To: Margins
of Excellence Award Review Committee
From: Annette
N. Markham, Information Technology
Re: Margins
of Excellence proposal
Web Based Help Resources for UVI’s Center for
Technology and Learning
A new Information Technology Initiative
Request:
I request Margins of
Excellence funding in the form of a stipend
to begin formal planning and development of an informational and self-help
website for the new Center for Technology and Learning (CTL). The CTL is a new program within the
merged Information Technology and Library Divisions designed to centralize
training and development for students and faculty in all areas related to the
integration of technology in education.
Justification
This website will become a
vital and centralized tool for delivering information and self-help tutorials
to UVI students, faculty, staff, and administrators. Currently, web-based resources are
ineffective and scattered across various divisions on the UVI campus. In the area of basic computer and email
use, web-based resources are outdated.
In the area of Blackboard help for faculty and students, web-based
resources are non-existent. In the
area of self-help for faculty and students regarding information and computer
literacy, web-based resources have not yet been implemented. Although many information sources are
available, they are not centralized and therefore, not easily found by end
users. The completion of this
component is urgently necessary to centralize and aubment the
University’s services.
Fit with UVI’s Strategic Thrust
This proposal fits within
several current strategic initiatives of the University. The
described website will contribute directly to the achievement of these
initiatives.
How does this project help
the university achieve these various aims?
We are creating a web presence that both mirrors and supports these
University-wide strategic thrusts.
The project helps students develop skills that contribute directly to
their professional futures; provides a model for other island nations to follow
in the development of their own pedagogical materials; merges and centralizes
the intellectual resources currently available at UVI, provides a portal for
students and faculty to find training and development modules, and provides a
location to announce and showcase cutting edge research and development in the
use of new communication technology in the Caribbean.
The CTL Website:
Information and computer
literacy is a vital component of higher education in the 21st
Century. The University aims to
build student and faculty competency in the areas of information and
communication technology through increased training and development.
Even though much training and
development occurs in the classroom setting or in face-to-face faculty and
student workshops, a strong web presence is essential to providing the best
training possible and the most up-to-date information on information and
communication technology.
We have identified the need
to develop a strong web presence for this initiative (The Center for Technology
and Learning). Before a request for
proposals can be sent out, this self-help website requires intensive
development at the level of conceptual design. This initial step has been targeted as a
Margins of Excellence opportunity by the principle investigator, Annette
Markham.
The website will be developed
in four phases:
Phase I
involves planning and designing the purpose and structure of the site. This phase, to be completed by Dr. Markham,
involves the following activities:
Phase II
involves outsourcing the design and production of a basic shell that can be
added to and augmented later by personnel working with the CTL. Basic elements of this shell include:
Phase III
involves developing core content for the site. Although this is an ongoing process, the
immediate and urgent concern is to provide content in the following areas:
§
Self-help for
faculty wanting to use the Blackboard courseware system
§
Self-paced
tutorials for students to gain basic competency in computer literacy,
information literacy, desktop management, Blackboard use, and effective email
use.
§
Forms for faculty
to sign up for Blackboard and other training workshops
§
Forms for
students to sign up for Computer and Information literacy workshops
§
Forms for
students to submit results of self-paced tutorials for assessment
Phase IV
involves the development of advanced content for the site. This will include:
We anticipate steady increases
in the use of this site over the next two years as the UVI community recognize
the usefulness of these materials.
We also anticipate steady growth of use by other educational
institutions in the territory, the
Dr. Markham is well suited to
conducting the initial development of this website and coordinating later development
of this project. She has studied
and understands both the philosophy behind web communication and the practical
aspects of producing websites that are effective and user-friendly. She has taught courses in hypertext and
web design. She has conducted
research on computer-mediated communication and learning practices since 1996
and has an array of experience teaching technologically-mediated courses at
both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
Timeline for the project (2005-2006)
May-June, 2005: Phase
I completed (Margins of Excellence Funded portion)
June-August, 2005: Phase
II completed
August-December, 2005: Phase
III completed
January-May, 2006: Phase
IV completed
Although development of this
site will continue, several components of the website will be online by the
start of the Fall 2005 semester:
Budget Request
The requested maximum amount
of $5,000.00 is to support research and development as described in Phase
I. This award will provide Dr.
Markham with a minimal stipend to focus her research and design skills toward
the development of this website.
I
hereby agree to pay back the Margins of Excellence Award monies if the project
is not completed.
