College of the North Atlantic (CNA) was recognized with two awards from the Canadian Network for Innovation in Education (CNIE) at the annual conference last night in Ottawa. CNA received awards of Excellence and Innovation for Instructional Design/Teaching and Learning, and Educational Practice/Collaboration.
Theresa Pittman, CNA’s Chair of Distributed Learning, says it is an honour to be recognized because the competition is judged by a committee of professional peers from across Canada.
“It’s a great honor to be recognized,” Pittman says. “CNIE recognizes excellence in innovative educational practices in the use of technology to support and advance learning through its awards of excellence competition.”
The Trends in Web Development course received the award of excellence for Instructional Design/Teaching and Learning. The seminar-type course, taken near the end of CNA’s two-year Web Development diploma program, is a marked departure from the college’s usual approach. Topics and objectives are newly selected each time the course is offered, which ensures learners are exposed to the very latest techniques and technologies used in the field of web development.
“Technology plays a key role in the instructional design and delivery of this course, which includes the learning management platform Desire2Learn. It’s important to note that our learners are not only using the technology provided to them, but are themselves creating interactive media to communicate, share, discuss and learn,” Pittman explains.
“This course was developed and delivered by a small team of instructional designers and subject matter experts with backgrounds in information technology, instructional design and/or educational technology. We’ve designed the instruction to give learners numerous opportunities to explore and share, ensuring their learning is directly relevant to their chosen career.”
The second recognition award was for the Teaching with Technology Community project which received an award of Excellence and Innovation in the Educational Practice/Collaboration category. The project highlights a unique partnership between the three public education system providers in the province: CNA, Memorial University and the provincial Department of Education’s Centre for Distance Learning and Innovation (CDLI).
“It’s very fitting that the Teaching with Technology Community has been recognized with this award, and I am thrilled for all the community members involved,” says Susan Cleyle, director of Memorial’s Distance Education, Learning and Teaching Support. “This initiative began after a provincial review of the post-secondary education system recommended innovative, collaborative partnerships within the K-20 system of Newfoundland and Labrador. This community is an exemplary model of putting that recommendation into action.”
The project allows this community of practitioners to create, share, and collaborate on initiatives that lead to the development of quality support resources for the advancement of teaching with technology within the K-20 education system. Its mandate is to create a network of like-minded individuals who focus on the continual improvement of the support they provide faculty in their integration of technology in teaching and learning.
“This award recognizes excellence and innovation in partnership and collaboration using technology,” Pittman says. “The Teaching with Technology Community partnership between CNA, CDLI and Memorial University is a valuable opportunity to share and learn from colleagues and leaders within Newfoundland and Labrador.”
For more information about Distributed Learning at CNA, visit http://dls.cna.nl.ca or to get engaged in the discussion follow @TeachwithTechNL on Twitter.
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Media Contact:
Glenda McCarthy
Public Relations Specialist
College of the North Atlantic
709.643.6408
glenda.mccarthy@cna.nl.ca