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Get to Know Your Resources – Campus, Publisher, and Free Materials

As a faculty member, it is essential to have resources to help facilitate your job functions. These resources can include publisher materials, campus resources, departmental resources and (many times free) 3rd party resources. The primary goal for you as a faculty member is to successfully teach your students in a way in which they can learn but to do so successfully often requires some additional support.

Below are a list of different types of resources and materials that can help support faculty in their roles:

Publisher Resources

Publishers are a great resource for finding new textbooks, digital solutions, and updates on new technologies. Your publisher can and will work with you on finding a solution that will benefit both you and your students – including customizing resources to fit your class, program, or college. 

Campus Resources

Get to know your Campus – what is available already for you and your students?

Each college or university is different and will have a wide variety of resources available. Try exploring your campus further and see which of these types of resources may be available:

  • Campus Library
  • Print Shop
  • Bookstore
  • IT- Computer Services
  • Professional Development Center
  • Staff Assistant
  • Student Assistants
  • Tutoring Centers
  • Learning Commons
  • Lab Assistants
  • ADA department
  • Counseling Center
  • Academic Advisors
  • Testing Center
  • Student Services
  • Cafeteria – Coffee Bar J

Your department can help you navigate the campus and how to utilize all the resources available. Find your mentor, ask questions, don’t try and recreate the wheel.

Department Resources

Get to know your coworkers – A helping hand when needed is essential to your success:

  • Faculty Mentors
  • Program Manager/Coordinator
  • Staff Assistant
  • Computer Labs
  • Lab Assistant
  • Peer Faculty
  • Deans
  • Travel and Conference Expense planning
  • Mail room
  • Copy/Fax/Print machines
  • Templates of Syllabi
  • Current course outlines
  • Learning outcomes

Get to know the people you work with. Ask questions when you do not know something. Your department is where you will be working closely with other faculty. They have been where you are now. Use their knowledge to become a better instructor/student mentor.

Free 3rd Party Resources

  • Prezi – A presentation program
  • Yammer – Social networking tool within your college
  • Skype – Video and voice calls
  • Polleverywhere.com – Polling application that can use computer or cellphones for response
  • Gcflearnfree.org – free online educational website focusing on technology, job training, reading, and math skills
  • Audacity – free audio editor and recorder
  • Irfanview – free image editor, organizer and converter for Windows
  • Canva – create presentations, flyers, posters and more
  • Learning Styles Questionnaire – An online questionnaire to help students understand their learning styles.
  • How to Geek – Online technology magazine
  • Symbaloo – personalize your webpages for easy access
  • Padlet – A virtual wall that can be posted on like a poster
  • Bubbl.us – concept mapping web-based program
  • Livebinders – Online digital binders for organizing your digital media
  • Blogger.com – blogging service for multiple users

Online sites generally have a tutorial on how to use the programs. These are helpful in learning new tools for your classroom. Play around, learn new and exciting tools to help keep your students engaged in learning.

Other 3rd Party Resources

There is an enormous amount of online resources available for instructors just getting started.

About the Author

Debora (Debbie) Towns is a veteran professor at the College of Central Florida. She holds a M.Ed. Instructional Technology and has additional credit hours in Business Administration and Computer Science. She is proficient in a variety of office applications and has taught many courses over the past 20 years. In addition to teaching classes she is also a Digital Faculty Consultant for McGraw-Hill, where she trains other faculty on the use of SIMnet as a learning tool for Microcomputer Application courses. She is dedicated to the advancement of technology for all and enjoys learning and teaching with new technology.

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