Biographies

Dr Avi Hyman
Avi Hyman’s time is divided among three significant positions. As Director of Academic Computing in the Faculty of Medicine, he manages a team of educators and technical specialists who work with Health Sciences instructors, researchers, and students on achieving their academic goals through technology. The team supports research initiatives and classroom and online teaching. Avi’s own experience includes BlackBoard, WebKF, FirstClass, WebCT, all aspects of computing services, (e.g., support to student computing lab environments and the deployment of educational software), and he has run several large listserv communities. At the Bell University Laboratory (BUL) in Health Communications, he manages the development and implementation of innovative research projects in health informatics and electronic health communication and learning. With respect to his third position as an Associate Faculty Member in the Department of Theory and Policy Studies in Education (OISE/UT), Dr. Hyman is involved in both the graduate program and the initial teacher education program, teaching courses in organizational administration and policy analysis for educational technology and classroom technologies. With whatever spare time remains, Avi is active on the U of T’s Academic Computing Advisory Committee (ACAC), the Webservices Reference Group, and the Resource Centre for Academic Technology (RCAT) Advisory Committee. From 2000-2002, he was Vice-Chair of OISE/UT’s Faculty Council.

Avi Hyman

Dr Florin Salajan
Florin received his doctoral degree from Teachers College, Columbia University in the broad field of International Education, with an emphasis on Communication and Computing in Education. Currently, he is pursuing research in educational technology and European studies. His primary research interests include applied educational technologies, European Union policies in education, technology and society in the context of globalization and information society theories.

Florin Salajan

Prof.  Laura Czerniewicz
Associate Professor Laura Czerniewicz is director of the Centre for Educational Technology at the University of Cape Town (UCT), previously the director of UCT*s Multimedia Education Group. CET builds staff capacity, develops curriculum projects, offers small grants and develops and provides an open source learning environment, Vula (powered by Sakai). Laura has a particular interest in educational technology in developing countries, researching access to and use of ICTs in higher education. A recent report, The Virtual Mobius Strip, reports on detailed findings from five higher education institutions; another eight institutions are presently being investigated.  A thick concept of access, based on Bourdieu*s work, provides useful ways of problematising complex contexts. She is also interested in the formation and nature of educational technology as a new scholarly field, in multiple contexts.

Laura Czerniewicz

Dr David Guralnick
David Guralnick holds a Ph.D. in computer science from Northwestern University, where his work synthesized concepts from the fields of computer science, instructional design, and cognitive psychology. Over the past fifteen years, he has designed and developed simulation-based training applications, electronic performance-support systems, and specialized authoring tools, which allow non-technical people, such as writers and trainers, to build e-learning sites. The cornerstone of David’s design philosophy is the concept of content-driven, goal-driven design using the information and the needs of the end-users, rather than the technology, to lead the design process. David is president of New York-based Kaleidoscope Learning and an Adjunct Professor at Columbia University.

David Guralnick

Phillip Jones

Phillip Jones is the Webfolio coordinator for the Hong Kong Institute of Education which is the key provider for teacher education in Hong Kong. The webfolio project is funded by the Hong Kong government and will at its completion require all university students in Hong Kong to create and maintain ePortfolios. Phillip’s additional fields of interest include the use of free technologies for the creation of ePortfolios for in service teachers. Phillip can be contacted at pjones@ied.edu.hk

Phillip Jones

Stella Lee
Stella Lee has worked in the field of graphic, web and multi-media design, e-learning and blended learning development, project management and consultation in higher education in Europe, Asia, and N. America for over ten years. Currently Stella is an instructional media analyst for the Education Media Development Unit at Athabasca University in Canada. Prior to that, she worked as an e-learning consultant and project managed the e-learning program for the Criminal Justice Team at the University of Hertfordshire in the UK. A regular speaker at international conferences, Stella has presented her research findings in the US, Canada, UK, Germany, Brazil, China, India, Malaysia and Singapore. Stella’s research interests include mobile learning, adaptable learning objects, user-centered design, information architecture, and e-learning project planning and management. Stella holds a Bachelors degree in Graphic Arts from Slippery Rock University at Pennsylvania and a Masters degree in Communication from Stephen F. Austin University in Texas.

Stella Lee

Updated 15 October 2008