SBFT Tool Competition 2024 -- Python Test Case Generation Track
Ministry in a digital age
1. MINISTRY IN A DIGITAL AGE
A Course Retrospective
Dudley C. Rose
2. Course Rationale
• Technology and digital media find significant
use in many U.S. congregations.
• Even if leaders do not directly manage the
organization’s technology, they need to
understand its uses and possibilities.
• In small organizations leaders may have direct
responsibility for technology
18. Takeaways
• Instructor’s choices poor
• Use commercial hosting
• Use in-classroom computer for
presentations
• Recoup time devoted to local host
• More time to WordPress instruction
24. Many Software
Choices
Presentation Audio Editing Video Editing
Proclaim
Easy Worship
Exposong
EasySlides
Datasoul
Songview
Quela
Dreambeam
OpenSong
Powersong
SNAP Projection
Asaph
Audacity
Magix Music Maker
WavePad
AVS Audio Editor
Diamond Cut
Garage Band
MS Movie Maker
iMovie
Techsmith Camtasia
Adobe Premier
Final Cut Pro
Magix Movie Edit
27. Tentative Observation
#2
• Student computers less
up to date than 5 years ago
• Hypotheses
–Move to mobile?
–Older computers work well
enough for word processing
30. A Few Starting Questions
#1
Is there a way to make
Harvard hosted WordPress
more flexible?
31. A Few Starting Questions
#2
Is students’ reluctance to
avail themselves of help outside of
class due to:
–Putting off assignments?
–Preparation variables surprised them?
–Expect computers to just work?
–Something else?
32. A Few Starting Questions
#3
Are these projects too
ambitious given:
• Low student computer facility?
• Project complexity?
• Need for robust hardware?
Retrospective
Seen through lens of 2 course projects
Widespread usage in congregations
Leaders – understand what’s entailed and what’s possible
Small orgs --IT
Course taught twice: 2009 and 2014
Several differences, surprising and not
2009: Mainly those planning to be ordained ministers
2014
Much larger variety of class participants in 2015
Not surprising
Required different and greater variety in projects to accommodate differing interests
2009: Students had current computers
2014: Student computers were old, between 3 and 7 years
2009: Students had high level of computer facility
2014: Much lass computer facility
Former HDS IT staff person at Halloween party
Using ‘case study’ loosely
Two most challenging/problematic projects
Needed:
Themes specific to org type
Events
Sermons/talks
SEO
Security
Images Handling
Caching
Social sites
Podcasting
User management
File Listing
Custom Menu
Choices made by instructor
WordPress
Not Harvard
Not Commercial
Local Host, simplest?
Boy was I wrong
Recipe:
Lynda.com tutorial
Create Local Host (BitNami) (turnkey)
Install and Configure WordPress
Install Theme
Install Plugins
Develop Site
Several problems
May be predictable to many of you
Disk Space
Old CPUs
Inadequate RAM
Often on last legs
Could not unzip, install files
Little concept of websites
Local host too complicated
Did not attend help sessions
Many dongles
Unfamiliarity with hardware
Wasted class time
Technical Fixes
Use commercial hosting
Use in-class computer for presentations
Recoup local host time
More time to WordPress instruction
More complicated assignment
Specifically:
Develop multi-media presentation
Worship, teaching
Choosing and using
Image, audio and video editing software
Presentation software
There were issues,
Add to:
Old cranky laptops
Low computer skills
Reluctance to seek help
Presentation problems
More hardware demands
Highlighted:
Underpowered CPUs
Insufficient RAM
Too many software choices:
Features
Platform
MAC, PC, Ubuntu, Cloud
Cost
What students owned or used to
What would run on students’ computers
Project presentations:
Rough and glitchy
Frustrating
Less computer proficient
Move to mobile?
Less robust computers
Move to mobile?
Old computers work for word processing
Biblical software
Was large focus and standard for class 2009
My strength and interest
Harvard WordPress
Harvard WordPress more flexible?
Not attend Help sessions:
Students used to reading and analyzing as course prep
Last minute
Caught by surprise amount troubleshooting required
Expect computers to just work, RTFM
Too ambitious for non-specialists?
Projects and software complexity and variety
Need for robust hardware