ACIFA Award winner 2017-2018
Congratulations to Steve Janz whose research project was chosen as one of the winners of the ACIFA 2017-2018 Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Award! Steve will proudly accept his award at the 2018 ACIFA conference in Jasper and present his research proposal to his colleagues. He will be presented with $1000 grant to fund his research.
This is not the first time that Steve has been honoured by ACIFA, in 2014 Steve won the same award in partnership with his colleague, Cynthia Maier. Steve’s name will once again be added to the trophy located in the SAFA office.
In this year’s proposal, Steve expands on the flipped classroom concept of having the students view lectures at home via a video platform, freeing the classroom time for discussion. He adds a more video friendly approach than the traditional whiteboard – the lightboard.
Lightboard videos feature an instructor in front of a black background with a special transparent glass that is lit to highlight the writing. Lightboard videos most resemble a traditional lecture in that the instructor can make visible notes while talking and refer to those notes with hand gestures. It is also possible to superimpose power point graphics and even make notes on top of the graphics. The entire lecture can be performed without once turning your back to the audience and there is no post-production editing as for some lecture videos so the lecture can be released to the students quickly.
Steve’s presentation at ACIFA will feature an introduction to the lightboard, discussion on the pros and cons, how to make an effective video course using one and how to build a lightboard. It promises to be an exciting and informative presentation at ACIFA!