In this publication I will collect and list some recent articles on higher education issues, online learning best practices, deliver some app suggestions and links to interesting videos on the web published in the past month. Planned release schedule is between the last week of the past month and first full week of the current month.

1. The Guzman Monthly
January 2014 | Volume 1, Issue 1

2. Welcome to the inaugural issue of “The Guzman
Monthly”. In this publication I will collect and
list some recent articles on higher education
issues, online learning best practices, deliver
some app suggestions* and links to interesting
videos on the web published in the past month.
Planned release schedule is the last week of
every month.
* Suggestions on apps will be based on my exposure or research of said apps on iOS mobile devices. Feel free
to suggest other apps for my review. My intention is to have the apps be similar in functionality each month.

3. My name is Tony Guzman and I serve as the
Director of Online Programs at the University at
Buffalo (UB) School of Social Work (SSW).
Shameless plug: I also oversee the UB SSW
Podcast series: inSocialWork. Feel free to listen
to some of our podcasts.

4. My family and I live in Buffalo, NY area so we
have endured the Polar Vortex and some
extremely frigid temperatures over the past few
weeks and this graphic (from one of our favorite
TV shows, Falling Skies) sums it up pretty well.

5. News
What might Net Neutrality mean for Higher
Education?
http://campustechnology.com/articles/2014/01/16
/will-net-neutrality-ruling-doom-education-tosecond-class-status.aspx
New venture to offer free college textbooks.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/edtechnews-and-trends/lumen-learning-openstax-collegeaim-expand-reach-free-high-quality-textbooks/

6. Apps
Looking to annotate documents on your mobile devices? (Since I only have
access to iOS mobile devices most of these will point to an iOS version of the
app but I am sharing the URL to the product because at times they have an
Android version as well).
iAnnotate PDF (by Branchfire, Inc.), $9.99
http://www.branchfire.com/iannotate/
PDF Reader Pro Edition for iPad (by iTECH DEVELOPMENT SYSTEMS INC.),
$9.99
http://www.itechdevelopmentsystems.com/pdf-reader-pro-edition-foripad_1_1_s_3_15.html
PDF Reader Premium (by Kdan Mobile Software LTD), $4.99
http://www.kdanmobile.com/en/pdf-reader/index.html

7. Apps (cont.)
This is the original synchronization app I used all
the way back to the Palm Pilot days. Today, after
15 years, they offer quite a bit of functionality
and have many price points.
Documents to Go Standard (by DataViz, Inc.),
$9.99
https://www.dataviz.com/DTG_home.html

8. Online Learning
Tips on how to best engage with your online students.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/creating-asense-of-instructor-presence-in-the-online-classroom/
Babson Study 2013: Over 7.1 Million Higher Ed Students Learning
Online.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/edtech-news-andtrends/babson-study-7-1-million-higher-ed-students-learning-online/
Great article on defining “flipped classroom”.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/instructional-design/expandingdefinition-flipped-learning-environment/

9. MOOCs
Inside the First-Year Data from MITx and
HarvardX
http://campustechnology.com/articles/2014/01
/27/inside-the-first-year-data-from-mitx-andharvardx.aspx
TED Talk: Anant Agarwal: Why massively open
online courses (still) matter
http://youtu.be/rYwTA5RA9eU

10. Student Learning
Some characteristics of successful learners.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-professor-blog/sevencharacteristics-good-learners/
Debunking student misconceptions about their learning.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-professor-blog/four-studentmisconceptions-learning/
Research results on student attention span.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-and-learning/studentsattention-interesting-analysis/
Some excellent tips for teaching unprepared students.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/effective-teaching-strategies/tipsteaching-unprepared-students/

11. Groups
How to better design group work in your courses.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/instructionaldesign/what-components-make-group-worksuccessful/
Considering “collaborative testing” (or also known
as “group testing”) in your course? Read ahead.
http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teachingprofessor-blog/group-testing-taking-optionsconsider/

12. Thanks for checking this monthly newsletter out
and hope to see around again next time!