Pilots
In January 2021, a charge was put forth by the Executive Director of the Center for Distributed Learning to review and recommend a licensed tool for enhancing online discussions at the University of Central Florida. 9 faculty members from 8 colleges within UCF were recruited to serve on the committee led by Carolyn Massiah and Aimee deNoyelles. In the final report, three tools were recommended for further exploration: Yellowdig was one of these.
In 2022, CDL-iLab conducted a Yellowdig pilot. In Summer 2022, there were 17 faculty participants and over 1200 students. In Fall 2022, there were 36 faculty participants and over 3600 students. Note that the pilot continued in Spring 2023 with a pilot extension in Summer 2023. Faculty were invited to an initial demonstration of the tool and were encouraged to complete the Yellowdig Instructor Certification before their course(s) began. A UCF faculty community was created within Yellowdig and facilitated by Nicole Stahl and Aimee deNoyelles, with the intention of sharing tips, answering questions, providing support, and brainstorming together. Yellowdig consultants and technical support were available throughout the pilot. To evaluate the effectiveness of Yellowdig in enhancing online discussions at UCF, feedback was gathered in multiple ways from all stakeholders:
• Student Survey
• Faculty Survey
• Feedback from the CDL Pilot Team
Implementation
In the Fall of 2023, The University of Central Florida’s Division of Digital Learning (UCF-DDL) decided to procure Yellowdig.
Rocco Fazzalari (iLab) and Aimee deNoyelles (Instructional Design) spearheaded the management and facilitation of Yellowdig’s implementation within the UCF educational technology ecosystem.
Impact
The goal of this project is to successfully enhance online discussions, foster robust faculty and student engagement, facilitate community-building among educators, and provide comprehensive support and training, leading to Yellowdig’s continued integration into university courses.
Resources
To learn more about Yellowdig, please visit the CDL Yellowdig Page