ABSTRACT

During my sophomore year in college, I was required to take a public speaking class. My professor insisted that we hand all of our assignments in on a cassette tape.  Mind you, this was the year 2003. I could not understand why we were using dead technology.   My professor told us that he only has a cassette player and that is the only way he will be able to listen.  I still to this day don’t understand how a person working at a higher education institution refused to move onto new technologies.  This story is a microcosm for the problem that most universities are facing today.

PROFESSORS

University professors are supposed to be some of the brightest minds that we have.  Yet, they still refuse to change the way they conduct their classes. I think educators teach their pupils the same exact way they were taught.  The problem with that concept is that most professors gained their educations over 20 years ago.   There were none of the resources available then that there are now. Students are far superior to some professors when it comes to technology.  Why is it that the students should be the only ones to learn on a college campus? The educators need to be educated in the way students operate and learn.  On a recent edition of Celebrity Apprentice, former Governor Rod Blagojevich could not event turn on a MacBook laptop. His excuse was that he “never had to learn it”.

I suppose this can be the same reason why professors don’t adapt.  Once you gain tenure, you are not required to change anything.  Professors have no incentive to adapt. This is where the administration comes into play.  Administrators are trying to implement technology to cut costs instead of enrich students.  Adding a Smart Board to a classroom does not make the professor any smarter.

At Pitzer College in Los Angeles, Professor Alexandra Juhasz created a course entitled “Learning from YouTube.” The course consists of students watching, discussing, and commenting on YouTube videos. The course syllabus and videos of the class can be found on YouTube: www.youtube.com/group/learningfromyoutube (1) Professor Juhasz had a vision and created a class that teaches how to use YouTube as a reference.  Most professors don’t see a need to change the way they teach, let alone create all new course material.

The problem with that train of thought is that the professional world does change and adapt.  Companies are implementing new technologies and streamlining the way business is done.  If you are a graduating senior looking for a job and learned antiquated techniques, you are just as valuable to the company as a guy off of the street. I find many universities are teaching skills that cannot be used in the professional world. I learned video editing on Final Cut Pro using the Mini DV tape format.  When I started my first internship at ESPN, they used Beta and Digi Beta tape format and used Avid to edit.  Not once during my tenure as an undergraduate did we learn about those formats and how they are industry standards.

It is not a professor’s job to tell a student how to learn. It is their job to provide the information that is relevant and the student can do what they please with it. David Cole is a professor a Georgetown University.  He has banned laptops from his lecture classes. (2) Who the hell is he to tell a student HOW to learn.  If a student finds it easier to type then write, it should be  their choice to do so. Having a laptop in class has tremendous benefits.  You can instantly research something that is brought up in class, you can just email notes to a friend that might have missed class, and you can use your findings for class discussions. Professor Cole’s reasoning behind the ban is that laptops are distracting and disruptive. You don’t need a laptop to not pay attention in class.  I know that from first hand experience.

CURRICULUM

Many incoming freshmen do not know what they want to do for a career. These kids who don’t declare a major are forced to take classes that are just an extension of high school.  Instead, why not give these kids the opportunity to discover something they may have a passion for? I propose that instead of taking five Liberal Arts courses, they take an introductory course in five different majors.  A business class, a computer class, a journalism class, an art class, and an education class. Now that freshmen can have an idea of what is to come in those majors.  He may choose to become a finance major.  He can then use the remaining four classes that he took as electives in his plan of study.

History classes are something that most students despise. Most history classes follow the same format;  you read about the people who shape history and what their accomplishments have meant to today’s society. Three of four young adults download and view Internet videos daily according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, (3).  Why not  take a different approach and make history interactive. Make the class about writing the textbook instead of reading it?  Students can use a simple instant message program to meet online.  They can share text and video they have found by copy and pasting links to each other. They can then collaborate on writing about what they have learned.  This is not writing code, this is using basic computing techniques and programs to advance your knowledge and make learning a more enjoyable experience.

FUTURE

Obviously, traditional Universities have to change the way they do business in order to survive.  The issue that all students complain about is the price of textbooks.  Some English professors make students purchase entire anthologies in order to read two or three pieces.  I have a vision of an a la carte online community to purchase required material. The university bookstore would be eliminated.  Students could download their material review them on laptops or e-readers.

If universities do not plan for the future, students will turn to an online based education.  StraighterLine.com is in its infancy but they are destined to be a blueprint for the way people gain a degree.  Professors will be able to post a syllabus online and lecture into their webcams.  Students can log in an view the lecture on their own time. Before students submit their work for a grade, they can sign up for instant grading through a web based program called Criterion. Students enter their essays electronically and get immediate scores and comments on factors such as organization, grammar, and mechanics (4). They then can submit their work via email to the professor.

We have all the technology we need in order to install all the ideas I have proposed in this paper.  Nothing needs to be invented or designed.  We need the professors and administrators to open their eyes and realize that this is what student’s want.  If they do not, students will go elsewhere to find what they need. Students need educators who teach for a purpose, not a paycheck.

CITATION

  1. “Coolest College Courses.” n. pag. Web. 27 Mar 2010. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/09/coolest-college-courses-p_n_491890.html#s72843
  2. “Laptops Banned In Lecture Halls.” n. pag. Web. 27 Mar 2010. http://news.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474978092490
  3. “Two Significant Technology Trends Sweeping College and University Communities.” n. pag. Web. 27 Mar 2010. http://www.govtech.com/gt/articles/159797
  4. “Using Computer Programs to Improve Students Writing.” n. pag. Web. 27 Mar 2010. http://www.findingdulcinea.com/news/education/2010/march/Using-Computer-Programs-to-Improve-Student-Writing.html
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