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Future of teaching IT
    Education and informtaion technology
 

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Article #1: Future of teaching IT

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Gary Staunch, Director of Education for associated with Web-enabled textbooks.
North America at Compaq Computer JLM: Relatively few faculty members are
Corporation, is responsible for marketing using Web-enabled delivery systems. What
Compaq products and services to public are the implications of that sparse
and private educational institutions usage? How can educational leaders
throughout the United States. Staunch address these implications?
leads the strategic planning, marketing GS: You are right; there are very few
and communication efforts to identify and teachers that develop or deliver their
promote the products, solutions and curricula in a Web-based environment.
services that best meet the needs of K-12 Educators need to seriously investigate
and higher education customers. Staunch Web-enabled learning and ask themselves:
was named to his current position in June How do I deliver Web-enabled learning to
1998. my students? How do I incorporate
James L. Morrison (JLM): Gary, as a content? How do I take the content that I
senior manager for one of the world’s have, as a subject matter expert, and put
leading producers of information that into an engaging format for my
technology, what do you see on the students? These are the questions facing
horizon regarding how these tools will all schools, including traditional
affect the way we conduct teaching in colleges and universities. Compaq is
educational organizations? currently working to develop a program in
Gary Staunch (GS): From the teaching higher education that will deliver the
perspective, the most dramatic change technology, tools, training and
that I see coming is the portability information that will enable professors
issue and how to extend learning outside to: (1) take the content that they have
the classroom. We need to design devices historically delivered to students via
that are portable, durable, functional, lectures and put it into a Web-enabled
and capable enough to extend the learning format, and (2) access content imported
experience outside of the traditional from other content providers. Is the
school environment—and to change the infrastructure in place to support such
dynamics of student-teacher interaction technology on campuses today? Probably
so that the classroom is not necessarily not.
the only location where learning takes JLM: Will Compaq assist educational
place. I believe that portability expands leaders and faculty members who want to
the learning process by allowing students participate in the Web-enabled course
to access current information from business?
anywhere, at anytime–whether that GS: Yes, absolutely. By the end of this
information resides with an instructor, quarter, we will have a Web site up and
with someone whom you want to collaborate running called "CoursePaq" that educators
as a peer, or on the Internet. can access as a resource for Web-enabled
JLM: What about the management of learning. Anything that educators want to
educational organizations? know about developing, implementing or
GS: Let’s look at the K-12 environment. supporting Web-based education resides on
Today, many districts don't have access this site. It will be a key resource for
to the on-demand data they need to make potential providers of Web-based
intelligent, on-the-spot decisions or to curricula.
react to current trends. That data JLM: A major challenge is to get faculty
usually resides in an Information members interested in being Web-based
Technology-directed environment. learning providers. What hints or tips
Data-driven technology tools currently in can you give educational leaders about
development will provide K-12 how they can convince faculty to
administrators with access to important essentially get involved with a steep
information on a real-time basis to make learning curve when they are already busy
informed, strategic decisions. These people?
tools allow decision-makers to react GS: I understand the reluctance of
immediately, make changes mid-course and faculty: this is why we are trying to
apply whatever information or resources make the implementation of information
are needed in given situations. For and technology tools as easy as possible.
example, how do superintendents get As students graduate from schools in
information about attendance trends at which technology is more and more
specific schools in their districts? prevalent and move into the
Traditionally, they get a report from workforce–whether it is into the
somebody, but that report does not academic community or into the commercial
provide real-time access to attendance business environment–the interest by
information. Real-time, data-driven faculty in Web-enabled learning will
technology tools respond to an naturally increase.
administrator’s need for a steady flow JLM: How can information technology tools
of new information that is continually be used to stimulate and enhance
updated. What I see are systems that will learning?
be able to give school leaders GS: When students have access to
information so that they will be able to up-to-the-minute, current information,
make need-driven decisions. and when that information is shared with
