How Universities use Information Technology in the teaching and learning process

By Luís Miguel Costa, Helena Lagoa and Pedro Remoaldo

Faculdade de Engenharia da Universidade do Porto
May 1998

Learning in the information society

New technologies are transforming the way businesses operate and people work and are also reshaping the needs and opportunities in education. The Information Society is boosting demand for new knowledge and skills – the amount of information that needs to be learned is growing rapidly and becomes obsolete just as quickly (Hämäläinen, 1996).

The system of higher education remained stable for over 2500 years, consisting primarily of three elements: the creation of knowledge and evaluation of its validity; the preservation of information; and the transmission of this information to others (Noam 1996).

But throughout the years the gap between basic teaching and specialized research has been widening. Today's production and distribution of information are undermining the traditional flow of information and with it the university structure, making it ready to collapse once alternatives to its function become possible (Noam 1996).

Many jobs require continuing education but employers are finding it costly to support extensive and integrated training programs for their staff. Universities appear as providers of training to companies, offering the flexibility and cost-effectiveness that many employers are seeking.

Governments have also a vested interest on the use of Information Technology in Higher Education. Some examples of this interest include the Dearing Report in the UK, the Green Book for the Information Society in Portugal and the Livre blanc sur l'éducation et la formation - Enseigner et apprendre vers la societé cognitive and the Bangeman Report in the European Union.
 

Integrating technology into the classroom

Bringing and integrating technology onto the campus and into the curriculum has been a concern with universities. The technology-based enhancements to instruction have allowed professors to prepare, come up with material, and present their classes better and faster.

The first education tools used included computers and software (word processing, presentation software, spreadsheets and database management systems). Local area networks, multimedia-based systems, e-mail and the Internet were the next step, allowing interactivity and the access to an enormous amount of information.

Then the ownership of a personal computer became a standard procedure in several universities (Virginia Tech). Others started to force first year students to have notebook computers if they wanted to enroll in any course (Universidade Fernando Pessoa and University of Minnesota).

University officials believe that the personal computer is a necessary tool for developing technological literacy and for student research and class work. Mandatory Information Technology courses familiarize students with computers allowing them to do their assignments using word processing, presentations and research from the Web, and to communicate with professors and classmates through e-mail, both on and off campus.

But in spite of their large investments in hardware and software new technologies are usually simply added to other topics in universities, not really integrated into teaching and learning. Teachers view the courses as teaching and learning with technology, whereas students view them as learning about technology. Some teachers also think that the low-tech old-fashioned blackboard is still the best way to present their classes (Harris, 1998).
 

Distance Education

Distance education is teaching where the teacher and student are remote in terms of space and/or time. Technical aids are used to disseminate study materials and to provide genuine two-way communication, as a means of supporting the learning process.

For over 100 years, many universities have offered classes by mail or by watching televised lectures rather than requiring students to come to campus. Nipper (as cited by Evans & Nation, 1993), categorized the evolution of distance education into three generations:

People are turning to distance education when they have complex work and business lives, limited mobility, family obligations or because of economic reasons.

About 55% of America's colleges and universities have courses available off-site. Almost all of these schools can be found in Peterson's Distance Learning Guide. About 1 million students are plugged into virtual college classrooms, while about 13 million sit in brick-and-mortar buildings (Vasarhelyi, 1997).

Successful examples include the University of Phoenix which opened its doors to its first 12 on-line students in 1989, and now boasts 2,500 students and 8 degree programs.

The Open University is educating one-fourth of all MBA students in the UK exclusively via distance education, and is one of just a few business schools rated excellent by the Higher Education Funding Council (Gillespie, 1997).

One of the most interesting current experiments by a commercial firm is Ziff-Davis University which offers online computing classes and seminars taught on private, moderated message boards for $4.95 a month.

Tools used for distance learning include the Web for the storage and retrieval of most types of educational materials; electronic mail for students to communicate with teachers; newsgroups or mailing lists, which allow discussions between students; and chat rooms which create a virtual classroom environment. In the future, on-line video and whiteboarding through the Internet will add more realism to the virtual classroom.

A standard for online education is smaller class size: 15 to 25 students. Another standard is time-related flexibility. Online courses are normally asynchronous, and with no set class time. Students are free to go online for their course work whenever their schedules allow. They do, however, have to go online regularly to keep up with the course and fulfil schedule assignments (Velsmid, 1997).

The few studies into the effectiveness of telematics-based learning experiences indicate that they are more effective than traditional learning experiences (Jennings, 1997).

Education industry analysts wonder how much credibility an on-line degree really has in the market place: face-to-face contact with the faculty still is considered to be a mark of quality (Levine, 1997). Some distance education courses are only accredited by the institution offering the course but many distance programs in the USA are accredited by the Distance Education and Training Council who has a vested interest in rigorous evaluation of distance programs.
 

Conclusion

Technological innovations of the 20th century have not revolutionised educational institutions. Now the paradigm shift from a paper-based structure to an electronic one is having profound implications for universities. The technological transformation presents both risks of obsolescence and opportunities to the universities.

In the next decade, only the universities who treat students more like consumers and adapt to the new just-in-time, on-demand approach to deliver education and training, will survive.

But the ultimate providers of an electronic curriculum may not be universities but rather commercial firms. Textbook publishers will establish sophisticated electronic courses taught by the most effective and prestigious lecturers.

References

EVANS, T.; NATION, D. – Educational technologies. Reforming open and distance learning. In Reforming open and distance education: Critical reflections from the practice. London: Kogan Page, 1993 196-214.

GILLESPIE, Thom – Web-ed for the information professional. Database. ISSN 0162-4105. 20:2 (1997) 51-56.

HÄMÄLÄINEN, Matti; WHINSTON, Andrew B; VISHIK, Svetlana – Electronic markets for learning : Education brokerages on the Internet. Communications of the ACM. ISSN 0001-0782. 39:6 (1996) 51-53+.

HARRIS, David G – Technology in the classroom? One professor's viewpoint. Tax Adviser. , ISSN 0039-9957. 29:2 (1998) 125-126.

JENNINGS, Charles - So far, yet so near. People Management. ISSN 1358-6297. 3:18 (1997) 42-45.

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NOAM, Eli M. – Electronics and the dim future of the university. American Society for Information Science Bulletin. ISSN 0095-4403. 22:5 (1996) 6-9.

VASARHELYI, Miklos A; GRAHAM, Lynford - Cybersmart: Education and the Internet. Management Accounting. ISSN: 0025-1690. (1997) 32-36.

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