Title: Information Technology – A Key Differentiator for Higher Education
1Information Technology A Key Differentiator for
Higher Education
- Southern Educational Technology Conference
- January 8, 2004
- James I. Penrod
- Barbara A. Perry
2Presenters
- Barbara Perry
- Doctoral student in Higher Adult Education
Leadership - MBA/LAUNCH Programs Director
- McAfee School of Business
- Union University
- Jackson, TN
- James Penrod
- Professor Higher Adult Education Leadership
- The University of Memphis
- Memphis, TN
- Senior Fellow, ECAR
3Information Technology -The Key Differentiator
for H. E.
- Provides leverage for higher eds most important
asset intellectual capital faculty - Strengthens the bond between instructor and
student - Increases instructional productivity
- Helps to redefine the role of the instructor
- Develops a new learning infrastructure
- Transforming potential of IT
- Marvin Peterson, et al, Planning and Management
for a Changing Environment, Jossey-Bass, San
Francisco, 1997, p.438.
4IT Enabled Graduate CoursesIT Trends Issues
and Higher Education Administration
- Web-enabled, taught in smart classroom
- Focus in courses
- IT Trends Issues
- IT fluency (skills, concepts, intellectual
capabilities) - Learning Organization Concepts
- Strategic Planning model for higher education
- Graduate Seminars
- Individual exploration contribution expected by
each student - Link learning to work interests
- Significant semester long group exercise (a case
study) - Requires participation in simulation- VU
5Stanley Katz Quote, CHE, February 2002
We need to be very careful to ensure that
information technology serves the university, and
not the other way aroundwe have reacted to
technology, rather than thinking creatively about
how it might enrich our basic educational
missionwe have confused a tool with a goal.
- We have too often reacted to technology rather
than using it creatively! - IT is only a tool is a common assertionan
erroneous one we believe! - Instructional technology utilized by an IT fluent
faculty can effectively transform higher
education by changing what happens in the
classroom thus enhancing student learning in ways
important in the 21st century.
6What is Virtual University
- Created by William F. Massey
- Massey saw a lack of understanding about the
systematic character of a university - First simulation of an American university
- IPEDS, College Board data, High School and Beyond
Survey
7And, the simulation challenges
- The participant who becomes the
- college or university president to
- Choose college or university type
- To choose from 10 playable scenarios
- Contend with day to day issues
- Work in real time
- Utilize financial and operational reports
- Receive a performance appraisal from the Board of
Trustees
8Virtual University Includes Six Areas of
University Management
- Resource allocation and finance
- Academic operations
- Faculty roles and responsibilities
- Enrollment management
- Sponsored research
- Physical plant activities
- http//virtualupdate.org
- http//www.virtual-u.org/index.php
9Theoretical BackgroundAdult Learning Theory
- Adults are self-directed
- Adult life experience enriches learning
- Adults seek relevance problem-centered more
than subject-centered - Internal factors motivate adults to learn more
than external factors - (Knowles, 1980)
-
10Intrinsic Motivation to Learn(Wlodkowski, 1999)
-
- Adult learners need to experience intrinsic
motivation to learn connect who they are with
what they learn and experience choice and success
in learning activities -
- For adults thought, feeling and action are
directed toward making meaning while involvement
and a search for understanding characterize
adults intrinsic motivation to learn. -
-
11Student Learning StylesDavid Kolbs Experiential
Learning Model (1982)
- Learning Style
- Converger
- Diverger
- Assimilator
- Accommodator
- Teaching Strategies
- Factual Information
- Individual/Group Project
- Hands-On, Case study
- Connections, Reflections
- Connections, Reflections
- Factual Information
- Hands-On, Case Study
- Individual/Group project
12Learner-Centered TeachingTheory Supports
Practice
13Personal mastery goes beyond competence and
skills, though it is grounded in competence and
skills. It goes beyond spiritual unfolding or
opening, although it requires spiritual growth.
