A new three-day immersive workshop will help Brock instructors take their digital teaching to the next level.

The Digital Scholarship Institute (DSI) will equip instructors with methodologies and tools to create assignments that reflect the changing nature of teaching and learning in higher education.

“Digital scholarship describes the new and interesting ways in which scholarly work is created and shared,” says Tim Ribaric, Acting Head of Brock’s Digital Scholarship Lab. “It focuses on collaboration and creating web-ready content while teaching research and technical skills.”

The workshop will run Tuesday, May 4 to Thursday, May 6 and focus on three specific tools used in digital scholarship: ArcGIS Story Maps, Hypothes.is and CollectionBuilder.

“All three of these platforms allow instructors at Brock to bring elements of digital scholarship into their coursework,” says Ribaric.

ArcGIS Story Maps allows for the creation of rich and engaging GIS and map-based content. Hypothes.is is an annotation platform that allows for group collaborative annotations, which is perfect for generating discussions around weekly readings. CollectionBuilder is a digital exhibit program that students can use to create a polished site with data and images.

While the platforms themselves are already in use at Brock, Ribaric hopes the DSI will establish a group of users to share knowledge and provide ongoing support beyond the event itself.

“There has been lots of interest in these tools from several researchers and instructors at Brock over the course of the year,” says Ribaric. “It will be great to run this event and finally bring everyone together in one place so we can experiment and build out skills with these tools.”

One outcome of the DSI for instructors will be an open pedagogy assignment they can use with an upcoming course.

“This past year, many instructors have tried new and exciting ways to engage and assess learning, moving beyond traditional assignments to really leverage digital possibilities,” says Giulia Forsythe, Associate Director of the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation (CPI). “CPI is excited to partner with the Digital Scholarship Lab to offer a deeper dive into these innovative strategies to enhance pedagogy and research.”

A collaboration between Brock’s Digital Scholarship Lab and the Centre for Pedagogical Innovation, the Digital Scholarship Institute is free and open to any instructor at Brock. For more information on the event and to register, please visit the Digital Scholarship Institute 2021 page here.