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New technologies upgrade campus life at AU
(Opelika-Auburn News Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Aug. 18--Auburn University students will notice a few upgrades when they return for classes Monday. The upgrades include wireless Internet access in dorms, university information delivered via podcast, Internet textbooks, and "clickers" and Blackboard in classrooms.
The upgrades are designed to improve the overall learning experience in a variety of ways.
In the residence halls, students will have wireless Internet access.
In the classroom, some students will get the chance to put new technology to work with the of use "clickers," handheld audience response systems that look like TV remote controls. The devices are usually coupled with PowerPoint presentations. A professor can flash a slide with a question and students can click on an answer. The teacher can also gauge student response and understanding.
"Several faculty are starting to use those (clickers) to get response during class or give quick quizzes," said Kathy McClelland, manager of the instruction multimedia group.
Another classroom upgrade is Blackboard, a course management system.
"A third of our faculty are using Blackboard ..." McClellan said. "We've been moving from WebCT to this updated version over the last three years. WebCT just died," she said.
Much like WebCT, which was previously in use on the campus, the new system allows faculty members to post materials online. Blackboard also has a classroom mail system, course chat rooms, online testing and a virtual white board where students can draw, load a PowerPoint and put up equations to solve.
Outside the traditional classroom walls, the university is also offering information via podcast.
"I expect faculty to use podcast specific to their own course (in the future)," she said, although right now, only general information is available. "You'll find a couple of really interesting things out there."
Online textbooks are also giving student a little relief when it comes to expenses.
"They do tend to be a tiny bit cheaper," she said.
A professor can pick certain chapters from a book, rather requiring a student to buy the whole text.
McClelland said online textbooks will become more popular as book download devices become more widespread. The devices download entire books, much like an iPod does songs.
"We don't see a lot of textbooks being developed for those types of devices yet, but I think we will in the future," she said.
To see more of the Opelika-Auburn News or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.oanow.com.
Copyright (c) 2008, Opelika-Auburn News, Ala.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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