JLM: Virtual universities and virtual their peers and faculty, the learning
classrooms are recent developments. How experience changes dramatically.
do you see these entities affecting Teachers, who used to be the subject
public schools, colleges and universities matter experts and the deliverers of all
in the future? content, will transfer more of the
GS: Distance learning, also known as learning process and responsibility to
virtual learning, is a key issue students. Students then become
involving several teaching and learning responsible for understanding where to
activities. We view distance learning as access information and how to collaborate
Web-enabled learning, where technology in a Web-based environment. Students must
and the Internet enhance the curriculum ask themselves: How do I learn? How can I
for both students on campus and across use information and technology to gain
the country. Many people interpret information? Such an experience prepares
"Web-enabled learning" as a teaching an individual to be a life-long learner,
format in which information is broadcast which is critical for success in the
to students around the world through the workforce of tomorrow. So the whole
Internet. We define Web-enabled learning learning paradigm changes. On top of
as a curriculum delivery vehicle, not a that, technology enables students to
teaching format. Web-enabled learning express themselves differently than they
provides anytime, anywhere access to ever have before. Students are no longer
best-of-breed curriculum. limited to using a piece of paper and a
Web-enabled learning will be widespread pencil or pen, but instead have a unique
in the future. To that end, Compaq will online environment in which they can
announce this year solutions to support express what information they have been
Web-enabled learning through content able to gather, internalize that data,
development–the ability to import and then integrate it into their
content for curriculum, and the ability assignments.
to deliver that content across a JLM: My experience is that students are
Web-based environment. If academic uncomfortable when the focus shifts to
institutions want to bring a curriculum their competency in accessing, analyzing
to either higher education or K-12 and communicating information. This shift
campuses that do not have that resource is also uncomfortable for professors
within their academic structure, then because it is a whole different way of
Web-enabled learning provides the looking at teaching behavior. We have put
solution to meet that need. Web-enabled so much stock in teachers being the
learning provides enormous flexibility in purveyors of content. Do you have any
the learning process for students. With tips on how to ease this transition in
the import of real-time content, the which both students and teachers adopt
information accessed is always refreshed new roles?
and up-to-date, which is important. GS: It is difficult, especially for a
The virtual university revolution is teacher who transitions from being the
making traditional colleges examine the subject expert to being the facilitator.
way content is delivered. In order for But just as business management has
traditional institutions to remain changed, so too must education management
competitive in the future, they must change. Business managers used to simply
offer Web-enabled learning as an option state, "I want you to do this task," and
for their students. now they empower employees to be
JLM: Several weeks ago, I went to a responsible for an area of the business.
conference where the focus was on Instructors still need to direct student
Web-enabling textbooks–putting them in learning activities, but they must also
Web-syllabi, where students could use put responsibility for learning on the
hypertext for the explanation of complex students. It is going to be an
words, or go to simulations and uncomfortable, but worthwhile transition.
exercises, or even to click on a button The measure of success should not simply
and hear a professor's audio comments on be test scores, but instead, increased
a particular section of text. Are attendance and graduation rates and the
computer companies and textbook visible engagement of the student in the
publishers starting to collaborate? Do learning process. Once teachers see their
you foresee a merger or partnership of students engaged and excited about
computer companies and textbook learning and producing thoughtful work,
publishers? they will find it easier to make the
GS: Absolutely. Part of the publishers' transition from actor to director.
challenge is that they have gone from In order to educate students to be
producing hard-copy textbooks to CD-ROMs, life-long learners and successful
but they are unsure what the next contributors to the new global market,
interaction, relative to content educators must change the way they teach
delivery, will be in a Web-based and the way students learn. We need to
environment. We are working closely with remember that if we want to help students
leading publishers in order to determine achieve a high level of competency and
how content can best be delivered. In competitiveness, we have no choice but to
addition, publishers are addressing the make technology an integrated tool in the
many intellectual property issues learning process.






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