USNews.com has this story “Podcasts, back channels, and bookless libraries come to campus”
“In theory, each new tool brought into a classroom offers new opportunities to improve a certain part of the education process.”
But not everyone agrees this is a good thing,
“Catering too much to students’ short attention spans bothers Prof. Maurice Bessman, also at Hopkins, who has been teaching for 47 years and insists on sticking with just chalk. “It’s much easier to use visual aids, but it’s counterproductive when teaching because the students look at the pictures instead of listening,” he says. “It becomes a production instead of a lecture.” Dartmouth junior Mark Henle agrees about the use of tech during lectures. “It interferes,” he says. “I like my classes taught with a professor in front of a blackboard.””
And,
“Even the most venerable symbol of higher education–the campus library–is not safe from this extreme technological makeover.
The University of Texas-Austin, for instance, took a radical step this summer by removing all 90,000 books from the undergraduate library to open more room for a Wi-Fi-powered learning space. The building, open 24 hours and packed with computers, has retained five digital librarians, who help students navigate the vast world of electronic media. The library website has a virtual reference desk with a chat function, and librarians are augmenting course Web pages with recommended E-books, journals, and databases.”
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