Teaching with Technology Part I: General Things

Teaching with Technology is an exciting part of our field. It is a tool for learning to be used to enhance the productivity of both professor and student.

This is the first of several posts on the topic where I will discuss management technologies (like Blackboard –Bb or Web CT), authoring technology, and presentation technologies.

When I began teaching, it was the chalkboard (with chalk) and live demonstrations. Things have evolved to using excellent video libraries of chemical reactions, document cameras, and fewer live demonstrations, mainly due to safety concerns.

My experience is with Blackbaord (Bb) where we use it for distributing handouts, grade management, and preparatory quizzes. The preparatory quizzes (Prep Quizzes) are a method for students to prepare for class. Before each class they are to complete a short quiz (5-8 questions) on-line covering material for the upcoming class. The logic is that a prepared student will be receptive to understand more deeply during the class.

After much discussion, for our combined sections, we decided that a student should be able to complete the Prep Quiz at the 75% level for maximum credit. The quiz would be from reading material in the text. We use the scores as a bonus for some course, but the are required for other courses. In our labs, the preparatory quiz is required for all students and it counts in its entirety.

We now have libraries of appropriate questions written for five courses. In a coordinated course, the professors share the libraries and write a few questions on their own. We usually post the Prep Quizzes a week at a time. They are due two hours before the class begins. The professor can then access the statistics for the prep quiz. It is extremely useful to know the percentage of students who can (or cannot) handle a concept. Then during the class, the professor can emphasize the troublesome point. Having used this system for over five years, I believe it is a good addition to our program and helps us achieve our goal. Writing the questions initially was very time-consuming but now that we have a decent data base, writing just a few new questions for each year is manageable. I endorse the concept. Yes, there are some details that could be improved! Write me if you want to know more.

Bb has some quirks that require adjustment overall. However, it is the system we have and will continue to use.

The students particularly like having their materials available easily and, accessing their grades on-line. I'll address further aspects of this in future posts.