From digital textbooks to classroom technology, this week we explore UW-Stout's integration of technology with our hands-on, polytechnic approach. Guest Bob Butterfield, Director of Instructional Resource Services, details the rollout, expansion, and benefits of 75% of all textbooks at Stout being offered digitally. Nick Dangeur, Technical Integration Engineer, discusses classroom and campus technology. How it aligns in support of the eStout laptop program and the future of technology on campus. Kacey King, current UW-Stout student, describes the benefits of digital textbooks and learning in a technologically progressive environment.
Guests:
Bob Butterfield, Director of Instructional Resources Services at UW-Stout
Nick Dangeur, Technical Integration Engineer, UW-Stout
Kasey King, current UW-Stout student
Co-Hosts:
Rachel Hallgrimson
Emily Laird
Follow us on social media:
www.instagram.com/uwstoutpics/
www.linkedin.com/school/university-of-wisconsin-stout
Visit our website: https://www.uwstout.edu/
From digital textbooks to classroom technology, this week we explore UW-Stout's integration of technology with our hands-on, polytechnic approach. Guest Bob Butterfield, Director of Instructional Resource Services, details the rollout, expansion, and benefits of 75% of all textbooks at Stout being offered digitally. Nick Dangeur, Technical Integration Engineer, discusses classroom and campus technology. How it aligns in support of the eStout laptop program and the future of technology on campus. Kacey King, current UW-Stout student, describes the benefits of digital textbooks and learning in a technologically progressive environment.
Guests:
Bob Butterfield, Director of Instructional Resources Services at UW-Stout
Nick Dangeur, Technical Integration Engineer, UW-Stout
Kasey King, current UW-Stout student
Co-Hosts:
Rachel Hallgrimson
Emily Laird
Follow us on social media:
www.instagram.com/uwstoutpics/
www.linkedin.com/school/university-of-wisconsin-stout
Visit our website: https://www.uwstout.edu/
The COVID 19 pandemic certainly changed many of our day to day practices. We're a world that's gone virtual here at stout. We took the great COVID pivot in stride. As technology has been intertwined within our campus far before the great ship as a laptop campus, embracing technology includes online textbooks, advanced classroom technology, and a culture of connectivity. Welcome to inside stout, a UW stout podcast that focuses on the stories of students, faculty, staff, and the entire campus community. I'm Emily Laird
Speaker 2:And a I'm Rachel Rimson today on the podcast. We have three guests. We have two right in front of us right now, Casey and Bob, and I'd like them to introduce themselves. So Bob, who are you?
Speaker 3:I'm Bob Butterfield and I'm the director of instructional resources here at stout.
Speaker 2:Excellent. Thanks for being on. Thank
Speaker 3:You.
Speaker 4:I Casey king, I'm a student here at UW stout and I also work part-time in instructional resources.
Speaker 1:Wonderful. Well, thank you both so much for joining us. So over the years, we've had a transition on our campus to eTextbooks Bob, why don't you give us a little bit of the history of that and kind of where we are now?
Speaker 3:Sure. It started back in 2012 where we, uh, kind of copied a pilot that was going on at the time. Some of the big 10 schools, uh, internet to, um, McGraw hill were running a pilot on introducing digital resources into the curriculum. Um, we kind of watched the results of that and we've kind of made some, uh, judgements that, uh, they didn't do everything thing that we would've done in order to implement it here. So, uh, we, we took that as the base. Uh, there was nobody to copy off their paper at the time. Uh, digital was really new and really just starting out. So we integrated directly into the LMS. We, um, widened it out to, uh, being open to all, uh, publishers because that's the way faculty choose content. And, um, we did a really, uh, deep dive into what we thought the problems were gonna be, uh, from the start. What questions are we gonna get from faculty? What questions are we gonna get from students? And really tried to come up with answers before we got started. Um, that first pilot started out with, uh, five classes. Uh, there was eight sections and about 200 students. And from there we continued to grow pretty much exponentially every semester, until right now at stout, we provide about 75% of all the content that we provide through instructional resources, digital format,
Speaker 2:75%,
Speaker 3:75%. Wow.