__________________________________________________________________________
Annette
N. Markham Date
University of the
#2 John Brewer’s Bay
office: 1
. 340 . 693 . 1356
home: 1
. 340 . 626 . 2396
email: amarkha@uvi.edu
EDUCATION
Ph.D.
Communication
Organizational
Communication and Interpretive Research Methods
Dissertation:
Going Online: An Ethnographic Narrative.
Committee: William K. Rawlins (chair); Dennis K.
Mumby; DianeWitmer; W. Jack Spencer
M. S.
Speech
Communication
Major: Organizational Communication
Thesis: Dealing
with Confusion and Tension in a Northwest Design Firm: A Cultural Analysis
B. S.
Major: Speech Communication
ACADEMIC AND
ADMINISTRATIVE APPOINTMENTS
1/2005-present Coordinator
Center
for Technology and Learning, Information Technology Services
University
of the Virgin Islands,
8/2004-present Associate
Professor
Communication
Area, Humanities Division
University
of the Virgin Islands,
8/2001-8/2004 Assistant
Professor
Department
of Communication
8/1997-6/2001 Assistant
Professor
Department
of Communication Studies
Virginia
Polytechnic Institute and
8/1999-6/2000 Coordinator
of First Year Learning Community Initiatives
One-year
appointment by the Office of the Academic Provost and Center for Excellence in
Undergraduate Communication
Virginia
Polytechnic Institute and
BOOKS
Life
Online: Researching Real
Experiences in Virtual Space.
BOOKS UNDER
CONTRACT
Qualitative Internet
Research: Dialogue with Internet
Researchers.
(Edited
book with Nancy Baym. Contract
received from Sage Publishers, Inc. 04/2004)
REFEREED
JOURNAL ARTICLES AND BOOK CHAPTERS
Disciplining
the future: A critical analysis of
the future field of “Internet Research.”
(Forthcoming.
The Information Society 03/2004. Accept rate 20-25%. Impact Rating by
ISI: 1.087)
Representation of Self and
Other in Online Ethnography. In
Denzin, N. & Lincoln, Y. (Eds.).
Handbook
of Qualitative Research, 3rd Edition.
(Forthcoming)
Fragmented
Narrative and Bricolage as Interpretive
Method: Go Ugly Early. Qualitative Inquiry (forthcoming,
2004).
(Forthcoming.
Journal Acceptance rate 12-15%)
Designing discourse: A critical analysis of strategic
ambiguity and workplace control. Management Communication Quarterly,
9 (4), 389-421. (1996)
The rhetoric of self-directive management and the
operation of organizational power. Communication Reports, 8
(1), 45-53. (1995, with Michael Salvador)
INVITED BOOK
CHAPTERS
Representation in online ethnographies: A matter of context sensitivity. In Chen,
S. L. S., G. J. Hall and M. D. Johns (Eds.). Online Social Research: Methods,
Issues, and Ethics (pp. 131-145).
(Invited
Fall/2001. Submitted first draft
for peer review 12/2001. Submitted
Final draft 05/2002)
Critical Junctures and Ethical Choices in Internet
Ethnography. In Thorseth, M. (Ed.) Applied Ethics in Internet Research,
(Published conference
proceedings)
Internet Communication as a
Tool for Qualitative Research. In
Silverman, D. (Ed.). Qualitative
Research: Theory, Method, and
Practices, 2nd Edition.
(Invited 02/2003. Submitted 4/2003. Final copy submitted 06/2003)
Internet as Research Context. In
Seale, C., Gubrium, J., Silverman, D., and Gobo, G. (Eds.). Qualitative Research Practice.
(Invited for participation in
Handbook 10/2002. Submitted
12/2002. Final copy submitted
10/2003)
ARTICLE LENGTH WORK UNDER
REVIEW
Metaphors Reflecting and
Shaping the Reality of the Internet: Tool, Place, Way of Being.
(Submitted for peer review to New Media &
Society 11/2003. Revise and
Resubmit 03/2004. Currently under
revision. Accept rate 20-25%)
ARTICLE LENGTH WORK IN
PROGRESS
Conduits
and Containers: Conceptual
metaphors governing information and communication technology research.
(In progress for submission to Communication
Theory.)
Taking the other for the
self: Transgredience and
subjectivity in online gaming.
(In
progress for submission to Critical Studies of Media Communication.)
Conceptual
frameworks for understanding and studying communication technology burnout.
(In progress for submission to New Media &
Society.)
Identity
and image management: A case study
of self monitoring in computer-mediated environments.
(In
progress for submission to Journal of Educational Technology.)
