Our Facilitator of the Month for November 2012 is Cathy Arreguin.  

This month she is facilitating Getting Started: The First Step Towards Online Teaching http://bit.ly/TH3uWz and in the past she has facilitated Collaborating Works: Using Teams to Produce Knowledge. She also developed and facilitated Advanced Teaching in Second Life.

Cathy is an instructional designer, educational technologist and adjunct instructor with San Diego State University (SDSU), Department of Educational Technology. In her role she facilitates and provides support for various SDSU EDTEC graduate courses focusing on the effective implementation of learning technologies in the classroom and workplace. 

Participants in Cathy's workshops have commented on her facilitator presence; one remarked, "I could sense [her] experience and interest from the very beginning….responses to the postings were exceptional." 

Cathy's success in supporting Sloan-C participants draws on her background preparing educators to effectively utilize emerging technologies. Having taught Technology for Course Delivery, 3D MultiUser Learning Environments and Digital Storytelling and with several years experience in providing faculty development and support for SDSU uses of virtual worlds, such as Second Life, she has honed her expertise in guiding faculty from design and development to implementation.   

As a consultant with a background in both K12 and non-profit work, Cathy has developed curriculum, training and educational media for both children and adults. She is known for the enthusiasm with which she coaches educators in effectively applying instructional design principles and strategies to both in-class and online learning environments and activities.

In addition to her role as a Sloan-C facilitator, Cathy has been a collaborator with Dr. Beth Wellman and Global Kids, Inc. She is also the co-designer of Science through Second Life, a standards based 9th grade science curriculum.

Her ongoing interests are in technology related professional development and in the development of comprehensive systems that provide educators and facilitators the support they need to both design and successfully implement innovative and effective learning experiences for their students. Her specialties include distance and online education, integration of new technologies, social media, virtual worlds and professional development. She is currently exploring the unique learning affordances of interactive e-books and various forms of mobile learning.  Cathy has a Masters of Education through the Department of Educational Technology, San Diego State University.

Congratulations, Cathy! We are proud to recognize you as our featured facilitator of the month.

If you would like to develop a richer understanding of face-to-face and online teaching Cathy's upcoming workshop is designed for you. Learn to apply the principles of effective participation through chat and discussion, synchronous and asynchronous technologies and prepare to manage online courses, workload and resources - don't miss Getting Started: The First Step Towards Online Teaching running November 28, 2012 - December 14, 2012. Learn more at bit.ly/TH3uWz