Speaker 2:It's saving a lot of paper.
Speaker 3:It's a lot of paper.
Speaker 1:So you talked about the EEX reside in the LMS. That is the that's learning management system here at stout. Yes, it is. So students access their textbooks within the learning environment, within the courses
Speaker 3:They do, it's all there for them. Uh, one of the things that we found out, uh, right away is we didn't want students to have to go out somewhere else to get their content. Because what we found is if they left the course to go look for their content, then they extracted and didn't come back. So what we did is, uh, we have conducted a request for proposal. We just conducted our second one and we have partnered with red shelf. Um, this time red shelf provides the e-reader for the, for the textbooks. So that way the students are able to, uh, access the same point. Uh, every time they're looking for their textbooks, they highlight the same, they annotate the same. They're able to engage with the content, uh, in a familiar way. And we're not sending them off to a number of different places for them to, to get their content. Hopefully that, uh, cuts down on the confusion. It keeps them in the course material and it just, it, uh, easier for them to engage.
Speaker 2:If someone has a tablet or a phone they'd like to read or listen to their textbooks on, are they able to do that? Is there an app or does it all have to be accessed on a laptop or computer?
Speaker 3:There is an app. Ooh, and, and also we've really, uh, try to structure it so that if, uh, because our students here at stout are in the laptop program, so they have laptops, but our students at a distance may not have as good of infrastructure to assist them. So we make sure that these textbooks are completely downloadable awesome that they can still engage age with the material, uh, offline. And then when they, uh, reconnect at some point, then the highlights, the annotations and things like that are loaded up into the cloud and those are saved for them so that they don't lose progress when they don't have access to the internet.
Speaker 2:That's awesome. Casey, have you benefited from the digital textbooks?
Speaker 4:I have, yes. I would say the major advantage of them for me is just the amount of ways that you can engage with the material or learn from it. So you do have the highlighting and the text to speech, which has been very beneficial for me and also just being able to access it from anywhere. So from your computer or from your phone, I have done that before and it's been very helpful.
Speaker 1:How many of your textbooks are digital?
Speaker 4:I have eight digital textbooks.
Speaker 1:Eight of them. Okay. Yes. And you are a senior this year.
Speaker 4:I'm a junior.
Speaker 1:You're a junior, yes. Okay. So when you came into south, when you went to get your books, that was probably a different experience. Yes. Yes. So the majority of your books were already loaded into your class, so there was no good days going up into the library and you're carrying a stack of books back.
Speaker 4:Yes, exactly.
Speaker 1:And that made the experience far more convenient. I'm guessing. Yes.
Speaker 4:I would say so very convenient. And just one less thing that you have to worry about and something that's not on your plate, I guess.
Speaker 1:No, that's good to hear. So, Bob, from your perspective, how do you see this continuing in the future? Are we gonna go more digital with textbooks?
Speaker 3:I, I think that's exactly the way that we're going. Um, I, I know that as far as my experience was concerned during COVID, we had a lot less of a, of a stretch to support faculty because we were already so digitally, um, involved. So, so that helped us there. Um, I think we're gonna continue to see a move to digital. I think it's gonna get more complex because artificial intelligence and virtual reality and all those things are already starting to come into the play of digital resources is, and, um, we're gonna have to adapt for that. But, uh, the nice thing at stout is we have an organization that not only helps students navigate that, but we also do it as cost effectively as possible.
Speaker 2:For some reason, I would think that math textbooks wouldn't be as digital as other ones. Is that true?
Speaker 3:You know, they're getting a lot better, you know, the publishers themselves would tell you that when they first rolled out digital, uh, textbooks. Yeah. They didn't do a good job. Okay. They really tried to just provide a flat PDF of a textbook to replace print. Okay.