Considering alternatives to ethnography in online
qualitative inquiry.
(In progress for submission
to Journal of Contemporary Ethnography)
Places to browse or Conduits for data transfer? Root metaphor conflict in the design and
use of electronic libraries.
(In progress for submission
to Journal of Applied Communication Research)
BOOK PROJECTS IN PROGRESS
Images of Internet: Metaphorical Conceptions and
Consequences.
(Book
proposal under final revision.
Sample chapter complete.
Outline of chapters complete.)
Internet Research Methods.
(Edited
book proposal accepted by Sage Publishers,
REFEREED PAPERS OR PANELS AT PROFESSIONAL MEETINGS
Metaphors of Internet. Panel
moderator and respondent on a competitively selected panel. Association of Internet Researchers
(AoIR) annual conference,
Qualitative Internet Research.
Competitively selected Pre-Conference organizer and facilitator. Association of Internet
(AoIR) annual conference,
Spatial metaphors of Internet. Panel
participant at a competitively selected panel. Association of Internet (AoIR) annual
conference,
Interviewing in Online Ethnography:
Pre-Conference seminar leader.
Annual convention of the National Communication Association,
Dialogue among Scholars of Qualitative Internet
Research. Panel participant at a competitively
selected panel at the fourth annual conference of the Association of Internet
Researchers (AoIR),
Images of Internet: Tool, Place, Way of Being. Paper
presented at fourth annual conference of the Association of Internet
Researchers (AoIR),
The Importance of Context Sensitivity in Doing Internet
Ethnography. Panel creator and moderator. Competitively selected panel accepted
for inclusion at the third annual convention of the Association of Internet
Researchers,
Ethnography is an ethnography is an ethnography? Paper
presented on a competitively selected panel (above) at the third annual
convention of the Association of Internet Researchers, Maastricht, The
Netherlands, October 2002.
The Self And Other In Ethnographic Storytelling. Panel
participant at a competitively selected panel at the annual convention of the
National Communication Association,
Digital Time, Digital Space: The R/Evolution Of
Ethnography And The Ethnographer On-Line. Panel participant at a competitively
selected panel at the annual convention of the National Communication
Association,
Interviewing in Silence,
Making Bodies from Texts, and other stories of conducting ethnographies online. Paper
presented at a competitively selected panel at the annual convention of the
National Communication Association,
Researching the
Cyborganization. Roundtable participant for
competitively selected panel at the annual convention of the National Communication
Association,
Losing, Gaining, and
Reframing control: Lessons from
students of online courses. Paper
(invited) presented at the second international conference entitled: Learning2000.
Researching Online, Living
in the Body, Performing Scholarship. Competitively selected paper presented
at the Couch-Stone Symposium for Symbolic Interaction.
Life Online: Constraints of the Flesh, Possibilities
of the Spirit. Paper presented on a competitively
selected panel at the annual convention of the Society for the Study of
Symbolic Interaction, Chicago, IL, July 1999.
Creating Community in
Online Classrooms: Paradoxes and
Challenges. Invited speaker and panelist at the
National Communication Association Summer Conference on Communication and
Technology,
Epistemologically shifting states: CMC research at the millennium's edge.
Competitively selected paper presented at the annual convention of the
Northwest Communication Association,
Building Community in the Online Classroom: The importance of openness and informal
dialogue. Invited speaker at the Instructional
Technology Conference: IT99: The New Millennium. Sponsored by Virginia Tech,
Ethnography in Cyberspace: Knowing and Presenting the Other in
Text. Paper presented on a competitively
selected panel at the annual convention of the National Communication
Association.
Fostering Dialogical learning in the computer-mediated
classroom. Paper presented on a competitively
selected panel at the annual convention of the National Communication
Association.
Tools...Places.....Ways of Being: Making sense of computer-mediated
communication. Competitive paper presented at the
ICA/NCA International Summer conference:
"Organizing for the Future."
Organizing online communities through narrative and
dialogue. Paper presented on a competitively
selected panel at the annual convention of the Central States Communication
Association, St. Louis, MO, April 1997.
Organizing online communication: The discursive
negotiation of reality in Cyberspace. Paper presented at the annual
Organizational Communication Mini-Conference,
Virtually no difference: Women’s subjectivities as
men’s sexual fantasies in cyber-sex games. Competitively
selected paper presented at the annual convention of the Speech Communication
Association,
Constructions of identity and violence in
Cyberspace: An analysis of the
hacker. Competitively selected paper presented at
the annual convention of the International Communication Association,
Murder, metaphors, and the media: Journalistic representations of the O.J.
