The IRIS Center aims to make use of these two facts to create a program where SI can be offered to those needy students through the internet by providing regularly scheduled webinars in the courses that have historically proven problematic to our students.
Throughout FAMU there are several programs in place to assist students, through tutoring, learning facilitation and other academic related supports. Most often than not, these programs are designed to serve a particular department and its student population. As a result, it is possible for programs that are compatible curriculum wise, to have support services in one campus location that could well benefit more than one population of students from different programs across the University. The question then is how can these academic support services, which can benefit students from different programs, be made readily available to students that need them regardless of whether or not they belong to that particular program or department?
One program that strives to reach across several disciplines, and thus across multiple programs on campus, is the FAMU STEM program. This program is located in the main campus and serves any student that is taking a STEM related course regardless of the original department. The program offers tutoring, student development through workshops, financial support etc. The support however is only offered if the student can reach the Center, which for some students, may be quite difficult.
Another program is the CASE (Center for Academic Support for Engineers) offered to engineering student at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering Campus. The CASE program provides academic support services including peer coaching and learning facilitations for upper-level engineering students. Not only the program is located outside the main campus, but also it is restricted to the college of engineering students, although it provides services that are sought after by engineering technology and other STEM programs.
The IRIS Center proposes to marry these two existing programs with the introduction of a third center that would serve as a hub point (IRIS Center) to offer supplemental instructions to all engineering, engineering technology and STEM students. The hub or IRIS center will be housed at the College of Engineering Sciences, Technology and Agriculture (CESTA) campus. It would serve as the control center where the main hardware system would be housed and user logins, accounts and usage would be managed from. The creation of this third center provides the necessary infrastructure to launch this innovative idea while leveraging the existing support services already in existence (STEM and CASE).
The three centers will be equipped with state of the art communication hardware and software that students could access at any time of operation to get academic support from either center depending on availability. In addition, students can call remotely to access the centers from anywhere via the internet. The support will be available through supplemental instructor Leaders (SI Ls) and professors. This will create a platform to better use the existing resources that are common to the three areas.
Each center would be equipped with one smart board, a document camera, and several computers stations for students to access and the necessary video audio equipment. Each center (STEM, CASE and Hub) will have a designated workstation dedicated to the supplemental instruction leaders’ (SIL) usage.
The main hardware (servers) and software will be housed at the hub center. For video and sound communication we plan on using the software named Brigit that is currently being tested by the CASE program. The smart board and local computers will be interconnected in such a way that the smart board acts as the monitor for the main computers at a respective center. When a student or SIL writes on the board, the information is transmitted to the main computer. To transmit this data in real time to other centers and/or students we will make use of existing web-based software called Dyknow, which is already being used by Dr. Chao Li in classes as a teaching tool. This software allows students to interact with the instructor and the instructor with the users in a private setting. Students are able to ask questions as the instructor teaches using HP tablet PCs, which allows him to write directly into the monitor and the students to see the information in real time in their individual tablet PC screen. This software would be the main linking vehicle between the centers, and between students.
Figure 1 shows a top level flow chart of the IRIS Center operation in conjunction with the existing programs. The solid lines represent flow of information from outside communication points to the hub point (IRIS Center) as request for assistance question and /or comments during a session. The dashed lines represent outflow of information such as webinars sessions, answer to questions, etc. from the hub center.
The hub and CASE centers will provide supports through SILs and teachers who can be made available through a web connection from their respective offices to the hub center. The STEM center will provide support through SILs only. The program can provide assistance locally in each one of the centers or remotely from anywhere internet connection is available, such as the library, a library a coffee shop etc.
Since the proposed project goals work in tandem with on-going projects, the combined effort leads to a greater impact at Florida A&M University compared to having the same projects working in total isolation. Attendance records will be kept to assist in the project evaluation. We will hire Florida A&M University engineering graduate and undergraduate students to provide the supplemental instruction. The IRIS Center will provide training to the supplemental instruction leaders in teaching and webinar presentations.
The supplemental instruction will be provide in the form of: regularly scheduled webinars, and peer coaching through remote tutoring. In accordance with section 427 of GEPA, each of these services will be modified and made available to students, faculty, and other program participants with special needs that provide equitable access to all components of the proposed program.
