OpenLab Statistics: To June 30, 2016

Pageviews (for past quarter):
644,132

Average session duration(for past quarter):
4:22

Number of users broken down by students, faculty, staff (as of July 13 2016):
Students: 16,088
Faculty: 716
Staff: 141
Other: 64

Number of courses, projects, clubs, portfolios (as of July 13 2016):
Courses: 1,301
Projects: 1,946
Clubs: 86
Portfolios: 4,400

In the Spotlight: Introducing “People’s Choice”

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Image Credit: Geralt

“In the Spotlight,” housed on the Open Road, is a blog series that aims to showcase all the amazing work our students, faculty and staff are doing by featuring a different course, project, club or ePortfolio each week. Specifically, we highlight the unique ways users are designing their sites to meet their teaching, learning, professional, and/or extracurricular needs. Taken together, this collection of sites is a testament to the expansiveness of the OpenLab community and the diverse ways members are using the platform.

In addition to continuing this tradition this semester, we’re also introducing a new feature called “People’s Choice.” People’s Choice calls on all users and visitors of the OpenLab to recommend sites they feel are particularly successful and exemplify the excellence we promote here, “In the Spotlight,” on the Openlab. So start exploring all of the amazing sites on the OpenLab, and use this form to let us know what you like and why!

We look forward to hearing from you soon about which sites are your favorites!

The Month on the OpenLab: OL 1.7.4

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Image Credit: Chris Ford

We released version 1.7.4 of the OpenLab on October 18. In this release, we added a password strength notification on the sign up page. In addition, we retired KB Gradebook, a plugin that is no longer being updated. We’re testing out a few options for a potential replacement, so stay tuned. Other than those two items, it was another small release, with a few additional behind the scenes updates and ongoing accessibility improvements.

In the Spotlight: The OpenLab is Growing!

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Image Credit: ntr23

This week we, the OpenLab team, are proud to announce OpenLab is now home to over 19,000 members! Thank you for joining us!

Given our growing community, we’d like to take a minute to remind you of all of the services available to you:

  •      We offer skill-building workshops tailored to the needs of faculty/staff and students to help you improve the quality and functionality of your sites.
  •      We have office hours where you can ask questions and get one-on-one assistance.
  •      We offer support via email 7 days a week – Openlab@citytech.cuny.edu
  •      We have a student blogging team who populate The Buzz with stories from their everyday lives, their experiences at City Tech, and advice.

Join the Open Road today for up-to-date news about the OpenLab and information about our workshops and events. Also visit “In the Spotlight”  Here, we showcase the excellence and innovation of particularly well-done sites, which may spark ideas for other users about their own sites. We may even feature your site! This fall we are introducing a new feature, “People’s Choice”, offering an opportunity for members to recommend sites for recognitions — Stay tuned for more details!

We look forward to working with you,
The OpenLab Team

The Month on the OpenLab: OL 1.7.3

news-imageWe released version 1.7.3 of the OpenLab on September 20. It was a small release, coming on the heels of some significant changes over the summer, which you can read more about here. It included some improvements to the way error messages are displayed during the sign up process for OpenLab accounts, made a few fixes to the way our WP Grade Comments plugin displayed in the newly-added theme Hemingway, and also included a few behind the scenes updates that won’t be noticeable to users.

(Image: Stefan Schweihofer)

In the Spotlight: Open Pedagogy on the Open Lab!

cropped-openImage: opensource.com

Open Pedagogy on the OpenLab is a forum where our community can ask questions, stimulate discussion, and access/share resources related to teaching and learning on the OpenLab. This site is a good place to find ideas for digital pedagogy assignments, access information on best practices and tips for open digital pedagogy, and engage other faculty members in discussions about what open pedagogy is and what shape it can take in our classrooms at City Tech. With this in mind, faculty members are encouraged to join and contribute to the site, to help expand the available resources and generate further the discussion. If you join, you will also receive notifications when new content is added or discussion is happening on the site.

In addition to this site, the OpenLab also hosts a series of Open Pedagogy events each semester. Our first event for the Fall of 2016, held in conjunction with the Library, will focus on open educational resources (OERs) at City Tech. In addition to deconstructing the term “OER,” we will hear from several City Tech faculty on OERs they have developed.  Refreshments will be served (thanks to the Faculty commons for its generous support of this event!) and part-time faculty are eligible to receive a stipend for participation.  Visit the event posting for more information and to RSVP! We hope to see you there!