ITO Common Questions

What is a Partner?
To help reach your ITO you will need to have a partner. Think of your partner as a type of technology mentor; someone you can go to when you have questions or concerns. This partner should be someone who knows about the technology you are trying to use or uses the technology in a way that you wish to emulate. This can be any Carthage faculty or staff member. If you are unable to find a partner, please email Marta Magnuson at mmagnuson@carthage.edu for help finding a suitable match.

Why create an Individual Technology Objective?
ITOs are a type of professional development activity and can be put in your yearly professional activity report. Creating and carrying out an ITO is voluntary. ITOs are intended to help you and be a solution; not a stress inducer. The intention is to create an ITO that allows you to use technology in a way that is meaningful to you. ITOs can help you get organized, communicate and collaborate with students and colleagues, add excitement and active learning to the classroom, or solve a pedagogical problem.

ITOs can be a social activity. Besides having a partner, you can also work on ITOs in groups. For example, several colleagues could try out the same technology and meet over the course of the semester and discuss their progress and problems. ITOs are flexible, so you choose the technology, the activity, and who you work with.

How do I come up with a useful ITO?
You want an ITO that will be both useful and rewarding to you when completed. There are several ways to begin brainstorming an effective ITO.

Who will keep track of my ITO?
Ultimately, you will be in charge of keeping track of your ITO and completing it by the end of the academic year. Because this is a form of professional development, you will want to document this ITO in your yearly professional activity report.

ITO Form
Once you have chosen an ITO, please fill out this form. We will automatically receive a copy of your completed form. By filling out this form, you will be helping us assess the needs of our faculty, which allows us to serve you better.

What can I do to keep myself on track with my ITO?
Successfully completing your ITO involves careful planning and self-imposed due dates. It is suggested that once you have chosen an ITO, you take some time to do the following:
1) List the steps you will need to take in order to successfully complete your ITO
2) Create a timeline for implementing each step
3) Provide a framework for how you will assess the success of your completed ITO 

Need more help?
If you need help finding a good technology to use or coming up with and implementing an ITO you can contact Marta Magnuson (mmagnuson@carthage.edu) or one of our Tech Fellows.

Julie Dawson jdawson@carthage.edu
Dan Schowalter dschowalter@carthage.edu
Rom Maczka rmaczka@carthage.edu
Erik Tou etou@carthage.edu

Library and Information Services offers a variety of resources and services that may be of use to you during the process of completing your ITO. This brochure outlines what they provide to faculty.

Teaching with Technology Sessions

View a list of past session topics

Contact Us

Feel free to call, stop by, email, or set up an appointment. We are here to support your technology use in the classroom and answer any questions you have.