Speaker 2:And
Speaker 3:It, and it fell flat part in the pun. Um, it just didn't work as well. Uh, students would, would come to us as, as many national surveys showed and said, you know, yeah, it's kind of neat, but I just prefer print. Yeah. Um, now the books are a lot better. Okay. Um, math books, all books are, have improved greatly. Um, the, the biggest feature lately has been a boon, not just, uh, for us, because we also provide textbook accommodations for students with disabilities, but also to, um, all students is what Casey mentioned that text to speech function, because so many, I love that students have different modalities that they like to learn in. Yep. So now we have visual, we have auditory and there are other ways that we can engage students with the material, making it more, uh, more beneficial to them. And we have a big influence too, from the, the, we're starting to see the influence of the K12, uh, world here
Speaker 2:At definitely.
Speaker 3:Um, some of those students are in grade school, no longer print. And when they come here, there's a different expectation. And to be able to engage them with the way that, uh, they're engaging content in K12 big plus on our side,
Speaker 1:Casey, you're a junior. Yes. When you were in high school, were you transitioning into digital textbooks at
Speaker 4:All? I never used a digital textbook in high school, like, okay. Actually my first time was when I came to stout.
Speaker 1:Okay. Good to know
Speaker 2:My niece who is turning 10, this may, so she's in fourth or fifth grade. She has a Chromebook.
Speaker 1:Wow.
Speaker 2:In elementary school that already shows that things are moving digital, the younger, the student, which is incredible. I had never used a digital textbook until I came to college as well. And I graduated six years ago. So, and even when I started college here at stout, I didn't didn't have actually, I did have one digital textbook because it was for my first online class. And it was an English grammar and style textbook, which sounds really interesting to everyone. I'm sure. But that was easy because there wasn't really anything interactive. It could it as just a PDF type of file, which was fine because it was an online class. Not all online classes have digital textbooks. I don't think. Not necessarily,
Speaker 1:Not all of them do so in my experience, as a current graduate student here, um, it's been like 50 50 for me. And I have to say, when, when you hit earlier about, on some of those points of you can take your textbook anywhere you go, it can be on an app. It can be on your phone. Definitely. That has been some of the benefits of having that digital textbook as a graduate student, I've worked full time, I'm traveling, I'm going to conferences. I am living life. Um, and it's fantastic that I can study on a plane. I can study on a train. I, you know, it goes back. I was actually talking with someone this morning and I said, as a graduate student, it's like a doctor sous book, you know, green eggs and ham on a plane, on a train and a boat with a goat. Like I can study anywhere I go. And it's really great that UW Stu provides that technology, especially in the EEX realm that I can really take anything I'm doing on the go. I can note, I can have it read to me. So definitely all those things make technology and education on this campus, more accessible and more user friendly.
Speaker 2:I agree, Emily, Bob is this cheaper.
Speaker 3:So initially I would say no, it, it really wasn't. Um, because we were in the old days when we were all print, we bought the books and then we used them for three years. Right. Um, if the, if the course was run every semester, um, we only paid for them once and we amortized that cost over the three years. And, um, with a digital book, you purchase a copy for a student every semester. So it initially was more expensive, but, um, we've had some success in negotiation in working with vendors to bring cost down. Um, we've done some additional things like, um, in our negotiations about 70% of the content we offered for fall and spring of this year, um, is permanent access for the students. They don't, they don't lose access to it, which we never had that ability with print. Right. Um, and we're constantly working on making sure that it is affordable as well as, um, accessible small a and Bigga.
Speaker 1:Excellent.
Speaker 2:Yeah. It speaks to the sustainable efforts that our university is working towards as well. Absolutely. It's not just like, of course we want it to be cost effective, but also being sustainable is not always very cheap. So this is definitely a good step forward for the university. Seen a lot of ways.
Speaker 1:I agree. Completely Casey. Anything else you wanna add about digital textbooks in your experience as a current student?
