internshipproposal

Catherine Murphy EDET 650 Fall 2011 Internship Project Proposal

= Professional Development Network for Doctoral Students and New Faculty at USC =

For my internship, I would like to develop a professional development network for new faculty at the University of South Carolina. The target audience of participants in this network will be doctoral candidates who are acting as instructors, young professors, or any faculty members that are new to the University of South Carolina system. I also would like some veteran instructors to participate as well, to act as mentors and facilitators.

This idea came about after a discussion with Susan Quinn, Director of Instructional Support in the College of Education on the Columbia campus. The college recently brought in a new dean, and the lack of support for new faculty was brought up in a recent faculty meeting. I have also had the opportunity to discuss this issue with faculty members myself through my position as Instructional Technologies Trainer in Instructional Support and consider it a critical need that has been overlooked for some time now.

New faculty often come in with fresh ideas, and many with an interest in using technology to enhance their instruction. My goal through the implementation of this professional development network is for them to have a place to share ideas, learn about tools to enhance their instruction, discuss successes and missteps, and to become more engaged in the Carolina Community.

To recruit members, I will first obtain lists of new faculty and doctoral students from each department in the College of Education using already established connections with professors and staff in the college. I will invite new members to the group via email containing an invitation to join the group I create in Blackboard. I will use surveys and interviews to conduct my needs assessment. Then I will design video, and face-to-face training about relevant technology tools based on feedback from my learner and needs assessments. I will also invite members to connect through other social networks they may already be a part of and create forums in the Blackboard group that help them get to know each other and spark discussion.

I expect participation in the group to be somewhat passive, but at least act as a listserv for members to gain information about a variety of professional development opportunities, whether they be training developed by myself, other entities in the Carolina community, or organizations off campus. The main goal is to share information, combat feelings of isolation, and provide relevant training, while not intruding too much on the busy lives of participants.

This project is in-line with my professional goals of working as an instructional designer in a higher education setting, and my interests in the use of social networks in education. I hope that it will be successful within the College of Education and can eventually branch out into the entire university system.

My potential mentor for this project is Michelle Jay, Ph.D., a professor in the Educational Psychology department. She is excited about the opportunities it presents.

I will continue to oversee this project until I graduate in May 2012. At that point in time, Instructional Support in the College of Education will act as moderator for the network.