Sharing the love... of technology!

I recently completed a 13 hour "intensive" module "Online Technology for Occupational Therapy" with MScOT students here at the UofA. The module is an elective subject and up to 20 students can participate, this year was the biggest group yet with 13 first years.

The module has evolved over the past three years, from being called Web 2.0 for health care to Web 2.0 for Occupational therapy and this year, in keeping with the WFOT congress workshop I changed the module name to "Online technology for Occupational Therapy".

The format of the sessions was as follows:

Session 1:

• Introduction and workshop

Online technology for Occupational Therapy: Presentation for students

Online technology for Occupational Therapy: Presentation for students

View more presentations from Anita Hamilton.

View more presentations by Anita Hamilton.

• What’s expected in this course?
• Assessment tasks
• Project selection and commencement

Session 2

• Personalized homepages/Portals
• Collaborative writing
• Social Networking
• Online Surveys
• Podcasts
• Continue projects

Session 3

• Managing RSS feeds: Google Reader, iGoogle
• Setting up "alerts"
• Setting up automated database searching from the library
  
• Social bookmarking: Delicious
• Project presentations
• Post-course evaluations

Below is the list of student projects completed

1. AT for OT: A repository for the assistive technology projects completed by the 2010 MScOT cohort (this is not an open project until permission received from all groups whose AT projects are housed on the site)
   
2. OT survival guide: An students' view of surviving and thriving while studying OT at Corbett Hall (this project was developed using a Mac computer and is looking for a new online home... watch this space)
   
3. Pediatrics for OT students: An online resource looking at the key diagnostic groups and assessment tools an OT student needs for a pediatric fieldwork placement
4. Cultural Mosaics: How OTs fit - An online resource for OTs working with people who have immigrated to Edmonton, particular focus on understanding what resources are available.
5. Occupational therapy: Is it for you? - An online resource looking at the question of "what is occupational therapy as a career?" This group avoided jargon as their target population is school leavers and undergraduates who may not know about OT as a career option.