Speaker 4:I would say just knowing that they are more cheaper now is a huge advantage for me. And because, you know, I am funding school, I guess a hundred percent on my own and a program. That's something that literally keeps me in school. I wouldn't be able to be here if it wasn't for something like this, that's something that I really appreciate.
Speaker 1:And your story, that concept of that, you're finding this all on your own. This is on you. That's a lot of stout student stories, right. So I think they definitely agree with you, that student voice would definitely agree with you that it's gonna help the pocketbook, right?
Speaker 4:Yes, exactly.
Speaker 3:And, and the nice thing too, with our, with our program is that, um, if a student is, um, if they're assigned a digital book and they have that, that view of, you know, I just, I struggle to learn with digital, which there are some students that just do, yeah. They come to our office and we put a print book in their hand. Um, yeah, we, we really try to engage them to help them because often what we find is it's not really that they're unable to engage with digital. Oftentimes it's just that, uh, there, there's a lack and understanding of study skills and, and digital can seem more forbidding and we try to help them through that, try to make this beneficial for them. And, and if we can't do that, then we make sure that they're not left behind and that we put something in their hand that helps'em out two, their, their fee that they pay for textbooks here. It also includes the, the homework platforms, uh, that are out there. The McGraw hill connects the Pearson, my labs, the homework sites that a lot of faculty use. Um, so all this is included in their fee. They don't have to go out and find it. They don't have to pay for it outta pocket. It's taken care of them or for them, um, as they get ready to start class it's already available for am. And alls they have to do is sign into canvas and start work.
Speaker 1:Well, that's all excellent information, Bob. We wanna thank you so much for joining us today and just explaining to us all the great ways that stout is making their eTextbooks more sustainable and more accessible to students.
Speaker 3:Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1:We'd like to welcome our second guests on the podcast. Thanks for joining us. Go ahead and introduce yourself.
Speaker 5:Yeah. I'm Nick danger. I am, uh, I work for L I T in the LTS section of L I T, which is learning technology services. And actually, I just, I just been designated a new title here. Ooh, I know. I know. And so I added that to Lincoln and I got all these, oh, congratulations on a new position. I'm like, I'm still the same person and I'm doing the same work. It's just that the state had to redefine me as a technical integration engineer. Ooh,
Speaker 2:Very fancy.
Speaker 1:That sounds really fancy. I know.
Speaker 2:Are those, are those allowed to have long hair like you? I
Speaker 1:Don't know. Wow. For those of us that can't SNIC our viewers, Nick sports, a extremely beautiful silver main, uh, that could only be defined as lush. Like what you'd expected a panty provi commercial. It's truly incredible,
Speaker 2:But it's not down today.
Speaker 1:I, I would pay good money to have hair like you, sir. So
Speaker 5:Yeah, a lot of men at 61 would,
Speaker 1:And I am a man at 60 ones. Well,
Speaker 5:I would just say
Speaker 2:A lot of
Speaker 1:Men here we are. Yeah. Yep. Dream big everyone.
Speaker 2:And, and we still have Casey here.
Speaker 1:Casey, you continue to join us. Thank you for staying on for the second half. Nick, tell us a little bit about classroom technology here at UW stout.
