Applying What Weve Learned About Technology and Teaching
Applying What We’ve Learned About Technology and Teaching To Achieve More Effective and More Profitable Offerings Association of Proprietary Colleges New York Sagamore Resort, June 12, 2002 by David G. Brown (http: //www. wfu. edu/~brown) Professor of Economics, ICCEL Dean, and VP Wake Forest University
Focus Upon STUDENTS Placement Success! Very Few Places in the Country are your equal!
3 What’s Special about [insert your] College • Why do students come to [your college]? • Why do faculty stay at [your college]? • Why do you continue to work at [your college]? • What is “the [your college] Difference”? WRITE IT DOWN!
What We’ve Learned So Far About Technology and Teaching 1. More Learning results From Better Communication! 2. Students relish Buffets! 3. Blended Courses are Best! 4. Ubiquitous Access is Essential! 5. Simpler is Better! 6. Professor becomes Personal Trainer! Alert!--- You will be asked to select the 2 factors that most deserve your special attention! 4
5 What We’ve Learned So Far About Technology & Management 1. More Productivity results From Better Communication! 2. All relish Buffets! 3. Blended Approaches are Best! 4. Ubiquitous Access is Essential! 5. Simpler is Better! 6. Manager becomes Personal Trainer!
6 Communication-Interaction
7 Computers allow people--- • to belong to more communities • to be more actively engaged in each community • with more people • over more miles • for more months and years • TO BE MORE COLLABORATIVE ICCEL -- Wake Forest University, 2002
Reasons 150 Professors Added Computer Enhancements 1. Communication-Interaction 2. Collaboration-Teams 3. Controversy-Debate 4. Customization-Diversity 5. Consultants-Adjuncts 8
9 FIRST YEAR SEMINAR The Economists’ Way of Thinking: • To understand a liberal arts education as an opportunity to study with professors who think by their own set of concepts • To learn how to apply economic concepts • To learn how to work collaboratively • To learn computer skills • To improve writing and speaking Students = 15 All Freshmen Required Course Before Class During Class. After Class
10 Students Relish Buffets!
Blended Courses Are Best! 11
THE WAKE FOREST PLAN 12 IBM A 30, Pentium III, 1. 13 GHz Processor, 30 GB Hardrive, 384 MB RAM 15”Act. Matrix Screen, CD-RW/DVD, Floppy, 56 k modem, 16 MB Video Ram, 10/100 Ethernet, USB&Serial&Parellel&Infrared Ports • • • IBM Laptops for all Printers for all New Every 2 Years Own @ Graduation 31. 000 Connections Standard Software 99% E-Mail Start 1995, 4 Year Phase In +15% Tuition for 37 Items +40 Faculty and 30 Staff Standard Load Includes— MS Office, Dreamweaver, SPSS, Maple, Acrobat, Photoshop, Shockwave, Flash, Net Meeting, Real Producer & Player, Media Player, Windows XP Moviemaker, Apple Quick. Time, Netscape & Explorer, Netscape Calendar & Communicator, Windows XP Professional Ubiquitous Access is Essential!
13 Simpler is Better!
14 Student Teacher • My. yahoo • Custom learning team • Custom delivery • Custom learning resources Professor as Personal Trainer
What We’ve Learned So Far About Technology and Teaching 1. More Learning results From Better Communication! 2. Students relish Buffets! 3. Blended Courses are Best! 4. Ubiquitous Access is Essential! 5. Simpler is Better! 6. Professor becomes Personal Trainer! It’s that time! Circle the 2 items that most Deserve your special attention in the years ahead! 15
Circle 3 most relevant for your college! Technology is transforming what we do & how we do it! • New markets & competition (Mass Marketskatz, New Competitionlevine, Bricks and Clicksl) • Entrepreneurs & Rapid Entry/Exit (Free Agentl) • An era for confederations & mergers (Intell…Elitesk) • Student-centered buying & databases (Learng Focusl, $ Follow Studentsl) • Customized/Individualized Offerings (Personalizedk, Individualizationl) • Interactive Teaching & Immediacy (Just in Timek, Interaction is the keygulliver) • Teams of Professionals to Support Learning • Blended Courses • Resources in Chunks (Modulark, Unbundlel, Degrees wither in Importancel) • Demand for Computer Fluency (Educatnl Passportsl) • Student Trial/Error Mentality 16
Conclusions re Wireless (DGB: London, 6/28/02) 16 a • Wireless is currently a technology still in search of a killer application. • The Killer Applications will likely be--– Email & Instant Messaging EVERYWHERE – Global Positioning • We’ll be closer when we have signals from the sky & community computing • Wireless may slip in the back door by becoming the backbone of campus systems • In the meantime, boutique applications will intrigue all of us.
17 What should YOU do about it?
Act Now -Build Identity and Loyalty -Build “Communities of Learners” & Link All Programs to Participation in and Access to Those Communities -Expand Enrich Co-Curricular Programs (e. g. placement services & alumni-mail-forwarding) -Start with What Students Already Know & Love! -Games + Create Web Pages + Browser -Instant Messenger -Maintain Aura of Impartiality & Rationality -Rejoice in the Flexibility & Survivability of Colleges 18
Act Now 19 -Affirm as a Community that All Teaching May Proceed on the Assumption That All Students Have Internet Access -Assure Robust Communication Networks -Aim for 95% of Faculty Use of CEL by Voluntary Means -Adopt & Support a “Preferred” Laptop, CMS, & Software -Budget for Electronic Databases -Avoid “dumbing down” teaching and administrative systems -Expect to provide 24/7 services -Put more responsibility on students (like data entry) -Relate directly to suppliers (office depot)
Act Now (Your Turn) What’s Next? --What’s Special about your college? What do you do better than almost anyone else? Where is your comparative advantage? What did you write earlier? --In this new and emerging world of fuller communication & revival of community, how can you deploy these new tools in order to extend your comparative advantage (gardening metaphor)? --What’s your next step toward your objective? 20
21 The Good News for Higher Education • 67/74 oldest institutions are universities! • Adapting is our business! Adapt we will!
The Good News for APC Colleges • Responsive to Rapid Change • Reflective of Student Needs & Desires • Accountable to High Completion Rates • Partner Friendly • Diverse Association 22
23 David G. Brown Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC 27109, USA 336 -758 -4878 email: brown@wfu. edu http//: www. wfu. edu/~brown fax: 336 -758 -4875 Wake Forest University, 2002
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