Ava,
Very true...instructors should be aware and in touch with what students are doing in the classroom, however, the bigger challenge is to create active, collaborative learning experiences for students rather than allowing long periods of "self directed" work going in the classrooms. Much of that should be done outside the class time and in class should be focused on working together and applying information to real contexts of use.
Dr. Ruth Reynard
The internet and wireless access have completely changed the way that people learn. There is so much more information available to students now, and it is easily accessed. The downside to that, of course, is that students have to be taught how to filter the good information from the bad. I think that may be a losing battle, actually, as most people I know are unable to sort credible information from junk, but that is another discussion. Wireless access took the internet further and made it available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Students and instructors can access information at any time. If a question arises in class, it is very easy to search for an answer together and ensure that everyone understands the answer.
Based on my face-to-face courses, students use their mobile devices and social media often. Though I cannot recall the name of the site, however, there is a site which allows you to create questions and have students text the responses. The responses can then be shown real-time via the internet. Also, some instructors use their own social media sites to communicate with students.
Nichoe,
Yes, there are several of those sites which you can "Google" and they have taken the place of the clicker technology we have seen for a while - the only challenge is that EACH student must have a phone in order to text the responses. For some of our schools, this is still an issue as many students still do not hvae individual phones. You can still purchase clickers, however, so that every student can participate.
Dr. Ruth Reynard
The ability to access information anywhere at anytime and the ability to organize the information in new ways. Beyond today's 2D Internet is the potential of 3D virtual simulations. Already students in engineering are able to use CAD and virtual simulation software to learn how machines work before ever touching a real one.
Thomas,
I agree...we have more really exciting changes soming soon :) Simulations will also morph into hollograms etc. Great!
Dr. Ruth Reynard
I do think wireless technology, pads and smart phones, have had the greatest impact on today's students.
I hope that traditional educational boundaries will continue to blur. What I mean by that is I teach literature. Reading an "old boring book" is a challenge for many students.
But the old book must be read, but when students can access a hyperlinked version to "get" the references or picture galleries, videos and the like, that old boring book comes to life.
I gave my students an online hyperlinked version of Polidori's The Vampyre (1819). Feedback from students was great. They got immediate help with the "hard bits," and it was right there at all times.
And as I teach my students, a book isn't created in a vacuum. Writers are responding to what's going on around them. Shakespeare wrote Macbeth when a new king came on the throne, a Scottish king who had written about witches. Old Will was a canny business man. We learn about witchcraft in the 17th century thanks to video. We see versions of Macbeth in the new Globe in London. Literature comes alive for students right in the palms of their hands.
Oh dear. Can you tell I'm a true believer?
The two main technology applications that influence students of today seem to be the Internet and the mobile phone. Both allow the student access to information at any time and any place. There is no limit to when and how students get information.
My sister just returned from Zambia and one thing that amazed her was that everyone, including kids, had mobile phones. Imagine a course in Humanities where you are blogging with students in another country asking them about their real world experiences.
Mary,
Absolutely! I was actually born in the DRCongo and look foward to many such collaborative connections between students and "worlds".
Dr. Ruth Reynard
Just as many others posted on this forum, the students in my U.S. History class almost always use the internet to conduct large portions of their research. While we all know how beneficial the internet can be to conduct research, there are negative aspects to this habit as well. The students in my classroom have access to a very good textbook. However, I find most students will ignore their textbook, which is their best and most authoritative resource, opting instead to use the internet to find information on a given subject. I suspect this is because many students believe it is more convenient to browse the internet then it is to read a textbook, even though out textbook is digital. This is an unfortunate effect of the digital nomad phenomenon.
Dariusz,
Interesting point about textbooks. Why do we still use textbooks?
Dr. Ruth Reynard
The two main technology applications and uses that influence the characterization of today's students are cell phones and the internet.
