Category: Education & Outreach

Learn to Use SPSS & Sample Power 3

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An instructor-led SPSS & Sample Power 3 course will be offered in Spring 2024. The course, a free offering from UF Information Technology (UFIT), is open to all faculty, postdoctoral candidates, graduate students, and staff that have completed at least one graduate-level statistics course.

To register, visit UFIT’s training website and type ‘SPSS’ in the Search by Keyword box. The Spring 2024 course dates are January 16 to March 15, 2024. The course is comprised of seven modules. Participants will learn to:

● Navigate the SPSS & Sample Power interface
● Create and import datasets
● Conduct exploratory data analysis
● Create different types of charts
● Transform data
● Perform inferential statistics for the mean, proportion, and categorical variables
● Carry out bivariate linear regression, correlation, and multiple linear regression
● Perform analysis of variances, analysis of covariance, and logistic regression
● Conduct Power Analysis for each statistical test

Anyone with questions about UFIT’s SPSS & Sample Power 3 course is welcome to contact the course’s trainer, Dr. Jose Silva-Lugo.

Use the Break Periods to Develop Your Professional Skills

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Take advantage of the upcoming holiday breaks to build your professional skills using LinkedIn Learning and UFApps.

Students can access more than 21,000 courses on LinkedIn Learning for FREE with their GatorLink credentials. What do you need to learn that will make you stand out from other applicants for that job or internship? You can take a database fundamentals course, advanced Excel, learn Python or Adobe Creative Cloud and more, from the comfort of your couch or while flying home!

https://elearning.ufl.edu/supported-services/linkedin-learning/

UFIT also provides UFApps, enabling access to 130+ applications you can use to build proficiency in professional-level tools, such as MATLAB, Autodesk, and SPSS. Your experience with these applications can be valuable additions to your resume and job applications. Go to https://info.apps.ufl.edu/ and click “Login to UFApps” on the top right to get started.

It’s never too early to get started on your professional development, Gators! Enjoy these free opportunities while you can, because software applications are expensive and a LinkedIn Learning account will cost you more than $20/month after graduation. If you need assistance accessing the free version of LinkedIn Learning or downloading the receiver to use UFApps, call (352-392-HELP) or visit (132 Hub, across from Starbucks) the UFIT Help Desk.

Electronic Thesis & Dissertation Formatting Help

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The UFIT Help Desk provides campus with a variety of technical support services, including electronic thesis and dissertation support. The Electronic Thesis and Dissertation team (ETD) assists graduate students through the formatting process of their thesis or dissertation in accordance with the Graduate Editorial Office’s guidelines. Their services are available for free to all UF graduate students.

Meg Renard, a lead ETD staff member, joined the team in 2019. She encourages graduate students to reach out as early as possible.

“If you look up the template before you start writing, or if you’re at least aware, the process is going to be much easier,” Renard said. “People spend so long writing these things and gathering material. Then, they get to the end, and they have no idea that the submission had requirements.”

Whether you need finishing touches or a full reformat, the ETD team will meet you wherever you are in the formatting process, Renard said. The team’s primary three services are one-on-one appointments, document reviews via email, and free template and formatting tutorials. The only templates accepted for thesis and dissertation submissions are in MS Word and LaTeX, both requiring specific formatting that is difficult to recreate. Faculty can also arrange for an ETD staff member to present to their classroom by contacting the ETD team directly.

Visit https://it.ufl.edu/helpdesk/graduate-resources/ to book an appointment, email your document for review, or view the templates and tutorials. Appointments and email queue spots fill quickly as submission deadlines approach, so it’s best to contact the team as soon as you can. Although the UFIT’s ETD team supports students through the formatting process, the Graduate Editorial Office is a separate office and sets the submission standards and deadlines. Students can view thesis and dissertation deadlines, checklists, and further requirements on the Editorial Office’s website.

Participate in National Higher Education Survey

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EDUCAUSE, the leading nonprofit association that advocates for strategic use of technology and data in higher education, sponsors an annual national survey at colleges and universities. The survey focuses on the use of classroom technologies and technology adoption by faculty and students.

An ‘invitation to participate’ email was sent to instructors and undergraduates on Monday, Oct. 23. The survey will remain open through Friday, Nov. 17. This is an opportunity for instructors and undergraduates to let UF Information Technology (UFIT) know how the division can better support teaching and learning. All feedback is anonymous.

UFIT activities are driven by the University of Florida’s Strategic Plan for IT: 2020-2025. Several of the goals in the strategic plan will be supported by faculty and student responses to the EDUCAUSE survey. And, since the survey is administered at hundreds of universities, information collected at our university becomes part of a large research project, enabling UF to benchmark its data against other public land-grant institutions. Members of the university community with questions about EDUCAUSE’s survey data collection process are welcome to contact them through their online “Contact Us” form.

Timely Topics the Focus of Teaching TechXploration

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The annual Teaching TechXploration will be held on Thursday, Nov. 30, from 1:30-4:30 p.m. This virtual event is part of UFIT’s Tech Byte series and registration is free for the UF community. 

The virtual, conference-style Teaching TechXploration format features short presentations–or lightning rounds–on educational technologies and solutions to teaching challenges. Session topics include: 

  • A faculty panel on AI’s impacts on teaching 
  • Adapting assessments with AI in mind 
  • Tools available within Canvas to enhance your teaching 
  • Podcasting as teaching and assessment strategy 
  • Feedback from faculty using Feedback Fruits, a group evaluation tool 
  • Resources and services from campus partners 
  • Requesting new teaching tools and grants to fund those tools 

Instructors, instructional designers, and graduate students with teaching loads can all benefit from attending and learning about UF’s learning tools and services as you are planning for the spring semester. Once registered, you will be added to the Microsoft Team where the event will take place. Anyone with questions about this year’s Teaching TechXploration may contact UFIT’s Associate Director for Teaching and Learning Technology, Ryan Yang. 

