On exchange for two terms at the University of Singapore is third-year arts-and-business student Dominic Kreutzner, who spent a recent Reading Week in Bali, Indonesia. “Next to me,” he writes, “is [Name removed by request], on exchange from Queen’s University. This was taken on our tour of the lush rice paddies in Ubud, Bali. Our guide informed us that during the monsoon season, the area is even greener! We enjoyed our visit to Bali as we learned about the Hindu culture of the island. Later we experienced the Kuta carnival to celebrate the island’s rich culture. The people were extremely welcoming and happy to see visitors, especially after the Bali bombings. Quite a contrast from the hustle and bustle of the city state Singapore, which is only a two-hour flight away.”

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New link for Renaissance scholars

A special event this afternoon will officially announce Waterloo's partnership with one of North America's leading libraries in Renaissance studies. "UW has accepted an invitation," a news release says, "to join the Newberry Library Center for Renaissance Studies consortium, a group that includes only three other Canadian universities: McGill, Alberta and Guelph."

Celebrations will start at 4 p.m. in the courtyard and an adjacent lecture room in Environmental Studies I. Highlight from the photographers' point of view will be "Students wearing Renaissance costumes", the announcement says. And Carla Zecher, director of the centre, will speak about the Newberry Library's collections and programs.

The Newberry Library in Chicago possesses one of the three great collections of early modern printed books and manuscripts in North America. "Our membership in the consortium will benefit faculty and graduate students in a range of disciplines who share an interest in the late medieval and early modern periods (1200-1800)," says Ken Graham, UW professor of English language and literature. "Our faculty will also become eligible to teach seminars at the centre."

The centre runs an extensive program of research seminars and workshops on topics in medieval and early modern literary and cultural history, drawing together outstanding scholars and graduate students from around the world.

Its offerings include annual seminars on key literary figures such as Shakespeare, Dante, Cervantes and Milton. As well, the centre holds a top graduate student conference in medieval and Renaissance studies, along with continuing programs in the history of the book as well as medieval and Renaissance paleography. It is also linked by a reciprocal agreement to the Folger Institute in Washington, D.C., which runs a comparable program of educational and research seminars out of the Folger Shakespeare Library.

"These are, in short, the two best programs of their kind in North America," Graham said, adding that UW departments benefiting from the membership include English language and literature, French studies, Italian studies, Spanish and Latin American studies, classical studies, fine arts, Germanic and Slavic studies, drama and speech communication, and history.

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Talk about e-learning in medical areas

A faculty member from the University of Ottawa medical school will be speaking at UW next week and represents a new emphasis for the Centre for Learning and Teaching Through Technology.

“We are starting to bring in more scholars in the medical area,” says Peter Goldsworthy of LT3, “due to our increasing attention to this area within the UW community — pharmacy, McMaster medical satellite campus, our downtown Kitchener campus, etc.”

Enter Michael Clarke (left) — who is no stranger to Waterloo, as Goldsworthy notes: “While Waterloo was nurturing CLOE (Cooperative Learning Object Exchange) through its early days, we hosted a special committee evaluating learning object peer review, which has since become the hallmark of CLOE. At that time, Michael Clarke was the associate dean for computing in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Western Ontario and agreed to chair the committee. Since then Michael has moved into the position of director of eCurriculum for the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa. Recently Michael worked with Kevin Harrigan from LT3 as co-hosts for the MERLOT 2006 International Conference.”

He’ll be giving a talk October 26 (1 p.m. in the Flex Lab, Dana Porter Library) under the title “Square Pegs in Round Holes: Fitting an Undergraduate Medical Curriculum into a Learning Management System.” In addition, people from such fields as optometry, pharmacy, health sciences, psychology, biology, and kinesiology are invited to get in touch with Mark Morton of LT3 (e-mail markmorton@lt3) for details on “a special informal session we have arranged with Michael about eLearning in those areas”.

Says an LT3 announcement of next week’s talk: “Although in North America all medical schools must implement curricula that are compliant with accreditation guidelines from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, there is significant flexibility in these guidelines. As a result, undergraduate medical curricula can show extensive variation from one school to another. Many schools have adopted a systems-based curriculum where the instructional units are defined by body system as opposed to a course-based curriculum. Systems based curricula tend to be administered centrally and owned collectively by the entire Faculty.

“However, a systems-based curriculum does not lend itself well to the architecture of conventional learning management systems which are generally designed to accommodate a course-based curriculum in disciplines outside of medicine.” (LMS? That would be an electronic system such as Waterloo’s UW-ACE.) “This presentation will describe the nature of the challenge to medical schools who wish to develop an eLearning component to support their programs and how an ideal LMS that enables a systems-based undergraduate medical curriculum might appear.”

And about the speaker himself: “Michael Clarke lives and works with a passion. A passion for more students to learn more, and a passion for teachers to teach better, more effectively. He believes that the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning must become embedded as a culture of great importance in every university's system — it must not continue to be a high noon shadow to research. Research is a critical part of the academy's life, and it is in Michael's life as well. But balance is an important part of well-measured life.

“For many years Michael has been observing the significant inroads that learning technology (when applied correctly) can have on improving students’ learning. When you meet Michael, however, you will quickly note that he has no problem telling you swiftly and in very clear terms what doesn’t work (and he will tell the vendor the same way!).”

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Events get 50th anniversary cachet

by Kelley Teahen, Communications and Public Affairs

Event planners thinking of holding special celebrations during University of Waterloo's 50th anniversary in 2007 should start getting those events listed now on the UW Events Calendar.

One of the new features of the UW Events Calendar is the ability to select in which stream, or streams, you want your event posted, says Jesse Rodgers, manager of web communications in CPA, who implemented calendar improvements this summer, assisted by co-op student Mitch Hargreaves. There is now a stream available to mark events as being related to the 50th anniversary. All events will appear in the main calendar, of course, but tagged events also then will stream into a special listing of 50th events being held both on and off campus throughout 2007.

Here’s how. First, check out criteria and information on 50th events to see if the event you are planning would qualify. Then, go to the UW Events Calendar. For 50th events, planners should select the '50th Anniversary' stream. If your event if approved as a 50th event, it will appear on the 50th anniversary web site. In the near future, the streams will be used to feature events on places like the UW home page.

Why should events be designated as a celebration of the 50th? Jason Coolman, director of alumni affairs, who chairs the volunteer events committee for 50th anniversary, encourages all event planners to link their event to the 50th “It’s a great way to embrace the excitement that surrounds such a milestone,” he says.

Events designated as celebrations of the 50th anniversary will qualify for a number of supports to enhance the festivities and to assist organizers, such as giveaways (50th anniversary lapel pins, window stickers and other items); banners and podium covers featuring the 50th anniversary logo; additional promotion through 50th publications, and a selection of historic photos available for use, including looping photo images set up for PowerPoint.

Official 50th events will also be eligible to apply for seed funding, Coolman says. Once funding criteria are approved, details will be posted on the 50th website about how to apply for funds.

CAR

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