The Mesquite Online News - Texas A&M University-San Antonio

Technology helping change the face of education

By Jerry Quijano

A green screen, two sound recording rooms and a monitor that turns your laptop into a giant touchscreen are just some of the technologies available in the Faculty Innovation Center.

Located in the Central Academic Building Room 231 on Main Campus, the center was created to attract faculty and students’ attention in new, engaging ways.

“We wanted to empower them (faculty) to develop their own multimedia,” explained Sherita Love, manager of academic technologies. “Or, to have a space where they can collaborate with their peers.”

Debbie Vera, assistant professor in the College of Curriculum and Kinesiology, recently attended training for a Promethean ActivTable, essentially the equivalent of a small kitchen table layered with an interactive touch screen.

Students can play musical instruments on the multi-user interactive table with the touch of a finger, one of its many uses, Dr. Vera explained.

University students who learn these technologies will have no problem inspiring young minds, she said, referring to student teachers.  

Many districts across San Antonio use the Promethean ActivTable. As part of their “Ready from Day 1” initiative, Love said the College of Education and Human Development faculty emphasize students how to effectively teach with technology.

Tracy Clark, director of professional learning Initatives at Promethean, explains the many functions a Promethean Intractive Board can do to help faculty teach their students in the classrooms. Photo by Manuel Figueroa.
Tracy Clark, director of professional learning Initatives at Promethean, explains the many functions a Promethean Intractive Board can do to help faculty teach their students in the classrooms. Photo by Manuel Figueroa.

The Innovation Center consists of five rooms, hidden behind an unassuming door that can only be opened with a swipe card. Faculty can use the center on their own, or take advantage of tutorials available through Information Technology Services.

Both university campuses offer Innovation Centers. The Center at Brooks Campus opened nearly two years ago, while Main Campus facility has yet to complete a full year of operation.

Though relatively small, Love says the center is lush with possibilities and full of powerful technology such as Adobe Creative Suite and Camtasia, a screen-capturing program used to record high quality digital audio and video.

Quotes from Maya Angelou and Nelson Mandela adorn the center’s walls, which were chosen by Love to embolden faculty.

“We didn’t want to make it boring,” Love said. “We wanted to inspire them (faculty). Let’s do something more innovative, exciting and student-centered.”

Many faculty and staff use the facility, including those from the College of Education’s bilingual faculty, the Tutoring Center and the Recreation Sports department, Love said.

Interest in the Innovation Center is spreading, among faculty and students alike.

“It gives professors a different approach to teaching and it gives leverage to their classrooms as well,” said Brian Cruz, a recent Communications graduate of Texas A&M University-San Antonio. “The main point is to grab the student’s attention.”

Faculty attend a Promethean Interactive Board training session at Texas A&M University-San Antonio on Sept.18.
Faculty attend a Promethean Interactive Board training session at Texas A&M University-San Antonio on Sept.18. Photo by Manuel Figueroa.

Cruz, a contract videographer and producer for A&M-San Antonio, said that should a eureka-type idea strike a faculty member, the center is “a 24-hour open operation.”

Students can use the facility Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

“There are a lot of amenities that can be used and a lot of tools that can be used in different ways for positive teaching methods within the University,” Cruz said. “It’s here to enhance and it’s here to take us (A&M-San Antonio) into that next realm.” 

Currently, the Innovation Center’s primary aim is to aid faculty. Any students wishing to use the technology would have to be working in conjunction with a faculty member. 

Expansion, according to Love, would again be based on the needs of faculty and there are currently no plans for expansion in the forthcoming STEM building.

The Faculty Innovation Center is opening bountiful avenues towards new learning methods at A&M-San Antonio, but Love wants faculty to know that although the new machines may seem daunting, there should be no fear when entering the Center. 

“I’m okay if they (faculty) don’t know the technology, I just want to see their ideas.”

For more information contact Information Technology Services at (210) 784-4357.

About the Author

Jerry Quijano
Jerry Quijano's enthusiasm for storytelling earned him a spot to attend the 2016 Podcast Movement in Chicago where he received instruction on crafting audio stories. He was selected as an alternate for NPR's Next Generation public radio training. Jerry envisions working in public radio in a large market and would like to become a producer on WBEZ’s This American Life. He serves as assistant editor of The Mesquite and producer for "Magnified," a podcast production.

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