Learn to Navigate UF’s New T4 Web Template

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The University of Florida employs TERMINALFOUR (T4) as the campus’s central content management system for website hosting. UFIT collaborated with the Office of Strategic Communications and Marketing and a vendor (Stamats) to create UF’s new template. The template is called the Mercury Theme and aligns with the refreshed UF branding effort, providing a modernized look and feel for UF’s web environment. Colleges, administrative units, and academic and research centers are encouraged to adopt the new template for their website.

UFIT is sponsoring a T4 training for power users to assist campus web managers with the new Mercury Theme template. Register for this two-hour class through myTraining. Seating is limited so interested staff are encouraged to register ASAP:

Date:  Thursday, Oct. 19

Time:  1:00 – 3:00 p.m.

Location:  Weil Hall 408-A

More information about the new T4 theme is available on: https://webservices.it.ufl.edu/mercury-theme/about/. Anyone with questions about this class is welcome to contact the UFIT Training team.

Free Python, Java, SQL, JavaScript, C#, and Go Courses with CoderPad

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Interested in advancing your coding skills? LinkedIn Learning is now offering Code Challenges, a series of interactive coding exercises powered by CoderPad — a platform used by more than 4,000 engineering companies to assess the technical skills of prospective hires.

New AI technologies are continuing to disrupt the workplace, including the coding landscape. Code Challenges provides more than 30 courses in Python, Java, SQL, JavaScript, C#, and Go, all with real-time feedback. The LinkedIn Learning Code Challenges program will expand to 50 courses by December 2023. All coding exercises are in English, but the courses include a subtitle feature available in more than 20 languages, including Hindi, Spanish, and Tagalog.

Code Challenges is free with your UF LinkedIn Learning account! Faculty, students, and staff can take advantage of this opportunity using their year-round access to LinkedIn Learning. LinkedIn Learning also offers a variety of courses on coding fundamentals, if you would like to continue using their courses. Did you know that UFIT underwrites the cost of LinkedIn Learning for campus? Visit https://elearning.ufl.edu/supported-services/linkedin-learning/ to activate your free LinkedIn Learning account. Anyone who needs assistance accessing their free account may contact the UF Computing Help Desk (352-392-HELP, 132 Hub across from the Starbucks.)

Campus Printing Options

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There are times when you need more options than black and white printing or you forgot to print an assignment out before heading to class. GatorPrint is a newly expanded service available to students, faculty and staff, with specialized printing services available at multiple locations.

You can use the Web or Email Print features of GatorPrint to create print jobs from your residence hall or even while on the bus, and then release your print job at any of the GatorPrint locations across campus. GatorPrint has over 50 locations across campus, including all the Smathers Libraries, Norman Hall, Levin College of Law, and all of UFIT’s learning spaces including the Hub. The Smathers libraries locations and 12 additional locations offer standard black-and-white printing, with the Smathers locations and four of the UFIT learning spaces offering color printing as well. Poster printing is available at Marston Science Library (ground floor, in Collaboration Commons), the Architecture Lab (first floor, room 118), and the Computer Sciences/Engineering (CSE-Room E235) labs. Printing costs are published in the UF Printing Services Pricing Guide.

Visit https://print.at.ufl.edu/ to find printing locations, guides for mobile printing, and more. Representatives are available at most locations to assist you with printing. You can also contact the UFIT Help Desk with questions or issues.

Survey Tools: New Options

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Researchers at UF often need to survey large populations, utilize advanced survey distribution strategies, and implement specialized survey question types. For these complex needs, UFIT recommends using Qualtrics, available campus-wide. But sometimes faculty and staff need a lighter tool for quick surveys or to create administrative forms. UFIT created a new training–Survey Tools for Non-Research Use–to introduce Google Forms and Microsoft Forms, two easy-to-use applications for creating and distributing surveys and forms. UFIT’s next 1-hour Survey Tools for Non-Research Use training will be held on:

Wednesday, August 30
10:00-11:00 a.m.
Register here

This class will be taught monthly over Zoom. Visit the class homepage for more details, and check out UFIT’s Survey Tools webpage for a comparison of Microsoft Forms, Google Forms, and Qualtrics. Anyone with questions about this class or other IT training offered is welcome to email the UFIT Training team.

What Every Entering Gator Should Know

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Welcome, new Gators! We know that adjusting to campus life is challenging, and it takes time. We have resources to facilitate your smooth transition before classes begin.

Looking for technical, academic, or administrative systems support? The UF Computing Help Desk can answer your questions regarding UF systems and services, including GatorMail, Canvas, eduroam, and UF’s VPN. Connect with the Help Desk by calling 352-392-HELP/4357, visiting 132 Hub (located across from the Starbucks), or submitting a ticket.

Use some time before the start of classes to watch UFIT’s Gator Students Playlist. Learn to use several UF tech services and steps to stay cybersafe. Your emotional and physical safety matters and yeah, UF has an app for that. Or two! Download the GatorSafe and the Whole Gator apps. GatorSafe allows you to view transportation information on SNAP, UF’s nighttime shuttle, and RTS, the city’s bus service. You can also get immediately connected to UF’s Police. The Whole Gator app provides wellness and mental health resources, recreation opportunities, and more. UF also provides an online campus map, useful for locating class locations and computer labs before the semester begins. UFIT is here for you, Gators! Let us know how we can help!