Instructional Support

Kris Biesinger, Associate Vice Chancellor

The OIIT Instructional Support division leads the University System and its institutions in the strategic uses of technology to expand access to higher education, enhance teaching and learning, develop opportunities for innovation, and establish innovative finance and governance models. Instructional Support addresses the following objectives:

• Foster the development and implementation of quality distance education using collaborative approaches
• Conduct research and evaluations to influence policy making, instructional practice and technology development
• Evaluate and develop tools and models that support the strategic use of technology for instruction
• Participate in System-level policy development affecting technology and its use in instruction
• Contribute to appropriate state, national, and international activities and organizations that focus on the changing role of technology in higher education

Instructional Support continues the development and provision of services and processes initiated by Advanced Learning Technologies.

Instructional Support’s functions include the following major projects, programs, and activities:

• Georgia ONmyLINE provides access to a full array of distance-education offerings from the 35 colleges and universities in the USG, resulting in improved service to students within the USG and at other institutions in Georgia and elsewhere. Prospective and enrolled students can identify programs and/or courses that meet their career or degree needs, apply for admission to colleges and universities, and once accepted, register for courses. Course offerings serve both students who seek fully online solutions as well as on-campus students who seek occasional online formats to meet their content, time, and scheduling needs.

• Collaborative programs foster cooperation among institutions to develop and implement quality e-learning by collaborating with groups of USG institutions to create flexible online learning opportunities for students.

  • eCore^® (electronic core curriculum) provides USG students the opportunity to complete the first two years (the “core” curriculum) of their collegiate careers in an online environment.

  • The WebBSIT (Bachelor of Science in Information Technology degree) is a collaborative online project of fiveUSG colleges and universities that provides a foundation in technical, user-centric, and managerial skills for information technology managers.

  • The Georgia WebMBA^® offers qualified and highly motivated professionals the opportunity to earn online MBA degrees with limited interruptions in their work and personal lives.

• Evaluation, development, and distribution of tools and models that support the strategic use of technology for instruction is a primary goal. Numerous learning resources, such as USG SHARE, a repository for learning objects, facilitate the sharing and reuse of high quality digital learning objects across all USG campuses.

• Policies related to technology and its use in instruction are developed through participation in USG level committees and groups, such as the Regents Administrative Committee on Distance Education (RACDE), the Georgia Digital Innovation (DI) Group, and the Organization for Military Education in Georgia (OMEGA).

• Opportunities for training and professional development are designed and offered for faculty and staff across the USG in the use of instructional and communications tools and technology.

• Research and assessment projects, such as the national Campus Computing Project, EDUCAUSE Core Data survey, faculty and student use of technology, and other collaborative research reports, trend assessments, and analyses result in information that has System-wide impact for USG students, faculty, staff, and administrators. Results include better informed decisions and improved teaching and learning processes.