Communication and Productivity Applications and Systems

The following exploratory study investigated email communication between faculty and undergraduate students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  Factors related to email behavior, expectations, and influence on instructional outcomes were explored through an electronic survey of undergraduate students and faculty.  Results in this first study indicate that although faculty and students share similar ideas about the use of email in academia and recognize the potential of email communication as a means for enhancing instructional outcomes, it is not typically used for such purposes.  Although additional research at other universities is necessary, preliminary data analysis and discussion follow including initial suggestions on improving faculty and student email communication as well as enhancing scholarly discourse and instructional outcomes via electronic mail.

Three years ago, INHOLLAND university launched a learning scenario that required the latest in electronic communication and collaboration tools. The new digital campus that was built is being redesigned now using Windows Vista and SharePoint 2007. What did we learn during the past three years, and what do we hope to achieve now?

This research bulletin describes the University of Cincinnati strategy for addressing a fundamental shift in communication technologies in higher education, and for meeting—or exceeding—community expectations for contemporary productivity tools on campus. It covers the decision factors and service models that UC is implementing in fall 2006 through its UC Mobile program.