Ryan Straight

Assistant Professor, Applied Computing

University of Arizona

Biography

Dr. Ryan Straight is an award-winning educator, writer, and researcher. He currently serves as an Assistant Professor at the University of Arizona. He is co-program director of the Master of Science and undergraduate minor programs in Educational Technology and teaches in the Applied Computing and Cyber Operations undergraduate programs. He also teaches an annual freshman seminar, Cyborgs and Transhumanism, in the Honors College.

Here you will find a variety: travel exploits, reflections, expressions of stylistic pedagogy, reactions to technological and educational current events, and general musings on topics approaching Ryan’s academic research.

He lives in Tucson, AZ with his wife Adriana and their three dogs, Sofie, Menchi, and Chewie.

Interests

User Experience
Virtual/Augmented/Mixed/Extended Reality
Philosophy of Technology
Human-Computer Interaction
Postphenomenology

Education

PhD in Instructional Technology, 2015
Ohio University
MEd in Cultural Studies in Education, 2009
Ohio University
BSEd in Integrated Language Arts, 2005
Ohio University

Awards & Fellowships

Effective Practice Award

Online Learning Consortium Nov 2018

Through the OLC Effective Practices program, the OLC community shares techniques, strategies and practices that have worked effectively in their institution or program. Effective practices are peer-reviewed and evaluated against OLC’s five pillars of quality in digital education: access, learning effectiveness, faculty satisfaction, student satisfaction and scalability.

See certificate

Faculty Fellow (Ongoing)

University of Arizona Aug 2017

Faculty Fellows is a group of 55 outstanding UA faculty dedicated to student engagement. Faculty Fellows work to effectively involve students in research, collaborative projects, career-readiness efforts and community outreach. Each Fellow is assigned a campus site for the academic year (whether a residence hall, a cultural center, or a resource center) and spends time at that site each week, building connections and relationships with students outside of the classroom.

Recent Posts

Resources and readings: General cybersecurity

A running collection of general readings on cybersecurity.

Last updated on 2021-01-20 17 min read Academic, Reading lists

Resources and readings: General cybersecurity

Back to School

In the spirit of life-long learning and professional development, I’m heading back to school to get another degree.

Last updated on 2021-01-20 4 min read Professional, Personal

Spicing Up Your Remote Work with Zoom and OBS

So you’re suddenly working from home and Zooming into all your meetings. Here’s how to spice up your presence a bit beyond just virtual backgrounds.

Last updated on 2021-01-20 5 min read Professional

Spicing Up Your Remote Work with Zoom and OBS

Picking the Low-Hanging Fruit of Privacy and Security

Here are my five changes you can make in your online existence that are both relatively easy to make and provide tremendous bang for your buck.

Last updated on 2021-01-20 12 min read Professional

Picking the Low-Hanging Fruit of Privacy and Security

Building a MediaWiki Personal Knowledge Base, 2019 Style

It’d be impossible to keep everything we need to know in one brain and stay sane. Here’s how I maintain my own personal knowledge base.

Last updated on 2021-01-20 12 min read Organization

Building a MediaWiki Personal Knowledge Base, 2019 Style

Projects

Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity-related content for my Master’s program.

Read, Watch, Woof

Ryan’s bi-weekly newsletter (currently on hiatus).

Read, Watch, Woof

Squad Goals network

A collective of like-minded teachers, designers, and researchers.

Squad Goals network

The New Professor

Ryan’s bi-weekly podcast (currently on hiatus).

The New Professor

Recent & Upcoming Talks

2021-03-05 13:00 — 14:00

Blurring Borders Between Technology and Self

Blurring Borders Between Technology and Self

A brief talk on cyborgs, transhumanism, and ethics.

2020-04-23 11:15 — 12:00

Community Continuity in the Time of Coronavirus

Community Continuity in the Time of Coronavirus

Being at a distance doesn’t mean being distant.

2019-11-22 09:45 — 10:30 Disney Swan & Dolphin Resort

Owning Your Success: Battling the Impostor Phenomenon in Higher Education

Owning Your Success: Battling the Impostor Phenomenon in Higher Education

An express workshop on impostor phenomenon (aka imposter syndrome).

2019-09-20 14:00 — 14:45 University of Hawai'i Maui College, Maui, Hawai'i

The Games Peoples Play

The Games Peoples Play

Games, engagement, and representation.

Recent Scholarship

Quickly discover relevant content by filtering scholarship.

Ryan Straight (2013). Commercial Off-The-Shelf Video Games as Computer-Assisted Language Learning Environments. In AACE: SITE.

Ryan Straight, Jamie Smith (2011). The Development and Delivery of Custom Mobile Apps for K-12 Learning: Viable Options for Educators. In AACE: SITE.