Scholarly Life of a Committed Technofile

How do we support students in a class when we are asking them to learn new technologies?

What I have done: In the past I have primarily done two thinks. First, I build in “learn the technology” assignments. I find that students do not just “play to learn” the technologies unless they are given an assignment, with points attached to it. So I build in assignments that require them to do some assignment with the technology that is not really important for learning the content. For example, I have them post introductions in their blogs (or in the discussion board) and have them bookmark two of their favorite sites.  Second, I try to make instructions (usually directions with screen captures) available for the students.

What I did this time:

But, this semester, I didn’t since I was having different classes use different “brands” of the same technologies (blogs, bookmarking, etc.). Instead, I told students that they should look at the various site’s “instructions” and “help” pages.

More importantly, I had “open lab” periods the first two weeks of class. And whereas I could have just left that an option, I did realize no one would come. Instead, I gave a little bit of extra credit for students to come. Some students who had already figured out the technology just came, listened to questions and answers. Others who were sincerely struggling used the time to get various technologies set up and learned how to use them. This worked out wonderfully! I got to meet some of my online students that I would not see otherwise. Many students said that this made me seem more accessible and that they were then more willing to contact me for help with other issues.

Finally, hee hee, I have built in “build instructions” assignments to my ENG111: technical writing course. The default scenario is building instructions for one of the technologies we’ve used in class. This means I should be able to use them in future classes. Don’t worry, I told students they could propose other scenarios!

What I need to do in the future:

• Instead of suggesting that students read the various “instructions” or “help” pages, assign them!
• Make the “learn the technology” assignments have a “no later than date” (but not the first week, more like end of the second week).
• Run Captivate every time I log on and play with a new technology. That way I can keep and edit the video if I ever use it with one of my classes. (This is by far the hardest of these options…we’ll see.)