Simpson case. Competitively selected paper presented
at the annual convention of the Speech Communication Association,
Joining the Disney cast(e): A metaphor analysis of emotional labor. Competitively
selected paper presented at the annual convention of the International
Communication Association,
Designer discourse: A critical analysis of power and paradox
in the workplace. Competitively selected paper presented
at the annual convention of the Speech Communication Association,
Friendship and the dialectic of control: An exploration of relationships across
the hierarchy. Paper presented on competitively
selected panel at the annual convention of the Speech Communication
Association, New Orleans, LA, November 1994. (Interpersonal and Small Group
Interaction Division).
PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES
Invited Guest Lecturer. Online
Relationships: Real? Virtual?
Invited Panelist. Interactive
Teaching Strategies. Panel to
present and demonstrate various strategies and concerns in distance and
distributed learning. Presented at
the Instructional Technology Conference, March 24, 1999: IT99: The New Millennium.
Invited Speaker. Life
Online: The study of Science and
the Self. Presentation for the Center
for Science and Technology Studies Guest Seminar Series, Fall 1998,
Speaker. Building
Community in the Online Classroom:
Pitfalls and Challenges. Department
of Communication Studies Spring Research Colloquium series, January 1999.
Invited Speaker. Professional
Communication Issues in a Telecommuting Work Environment. Department of English
sponsored: Bringing Business to
Business Writing Conference. April
24, 1999.
Speaker. Virtually
No Difference: Women’s
subjectivities as Men’s sexual fantasies in CyberSex Games. Department of Communication Studies Colloquium Series. Spring 1998.
Speaker. Real
Experiences in Virtual Spaces: Conversations with People in Cyberspace,
Virginia Tech Women’s Studies Spring Speaker Series, Spring 1998.
Principle Investigator:
CommLAB: A Flexible
Experimental Teaching and Learning Space, 2002-2003 (with Jim Sosnoski)
·
Designed project
to conduct qualitative assessment of the use of various distance education technologies
in undergraduate and graduate courses as well as an international virtual work
team context.
·
Applied for and
received grant from Center for Advancement of Distance Education for equipment
support.
·
Developed experimental
courses to test technology influence on classroom culture, 2002-2003
Coordinator of Virginia Tech’s First-Year Learning
Communities, 1999-2000
·
Special one year
appointment by the Provost to work within the Center for Excellence in
Undergraduate Teaching coordinating various university-wide initiatives
targeted to first year students.
·
Responsibilities
included: Identifying and analyzing
current learning community efforts and barriers; facilitating collaborative
efforts between academic and student affairs; developing new cross-disciplinary
programs aimed at enhancing the first year experience at Virginia Tech; and
improving public awareness of learning community goals and initiatives by
supervising development of learning communities website.
·
Coordinated the
development of pilot projects to test the viability of academic and residential
cohort learning communities.
·
Envisioned and
directed the growth of the common book initiative, which led to a
university-wide effort: In Fall
2000, all entering students received a common book, Einstein’s Dreams
and had the opportunity to meet with the author Alan Lightman, watch student
performances based on the book, and use the book in their freshmen courses.
Chair, Virginia Tech’s Common Book Initiative Committee,
1998-1999
·
Appointed by the
Provost to lead development of new university-wide initiative.
·
Responsibilities
included: Envisioning, developing,
implementing and assessing a previously nonexistent university-wide, Provost
supported initiative for freshmen to read and use a common book (Einstein’s
Dreams) across the first year curriculum.
·
Fall 1998
pilot: over 800 freshmen read the
book in several colleges and courses.
In 1999, pilot grew to over 1,500 participants, almost half the incoming
freshman class. In 2000, all
entering freshman—4,500 students—received the book.
·
Achieved goal to
have the President of University distribute book to all upper-level
administration.
·
Achieved goal of
having the Director of the branch campus in northern
Creator and Director, Virginia Tech Communication Department
Study Abroad Program, 1998-2000
·
Developed and
received University approval for new communication-based study abroad program
·
Designed
appropriate funding model, managed budget, and organized all travel for
professors and students.
·
Initiated and
built joint program with two additional universities:
·
Served as
director of the expanded program, coordinating efforts among four professors to
teach courses.
·
To enhance
understanding of computer-mediated communication issues, designed and developed
a distance education component among students in Europe,
EDITORIAL ACTIVITIES
COURSES DEVELOPED AND TAUGHT
University of the
Purdue University
Department of Communication