Speaker 5:Well, I think for general access classrooms, uh, for about the last two years been fully HD digital environment. And now what that means is that you can come in, in with your laptop to any general access classroom. And it's a digital projection to, in that room. And some rooms have more than one display, but every room has ACE has a display. And that's pretty impressive because really when we did that, we were the only UW including Madison, uh, that had that available. Yeah. Because a lot of campuses will have some general access classes that have no technology in it at all. But I think it's almost become a requirement here because we are a laptop campus and, you know, people come in and they almost expect that. It's kind of interesting, right. If we do have a glitch every once in a while, or maybe a cable breaks and you know, they can't plug in their laptop and they don't know how to do it with air media. Um, they, it's almost like, oh, I, I dunno what to do because right. They don't have, uh, a backup plan because they've been so used to using it. And part of that also is how easy it is to use. We, our project are all laser projectors. That means they come on and off in seven seconds. There's no warm up time when you shut it off. It doesn't just hum along for a minute and a half and cool down, it's often seven seconds. So if you accidentally made a mistake and shut it off, you can turn it back on. And you know, the whole transaction is, you know, less than a half a minute. So it's, it's pretty impressive with that. And you know, I mean, it took a long way. It took a long time to get to that point. Uh, we still have a lot of labs that have to be updated. Um, we certainly are starting with, we have started a lot of labs, but you know, that always changes too because of how we've used teams and zoom since the pandemic has happened. Right. Right. And we, we do a lot, we do a lot more screen sharing and that's one of the things you can do in a lab. You know, we are a laptop campus. That's a huge privilege just at a conference on, on Monday. And it was like, it's kind of envious. I mean, where other schools are like, gosh, I wish we had that. Um, and because you can share your screen and if you are in a lab where it isn't even necessarily a classroom type of structure with chairs and desks, and maybe it's a MIS mash of, you know, tables and counters and equipment, they can still share their laptop and everybody double mutes and they can share their laptop and everybody can see what they're doing. So it's really added a lot.
Speaker 1:So this technological environment that you described the classroom as being really compliments our east out program here at UW stout, Casey, you're a student who could probably speak to this. So we have this east out program available to students who are undergraduates. The program is more than just a laptop that we provide. You, you also receive backpacks software. So access to like the Adobe creative cloud office 365 wireless and wired connectivity on campus, digital course materials. Like we just talked about with Bob training, service support, and of course a skilled, uh, learning technology services and L I T team to help if you run into any issues along the way. So when you got onto campus as a freshman, you were given a laptop, correct? Yes. And you've taken that to class throughout, correct? Yes. So tell us a little bit about having the experience of going from high school, into this technological environment that is UW out.
Speaker 4:I think a big thing for me has been just the convenience aspect of it. I only use my laptop for everything. I don't have to use any print textbooks when you can do everything from your laptop now. And that's a big plus, cuz that's the only thing you have to remember. The only thing you have to pack. Um, I would say another thing with that is having, I would like the technology help desk and those other resources are also really beneficial because I just think about like if I had my own laptop and something were to happen, then that would of course be a big issue. So I like having, you know, the assistance here in case anything goes wrong or there's any problems with it.
Speaker 1:Definitely. And then something else that Nick you could probably kind of talk to is another resource we have on campus is just the wifi.
Speaker 5:Oh yeah. The wifi here at stout. Is' standing. I came from a different school before I came here and certainly had wifi there. But one of the very first things that I recognized was how extensive it is here. You can get wifi signals almost. I mean, everywhere on campus, where a lot of schools that isn't necessarily as it isn't a as complete as that. I mean there's times where you can definitely even get wifi outside the, the building easily. And that's really, that's a big part of it too, is that's gonna gold hand in hand. And that is part of the east out program is making sure that, that, you know, that have that access.
Speaker 4:Casey, do you have friends at other universities? I do. Yes. That don't have the luxuries that you have
Speaker 1:Here. NVU
Speaker 4:Well, I just talked with some of my friends at other universities and they definitely do not have the same luxuries. They don't get a school issued laptop or the digital textbook. So they do every semester, they do have to let's say buy their own print textbooks or they have to buy their own laptop. And then if something goes wrong with their laptop, they have to take it in and pay to get it fixed, which is something that I don't have to worry about. So I guess if I were them, I would definitely be envious of me for
Speaker 1:Sure. And that's gotta be such a benefit to you cuz as we talked earlier, you know, you're paying for your own way through college. So that's such a great safety net for you that if something does happen to your laptop, you have a whole support team and a loaner computer, you can just check out and keep going. It doesn't have to disrupt your day. Right?
Speaker 4:Yeah, exactly. It's definitely a huge benefit. It saves me a lot of money, a lot of, and it's very convenient.
