About

Welcome to Luminaris. I’m guessing that you’re here because you care about teaching, want to pick up new strategies and ideas, and perhaps connect with other like-minded faculty members. If so, you’ve come to the right place.

My name is Mark Hofer. I’m an professor of education and Co-Director of the Center for Innovation in Learning Design at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. My academic specialization is in the use of educational technologies to support teaching and learning in K-12 schools and higher education. First and foremost, though, I’m a teacher. I’ve created this personal blog as a means to explore what good teaching looks like in post-secondary classrooms.

The content of this blog will center on research and practice related to the full range of teaching strategies in higher education. I’m particularly interested in creating meaningful and engaging learning experiences, using technology to promote authenticity, and exploring ways to be more productive and intentional in our work lives.

My goal is to create conversations, share resources, and be a catalyst to improve teaching in higher education.

I typically post three to four times per week. You can view these posts by coming to the blog or you can subscribe via RSS or email to receive updates on new content I’ve created.

My Biography
I’m a professor of educational technology in the School of Education at the College of William & Mary. I’m in my twelth year at W&M. Prior to that I taught two years at Towson University after completing my Ph.D at the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia. Before that I was a high school history teacher and technology coordinator for a large school division in Indianapolis.

My whole career has been focused on teaching in one capacity or another. I’ve published research on student-centered pedagogy and technology integration in K-12 social studies classrooms, teacher planning for technology integration, and knowledge development for teachers. I'm passionate about helping faculty from around the world to enhance their teaching through instructional design that incorporates educational technology and 21st century pedagogy.

In conversations among faculty at workshops and online, we have a great deal of collective wisdom and insight on teaching. I’m hoping that this blog will serve as a way to both extend and deepen these conversations.

In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my family, reading, hiking, and fumbling around on the guitar.

My Contact Information
You can contact me via email or follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn.

Disclaimer
This is my personal blog. Any views or opinions represented here are my own and do not represent those of the School of Education at the College of William & Mary.

All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. I make no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. I will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. I will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

Colophon
My blog is built on Weebly, using the TinyBubbles theme. We have customized the template using the CSS editor somewhat. The body text is Questrial. The banner image is a slightly modified version of "Loi Krathong" by Takeaway, CC Attiribution-ShareAlike 3.0.