University of Windsor's Campus Technology Day is an annual one-day conference devoted to sharing and celebrating the ways technology impacts and enhances learning, teaching, research and building community on campus. It is an opportunity for faculty, staff, and students to gather together to listen, discuss, and exchange ideas about the use of technology on campus.
Dr. Nancy Walton - Director E-Learning, Ryerson University
Dr. Nancy Walton is the Director, e-learning at Ryerson University, appointed in September 2013 by the Provost to set the strategic direction for the use of technology in teaching and learning at the University. She is an Associate Professor in the Daphne Cockwell School of Nursing and was the Chair of the Ryerson University Research Ethics Board from 2004-2013. Dr. Walton is a longstanding community member of the Research Ethics Board (REB) at the Hospital for Sick Children and a founding member of the REB at the Ontario College of Art and Design University, both in Toronto. As of May 2015, she is also the new Chair of the REB at Women’s College Hospital.
Dr. Walton has a PhD in Nursing with completion of the Collaborative Program in Bioethics from the University of Toronto (2003) and an undergraduate degree in nursing science from Ryerson (1992). She has published and presented on priority setting and decision-making in cardiac surgery, internet-based research, and ethical and legal considerations in research on children and adolescents. One of her key interests is the field of digital ethics. Specifically she is interested in exploring the increased use of technology in the conduct of research and the resulting ethical implications that not only have an impact upon the experience of researchers and participants, but also have ramifications for the work of research ethics boards and the development of thoughtful and relevant research ethics guidelines and policies.
Keynote Address
The Rise of Mobile Technology: The Burden and The Promise
Critical discussions of technology often focus on the ubiquitous intrusion of technology into our modern lives. Claims that we are too “plugged in”, and in turn too highly driven by our need to be as connected as possible, are set against self-help mantras about ways to improve our mental health and decrease stress by tuning out the newsfeeds and pings of our everyday lives.
Set against that discourse, however, is the reality that the rise of digital technology and in particular the staggering increase in access to mobile devices is a source of tremendous empowerment for so many who would otherwise be vulnerable, impoverished, and isolated.
The power of the mobile device, paired with its availability and ease of use, has not only brought knowledge, entertainment, and the power of the search engine to many, it has also allowed previously unheard voices, stories and even harsh realities to be documented and shared across the world in a matter of seconds. This dramatic and rapid rise of mobile technology – while a “burden of convenience” for so many of us - holds great promise for democratic engagement, emergency and disaster response, and empowerment through widespread access to education.