While full access to individual personal files is permitted, features like the Dropbox App may not be supported in order to allow successful use of the shared computers by all.

If you need help to share or display files in a lab or classroom, please contact the T&I Solution Center at helpdesk@csuci.edu or call 805-437-8552.

Welcome back!

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We hope you had a great summer!

T&C had a fun and busy summer too:

  • We completed some major network upgrades to make our wired and wireless network access faster and more reliable than ever.
  • We set up classrooms and deployed over 300 new computers to our newest campus classroom and lab space: Sierra Hall.
  • We made it easier to find campus events by adding CampusQuad to the goCI mobile app.
  • We've made it possible for CI students & employees to get Microsoft Office for free.

Are you a first time CI student or a new CI employee? Check out the New to CI page to familiarize yourself with the full range of services that are available to you.

If you have any technology questions, feel free to contact the T&C Help Desk at 805-437-8552 or email helpdesk@csuci.edu.

We wish you a fun-filled fall 2015 term, and let us know if there's anything we can do to improve your experience at CI.

Regards

Peter Mosinskis
Director of IT Strategy
CSU Channel Islands
peter.mosinskis@csuci.edu