Meet Heidi Mede at Langara

Submitted by Sarah Bowers, Langara

Tell us a bit about where you work and what you do.
I work in the Educational Technology department at Langara College as an Instructional Assistant where I support the faculty who use technology in the classroom. We switched our learning management system in 2012 from Blackboard CE to D2L and that has been our primary focus since then. I am looking forward to shifting the focus to the other educational technologies out there these days.
How long have you been involved in teaching and learning and educational technology?

In my careers, my involvement in education came first. I worked in elementary schools for 5 years, then took some time out to raise a family. In the 90’s, when the tech world was flourishing, I went back to school to take advantage of that market and was lucky enough to land a job with Oracle Corporation before the dot.com boom fell flat.  Although working at Oracle for five years was a great opportunity, I always felt like a square peg in a round hole and didn’t know why. It wasn’t until I came to Langara in 2006, that I realized it was the public sector where I belong;blending technology and education is where I am thriving.
What’s one thing you really love about the work you do
Throughout my careers, my passion has been to help people, whether that be working in a homeless shelter, working with children with physical and mental disabilities, or volunteering in a local children’s sports association. There are many teachers out there who are fearful of technology and I enjoy helping them incorporate technology into their teaching styles.
How long have you been a member of ETUG?
My first ETUG workshop was the Spring 2006 workshop in Courtney at North Island College. What a beautiful campus they have there!
What do you like best about this community and its activities?
My favorite activity is the workshops held with their friendly and informal atmosphere. I really like meeting up with everyone and hearing what people are doing in all parts of BC since I believe it’s advantageous to know what the needs are of the all the learners in our province. I really like the depth of experience of the ETUG members.
Do you have a favorite ETUG memory?

A hands-on session that Brent Lee lead at the Fall 2008 workshop at VIU and learning about the BC Open Textbooks project that Mary Burgess and Clint Lalonde talked about at the Spring 2013 at SFU.
What would you like for ETUG to provide more of in terms of benefits/value to members? Any input or help you want to ask members to provide?
I think keeping the events informal, informative, collegial and collaborative is welcoming to new members and engaging for current members.
Do you have any special interests/hobbies?
Even though I have lived in Vancouver for 30 years, in the last few years I have been enjoying exploring the lower mainland and am surprised at all the little intriguing areas near the Fraser River, such as Finn Slough.
Anything special you what to ask or share with members?

Looking forward to hosting the Spring 2014 ETUG workshop, which is celebrating ETUG’s 20^th anniversary!