Tonia Malone
Tonia Malone has been supporting effective teaching and learning for over twenty-nine years at Cal Poly.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Graphic Communications (Cal Poly, 1994) and a Master of Science in Education (East Bay, 2007) with a specialization in Online Teaching and Learning.
Who am I?
Although I graduated from Cal Poly in 1994, I still remember what it is like to be a student. I found a passion for developing effective teaching and learning tools while working at the Faculty Multimedia Development Center as a student assistant in 1993. While developing the Vascular Plant Taxonomy Interactive CD, I would remember all those hard courses I took and how effective a tool like this would have been. Being a student who learns well with visual and interactive tools, I could see firsthand how these tools can assist a student's learning efforts. I knew my desire to go into commercial graphic design had changed, and the desire to make learning more accessible and exciting prevailed.
I worked with two programmers to develop the first-ever Cal Poly website. When a website was created in Notepad or SimpleText and only displayed text and GIF images.
While creating courseware for faculty, I have learned a lot about plants, animal science, architecture, anthropology, human heart anatomy, business terms, and much more. I have also gained the knowledge to create these tools through research and self-teaching.
While working in the lab managing and training students, I found I had a lot to teach others about web design and multimedia development. I started holding workshops on Photoshop, Director, Astound, and PowerPoint. I found that not only did I enjoy developing multimedia, but I also enjoyed teaching multimedia. In 2000 the College of Art and Design offered me a lecturer position where I taught ART 487 - Designing for the World Wide Web (lecture/lab course). I find sharing and educating people very rewarding, and throughout my career, I have done just that.
Although I use instructional design skills daily, I wanted to learn more about educational practices. I received a Master of Science in Education (Option: Online Teaching and Learning) in June 2007.
My passion for usability has steered me towards educating myself in user interface design (books, workshops, conferences, etc.) and ADA compliance (books, workshops, conferences, etc.).
I have been an Instructional Designer at Cal Poly for over twenty-four years. Within these years, I have worn many hats: I teach multiple workshops on effective teaching and learning with technology, the Lead Moodle Administrator for seven years, the Blackboard Administrator for nine years, and now Canvas for three years. I taught online (Redesigning Your Course for Online) for Cal Poly Extended Education and SaddleBack Community College, and I am currently playing a key role in the Technology Initiative (hybrid, flipped, online course, and virtual development) at Cal Poly.
Please feel free to schedule a consultation with me. I look forward to meeting you.
https://calendly.com/tmalonecp
