Informatics professor and program director, Sara Hook and lecturer Jennifer Stewart, recently secured a Learning Environment grant from the IUPUI Center for Teaching & Learning for the creation of an I-Learn center in the School of Informatics and Computing.
I-Learn which stands for Informatics-Learn, Engage, Apply, Reflect, Network- will be a collaborative area providing students with a new venue for learning, and a place to engage with faculty members and community partners. The center will be located on the fifth floor of the Informatics and Communications Technology Complex, and will also function as a place for students to apply newly acquired skills and knowledge as they move through the undergraduate Informatics program. This newly proposed facility will offer the opportunity for students to reflect on what they have learned and network with one another.
The proposed area would come equipped with a more flexible workspace where tables and chairs are on wheels, and can be easily moved around, along with various display units. The space would also make available desktop computers, and a video wall display, as well as other resource materials.
An I-Learn center is crucial to further training and the educational experience of students because of the opportunity for increased engagement between them and faculty. It will also aid in helping to foster and develop a sense of reciprocity and cooperation among students. It will encourage active learning and provide an avenue for prompt feedback and space where diverse talents and ways of learning are respected and accommodated.
Although primarily targeted to undergraduate Informatics students, the I-Learn space would also be available for other students in the department. This openness and ease of accessibility to a variety of students will then create a unique opportunity and help to cultivate an atmosphere in which undergraduate and graduate students will feel free to interact, network, and mentor one another.
Currently, the new I-Learn area is scheduled to be open and operational by August 2014.
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