It means approaching ones life as a creative
work, living life from a creative as opposed to
reactive viewpoint. When personal mastery
becomes a disciplinean activity we integrate
into our livesit embodies two underlying
movements. The first is continually clarifying
what is important to us. The second is
continually learning how to see current reality
more clearly. The juxtaposition of vision (what
we want) and a clear picture of current reality
(where we are relative to what we want) generates
what we call creative tension a force to bring
them together, caused by the natural tendency of
tension to seek resolution. The essence of
personal mastery is learning how to generate and
sustain creative tension in our lives. Peter
Senge, The Fifth Discipline, Doubleday, NY, 1994,
pp.141-142
14 - Three
Class Comparison
- Question
Means 841503 840103 841502 - Use of IT in classroom enhances learning
4.6 4.5 4.5 - E-mail communication is an important tool
4.8 4.6 4.7 - Web-based material enhances learning
4.6 4.4 4.1 - Have adequate access to Internet for class
4.9 4.8 4.3 - Had skills to use basic technology
4.7 4.5 4.4 - Did not have skills but acquired them in class
1.6 1.6 2.1 - Had skills to use web-based materials
3.9 3.6 3.8 - Did not have skills but acquired them in class
1.9 1.5 2.2 - Use of CMS enhances overall learning
1.0 1.0 1.1 - Electronic communication enhances learning 1.0
1.1 1.1
15- VU Comparisons Fall 2003 Classes
- Questions
Means 841503 840103 - VU added to overall learning experience
3.5 2.6 - Enjoyed VU exercise
4.1 2.5 - VU simulation exercise will be useful to career
3.8 2.6 - VU as timed exercise enhanced motivation
3.4 2.6 - Control of progress through VU enhanced learning
3.7 2.6 - Immediate VU feedback was helpful
3.6 3.3 - VU positive to overall learning
1.4 1.9
16- Comments from 8415 Class Members
- My experience was very positive and exciting.
-
- The fact that web-enabled courses offered 24 hour
accessibility gave me the kind of flexibility
that most traditional classes don't. I highly
recommend that all students have this experience. - As a new student using WebCT, I found the
experience very exciting and it really helped me
learn more about how to utilize numerous
technologies in the classroom. - I think the professor makes all the difference
in how well a WebCT course is taught. - I agree that the technology in the class can
enhance the learning experience. However, for my
learning style, I still need in-class lectures to
best understand the material. I strongly
recommend that all teachers make use of
technology that you have used in this course to
enhance their courses. - Great set up for graduate course meeting once a
week. Allowed reviewing of course material
during the week. - Overall, a very informative course. However, the
week to week reports and power point reviews
became a bit laborious. The information provided
was beneficial.
17- Comments from 8401 Class Members
- UV is a great instructional tool when effectively
utilized in the classroom. -
- I feel I would have learned more if the scenario
ran as a class instead of individually. As a
HIAD student, I feel I should be familiar with
the terms of VU used such as real tuition,
surplus smoothing etc,, but I did not learn these
things because they were not discussed in class. -
- If VU is effectively used as a model and played
as a group (class) situation, I feel it would be
beneficial. - VU assumes one has an understanding of strategies
and terminology general to administrators.
Myself and my peers (even with a background in
education) found this simulation frustrating and
ineffective because we merely pushed buttons on a
screen without understanding what we were pushing
and what effect it was making in reaching our
objectives. - WebCT was very beneficial and useful! Virtual
University WAS NOT!
18Formal Course Assessment ResultsFall 2002
19Critical Success FactorsIT Infrastructure
- A full function campus network
- A relatively easy to use but comprehensive course
management system - Available digital library resources
- A smart classroom
- Access to a technology support structure
- 24X7 help desk availability
20Critical Success FactorsInstructor Design
Intent
- Course make-up and content need to focus on the
art of thinking and exploration - The course needs to encourage the use of skills
and knowledge in a variety of contexts enabling
students to extract general principles from their
experiences of learning by doing - The instructor needs to
- ModelCoachScaffoldArticulateReflectExplore
- Learner-centered Teaching
21Critical Success FactorsStudent Openness
- Must be open to use and experiment with new
technologies in ways different from past
experiences - Overcome competitive tendency to participate and
contribute as part of a self-directed team - Understand that the course is work oriented
requiring focused study on many new concepts
22Conclusions
- Preliminary findings lead to following
suppositions - Web-enabled courses allow graduate students to
choose from a variety of options that enrich
their learning experiences - IT can positively impact student learning if used
in a transformative way - A technology enriched curriculum leads to best
practices in education, meets the variety of
learning styles of students, promotes intrinsic
motivation to learn for graduate students
becomes a key differentiator for higher education