Massive open online courses (MOOCs) and other digital learning platforms are the focus of a new institute being launched this fall. The Institute for Digital Learning will be led by , associate professor of computer science and computer engineering at the School of Engineering. It will be housed in the newly renovated Alumni Hall.
The institute鈥檚 creation was one of the recommendations made by the Chancellor鈥檚 Committee on Social Media and the Internet, assembled by in February 2012.
鈥淲ith this new institute and Doug鈥檚 leadership, we will explore how best to leverage and shape these tools to increase our own students鈥� engagement and exposure into research and discovery, and also to bring the knowledge generated by our faculty to traditional and nontraditional students around the globe,鈥� says Zeppos.
The institute will focus on strategy related to digital learning for courses offered on campus and those offered through MOOCs and other platforms. In addition, the institute will study the medium itself to promote innovations in teaching and will support faculty and student research on MOOCs.
Fisher is a frequent speaker and writer on the topic of digital learning and is seen as a thought leader on the concept of 鈥渇lipped classrooms,鈥� in which students learn core material outside the classroom through video and other digital tools and spend classroom time on collaboration and discussion. His research focuses on artificial intelligence, particularly machine learning, computational models of creativity, and applications in environmental sustainability.
鈥淭he institute represents a commitment by 菠萝视频 to understand the changes that are coming, to anticipate them as best we can, and to design for change鈥攎ost notably for the benefit of our students, as well as opening new areas of research, in education, in 鈥榖ig data,鈥� and other areas we still aren鈥檛 sure about,鈥� says Fisher.