Technology in the Classroom
Tablet PC Instruction
A topic that is important to me as a teacher and that I have spent
much time on is the use of and
for course management. During my year as a Lilly Teaching Fellow, I
had the opportunity to discuss with my peers our experiences as
teachers and study how to advance our teaching. The use of
technology was a frequently raised topic and my key revelation was
that technology must not dominate the classroom. While course
management tools are undoubtedly a great help (I have been using
WebCT for several years), it is less clear how much technology
should enter the classroom itself. I used to think that having
carefully polished PowerPoint presentations in my course was the
pinnacle of teaching preparation. Yet, it has become clear to me
that it does not automatically lead to great teaching. A fully
predetermined structure makes it more difficult to engage students
in the lecture and to react flexibly to questions and the natural
flow of the lecture. Since Fall 2005, I have switched to Classroom
Presenter, which augments presentation slides with live annotations,
drawings, and free-hand writing using a Tablet PC. With this change,
I am able derive key concepts live and at a pace that is more
suitable for student learning, but still benefit from having some
prepared figures, formulae, and other content readily available.
Portability and a wireless connection to the projection system allow
me to pace the room and interact with students close-up. The initial
responses to this lecture style has been overwhelmingly positive,
and I am excited about being able to capture students' attention. Since Fall 2006, I have used Tablet PCs in discussion sessions (as part of the HP-sponsored Tablet PC project).
Publications
Images from the Classroom
|