Speaker 1:Excellent. And we're always thinking about more progressive technology here on campus. Nick, what do you think the future holds for stout technology on this campus?
Speaker 5:Well, you know, that's really funny because about a couple years ago I was going through a filing cabinet and I found a copy of an old stout to a hard copy. Now it's not even available hard copy. Uh, and one of the things, this was from 1992 and one of the things that well it was talking about was the new technology on campus and that new technology was well, they were whiteboards. Wow. And how controversial white the future. Yeah. Whoa whiteboards and not chalk, not chalk whiteboards and how many people were, uh, not necessarily in favor of it because they felt like the odor from the markers was too strong. They didn't know if it was their marker was gonna run out where they could see if the chalk was gonna run out. And so there was this, there was this, obviously we progressed past and you know, we don't even think of whiteboards as being technology, but apparently in 1992 they did. And so as we move forward, I see it really changing a lot because it isn't gonna be just the same thing where we have, you know, I hope not. I hope that we can look down in the future and say five, six years now in nine or 10 years from now. Right. And where we go. And one of the things we, there was a couple things that I think that were pretty evident is giving students equal access off campus. And so part of that is when we had COVID, uh, there were a lot of students that needed like hotspots because they were at home now and they were maybe in an area that had really seriously, still even had dialogues or very glitchy, uh, internet. And I think that's one of the things that we might be able to look at is the far as the future of that, what we do with that. And then of course, you know, then there's always, you know, what is the next thing? And we look at VR, we look at AR and you know, I mean, anybody that's in the gaming design knows that I, I really do believe that gaming is gonna be pushing technology as we move forward. Yeah, it really will. I mean, I, I, I'm not a gamer. I'm 61, like I stated earlier, but I, but, but, but I do know, I do recognize that that technology is pushing a lot of advancement. And part of that is that AR that VR, that high speed internet access that you're going to need. And I think as we move forward, those are things that we're definitely gonna have to start to look even more closely at.
Speaker 2:That makes me of a show that used to be on Disney channel called fill of the future. Did any of you, no, we're all from different generations at this table, which is kind of awesome, but also there was a show and his family was like time traveled to the present day, which at that time was mid 2000 and they were from, I don't know, maybe I dunno, 150 years or 200 years. So when they came back, they'd have very familiar to VR headsets that they would just sit down in a chair, like a recliner thing for school and they'd put on their headset and then would be at like virtual school yeah. In VR. And I think what you're saying, Nick is that could very well happen sooner than later.
Speaker 5:And one thing we also learned at COVID was that, that hybrid type class, I don't know if that's completely going away. Yeah. And so with that VR AR experience, well, we all know that it might be a combination of all of that. And, and I think that's where we're going. I think definitely that's where we're headed. And I think students will be very willing to accept that because once you make it kind of a more fun experience and you know, part of it is that game of occasion or of that toll VR AR type of experience, which many of them are used to by playing, being gamers. Right. Uh, I think that once we kind of start to do that, and it doesn't mean that bricks and mortar are going away, not at all, but I think it's a combination of all that. And that's one thing we learned during COVID was that combination. Isn't a bad thing. We started learning that blended cl classrooms is not necessarily a terrible thing. We can have a situation where we can create content and put it up on campus and students can watch it. It's that flip classroom kind of mentality where now when we do come back together, we're gonna have a discussion about what we, what you, what we watched or what we read outside this classroom. And I think that's one of the things that as we get more and more younger instructors is, you know, we continue that. I think that they are going to, uh, accept that even more and actually not even just accept it, they're gonna want it. That's what they, I would look for.
Speaker 2:Casey. How would you feel about sitting down in a recliner and putting on a
Speaker 1:VR and going to school
Speaker 2:Goggles going to school virtually?
Speaker 4:I'm not quite sure how I would feel about that just because I really like the in-person modality the most. Yeah. I think I just thrive off of the, with other people and having that social connection, I feel like it's really, the way I learn best is through the, in class discussions with my peers and my professors.