Students in today's classrooms are multi-tasking on a continual basis. Often they are engaged in dialogue that is focused on other aspects besides a multi-faceted approach to the concepts in the course. Nevertheless, they do switch gears to provide some attention to the chat discussion.
As an instructor, when I call on students to respond to a question or to offer some comment on the current concept, I notice that it sometimes takes more than one request to get a particular student to respond. Most will state that they were busy with children's demands or with a phone call or with fixing dinner, etc. as if multitasking were acceptable behaviors. This is a symptom of very demanding lifestyles but also of a perception that learning can be achieved through osmosis. :(
The cell phone is ubiquitous and the internet offers a quick and easy access to information. Unfortunately, internet resources such as wikis or web blogs are not always verifiable resources.
Suzanne
Suzanne,
Yes, Internet and mobile technology options have revolutionized and continue to challenge how we do things...
Dr. Ruth Reynard
I am involved with the technology application at its fullest. Teaching a manufacture program my students are carrying their laptops 24/7. They need it to work on their self studies,accessing a vehicles scan data,finding manufacturers specs and procedures.Without the internet and wireless functions we are almost useless, but since I'm from the service manual era we keep the good old paperbacks around. It is amazing when the students have use them. They keep looking for the start button, just kidding! I do notice why we have gone to the electronic age. To have the students guide , manufacturing repair manuals, which could be 3 to 4 seperate manuals and not to mention the scanner, dvom, labscope, etc.
I am thankful for the elctronic age and maybe some of you have forgotten the shelves and shelves of manuals we had to store and order.Now at the click of a button i can get the updated versions. Sure their are items out there that are suspect, but with the networks we have established over the years it is nice to have that at our finger tips and the students.
The student can be at their own learning pace and maximizes their potential. I like the new nomad of the 21st century and keep it coming.
Edward,
Very true and great examples! Information can be quickly accessed and quickly modified/edited without much hassle these days :)
Dr. Ruth Reynard
Greetings!
In reading some of the posts here, I see lots of references to cell phones. Yet, I think from a broader perspective - we are getting to where the "device" does not matter. Whichever device people are using (PC, phone, tablet, Google glasses, "smart" TVs, etc.), it pushes back to cloud-based technologies and applications. These apps are successful when they provide quality content and utilitization (for instance, real-time access to data).
So, I think "apps" themselves have democratized the ability to collect, integrate and share data in ways that weren't available in the mid 2000s. It's enabled a democratization of software development too.
Similarly, online content sharing/communication tools (beyond the traditional "social media" definition) have enabled people to change the way we communicate. During the Boston Bombings, as a native of Massachusetts, I had friends that were reporting what was happening in the manhunt faster than it was appearing in news channels. Overseas, we see how the Arab Spring movement has been largely driven through these new communication channels. Tools like Skype -which is not a "social media" site - have changed the ability for families to connect.
This instant access to content/data and new tools for communication support the nomadic student characterization presented in this module.
Thanks for asking!
Rick
There are a lot of factors for this here but I would say that instant demand for technology is one of them - students want things 'now' and are used to it because of all of the technology that is out there today. They, for the most part, are not very good at just 'waiting'. In addition, they want it to be very much like a real classroom so having demos, video, audio, is another area in which online instructors have to be able to provide well in.
I would say that depends on the student. Students that are fresh out of high school depend more on the Internet and mobile technologies. Older students, even those that are very technically aware I find are not as drawn to mobile applications. But there is a downside to this, I have found that younger students generally accept almost anything that is posted and do not have an awareness of what is a valid source of information. I have also found this is older students who do not have a lot of experience with the Internet.
Jacquilin,
Yes, when we see things in print, we tend to believe them :) The challenge is great for instructors to guide students and to train them to recognize legitimate sources over bogus sources.
Dr. Ruth Reynard
One of the main technology applications that influence students today is of course the internet. Suprisingly it is the websites on the internet that actually grap the attention of my students. You tube is a major influence for teaching. You can learn just about anything on that website.
