Documentation:Graduate Certificate Program/Technology Session/Activity/Group C

Why should emerging digital practices change how we teach in the discipline?

- the world that we live in contains these technologies and it's important for both students and instructors to communicate and practice in the current reality, not in a past version

- younger generations (current students) are very fluent in technology and respond to teaching delivered in that medium

- younger generations are less aware of the pitfalls inherent in any technology and instructors can provide a guidance and a safe place to practice those skills

- with the technology, the speed of consequences of actions matches the speed of communication

Thoughts on the previous group's thoughts:

We (Laura and Deborah) disagree that students are more fluent in technology...mobile technology yes, but more robust computing no.

Second group thoughts:

Decreased need to memorize facts due to increased technology
Can enable blended & customized learning (e.g. giving students more or less difficult problems based on previous work)
Instant feedback - students answer a question & know right away if it's right or wrong
Can enable a reversal of the classroom, where you do the readings & work at home and come to the classroom to do more in-depth, discussion or problem-solving based activities.
- Provides feedback to the instructor as well - instructor knows what students are and aren't getting before class starts so that the students get what they need and not what they don't.
Can use more sophisticated stats on assignments to see how the group is doing things
Can be more personalized or more accessible (invisibly individualized) - can be used to increase student privacy.

Third group thoughts:

Very discipline dependent - don't agree that digital practices should change how we teach
In some aspects digital practices can make things easier, but is not necessarily needed