Speaker 1:Well, and I definitely love that kind of connection that Nick was talking to of, you know, UW stout as this technologically advanced landscape that also kind of shakes his with that Polytechnic hands on approach to learning. So it's kind of great that we've integrated both in Casey. I'm definitely hearing from you, you still want that in or on campus in person experience. I do. Yeah.
Speaker 5:And, and I think a lot of students want that that's that, that college experience that they came for and, uh, that's why I, you know, and when you're you're 18, you walk in the doors here and, you know, that's what you've been kind of waiting for for a while you go through high school and you're like, well, once I get to college, I'm gonna have that experience as well. And I think that is important. It's part of that whole getting away from hope, you know, being with friends, discovering yourself, all those types of, and I think that's hard to emulate in an AR VR environment. Yeah. But I do think it's a, like I said, I think it's that blended kind of concept of that.
Speaker 2:It makes me think that that type of integration of learning would be more valued by people that can't be here fi so maybe it'd be something like what you said, like, did you say equal access? Is that what you said earlier? So maybe someone who has a physical disability and they need to be at home to be cared for, they can go to school visually and audibly and get to meet people in that hybrid VR. Absolutely. And people from other countries that might
Speaker 1:Not that's what I was just gonna say. So in the graduate school, I've gone to school with students all over the world. Yeah. And the idea of being in a VR environment where we actually get to engage whether as our, or as an avatar, I mean, that seems so cool to me, it's like a next level of connectivity. And last week we talked about how we live in this global community and I'd love to say we also live in a global classroom.
Speaker 5:Yeah. And, and, and again, I don't like to necessarily use this terminology of non-traditional, uh, students, but there are those, and, and this is that student that is in Ryan Lander that says, you know what, I really want to take a class to get a certificate or to maybe think about maybe going back to school full time or whatever it is the reason, and then is allows them to participate in not just an online class, not just an asynchronous class, but a synchronous class that is also providing, providing more. And part of that also what stout does. And this is one of the things that also is very hard to emulate. And that is that lab experience. When you start talking about poly university, that hands on experience, I think that's the most valuable thing here. I mean, and that's from so many majors, everything from packaging design to construction management, to there's, you know, so many stem, uh, psychology, all those, it's a, it's a big, it's a big part of being here at stout. And so that part maybe, perhaps you can still have that AR you can still, I even have that in there. I, I saw one particular. I remember I was at one VO tech once and they just had a, um, they had an, um, virtual reality thing where you put on these, you know, the headset and you would weld you of practicing welding. Wow. Okay. Without a welder,
Speaker 1:I'd still be terrible at
Speaker 5:It. Right. Right. And they would, and they could actually test you out on how well before they put you out under real welder. Well, I mean, and I think the medical field is starting to advance with that. Oh yeah. And with certainly with the robotics and things like that. And I think that's where we're kind of headed is that, you know, particularly, even with somes stem things is, uh, somebody who was telling me about, uh, I think it was something at the university of Minnesota where they had, uh, somewhere like that, where they were starting to experi experience, experiment with having a, uh, a AR experience with going into a heart. Well, I, I think that's where we're headed. I think all these program, particularly stem programs, um, and, and also design programs. I think what we're gonna start to see is more and more of that. And we need to be prepared for that and we
Speaker 1:Will, and I think we're on the right track. Yep. And certainly it's been great to see and hear all about how we're technologically growing in the right direction here at UW stout. I wanna thank both our guests so much for joining us. Rachel, tell folks where they can follow us.
Speaker 2:All right. So if our listeners want to connect with us or share any topics that they'd like to hear on the podcast, you can find us on social media, Instagram at UW stout, picks Twitter at UW stout and searching university of Wisconsin, stout on Facebook and LinkedIn subscribe to inside stout on apple podcasts, Spotify and Google podcasts. We'll see you next time when we share even more stories that go inside stout.