In addition to one-on-one consultations, EdTech and IS&T offer year-round trainings on various technologies. EdTech and Information Systems & Technology (IS&T) offer Instructional Support on both the Charles River Campus and the Medical Campus.  Please check the IS&T training calendar for course offerings and registration information. Online training is also available.

If you have questions or would like an individual consultation you can reach us at askedtech@bu.edu.

New! Blackboard Buddies

EdTech recently launched a program called “Blackboard Buddies,” where faculty members are paired with an educational technologist who will support them one-on-one in their use of Blackboard. The Blackboard Buddy will be able to help instructors adopt new tools in Blackboard and give advice on effective course tool usage. The relationship will last for the entirety of the course the instructor chooses, and will ensure that course content and tools are set up appropriately. This takes the uncertainty out of exploring and leveraging new tools and helps provide a better experience for students as well as for the instructor.

Communities of Practice

The Educational Technology Department has created communities of practice to provide gathering places for technology users from across BU. These groups meet periodically to discuss platforms that can help improve instructors, staff members, and students’ experiences.  When we join together, we collaborate, brainstorm, and solve problems surrounding our educational technology use. Learn from others who have faced the same technology challenges you experience, and provide your own insights into the ways we can all engage, deepen, and transform our students’ learning. All of our communities of practice meet at our office at 141 Bay State Rd. If you are interested in joining a community of practice, or if you are interested in starting a new community of practice to discuss a technology you are interested in, reach out to EdTech at askedtech@bu.edu.

• Social Media Community of Practice
• Blackboard Community of Practice
• NVivo Community of Practice
• EPortfolio Community of Practice

The Educational Technology Collective

The EdTech Collective is not a platform community of practice, but a collective open to all BU staff and faculty that discusses different aspects of various platforms each month. The collective unites people from departments and colleges from all over BU, and many members are responsible for some aspect of the university’s educational technology. Each meeting features a different technology or category of technology. The collective helps BU staff stay aware of the resources BU already has, and new developments in those resources.

To add yourself to the Collective mailing list, send an email to askedtech@bu.edu.