Executive SummaryDigital technologies offer many opportunities for creating engaging course content. In this study we captured student perceptions and adoption choices related to creating and using digital media as learning tools. Podcasts, video and other media were integrated in a variety of contexts and tasks in two undergraduate information technology (IT) courses in a college of business.During the fall semesters of 2009 and 2010, faculty members teaching a junior-level IT and networking concepts course and a senior-level information security course, produced video-captured lectures, recorded fine-grained conceptual tutorials and podcasts, developed software simulations, and provided media for ad-hoc learning assistance. Students produced video for several class assignments. They also had the option of replacing a typical written semester report with a video project. Student satisfaction with the various forms of digital learning media, perceptions of learning, and intention to adopt for future courses were measured in a series of surveys and compared to self-reported learning styles. Of particular interest was how students would perform and respond to the higher order learning activity of creating digital output. Outcomes were generally positive, and in some cases, students reported that access to digital media positively changed the way they prepared for class and studied for exams. While students reported that developing digital media was preferable to traditional projects and felt they learned more about their topics during the process of developing a video or simulation, they noted the time commitment was high. They are not yet ready to see digital media used exclusively for content delivery and expressed a preference for a mix of media and traditional classroom lectures. The paper concludes with suggestions for introducing digital learning media into an IT curriculum.Keywords: IT education, digital media, podcasting, video production, Bloom's Taxonomy, constructivist learning theory, learning styles. IntroductionTeaching in the IT discipline offers many opportunities to incorporate technology into the classroom. While we are challenging our students to learn about technology, we also want to help them build useful business skills and an interest in life-long learning. A major challenge in IT education is to develop learning experiences that contribute toward skills development while expanding the foundations of known pedagogiMaterial published as part of this publication, either on-line or in print, is copyrighted by the Informing Science Institute. Permission to make digital or paper copy of part or all of these works for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that the copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage AND that copies 1) bear this notice in full and 2) give the full citation on the first page. It is permissible to abstract these works so long as credit is given. To copy in all other cases or to republish or to post on a server or to redistribute ...
Mobile devices are the constant companions of technology users of all ages. Studies show, however, that making calls is a minimal part of our engagement with today's smart phones and that even texting has fallen off, leaving web browsing, gaming, and social media as top uses. A crossdisciplinary group of faculty at our university came together in the mLearning Scholars group to study the potential for using mobile devices for student learning. The group met bi-weekly throughout a semester and shared thoughts, ideas, resources, and examples, while experimenting with mobile learning activities in individual classes. This paper summarizes student perceptions and adoption intent for using mobile devices for learning, and discusses implementation issues for faculty in adding mobile learning to a college course. Outcomes reflect that mobile learning adoption is not a given, and students need help in using and understanding the value in using personal devices for learning activities.
Executive SummaryUniversities face two important challenges in educating the IT workers of tomorrow. First, aside from occasional economic downturns, the number of graduates in programs such as computer science and management information systems has been inadequate to meet worldwide industry demand. Second, teaching methods have been slow to evolve to meet the needs of students and employers in a modern knowledge society. These challenges are particularly difficult in specialized fields of IT that combine rapid technological change with growing industry demand, such as networking/telecommunications and electronic commerce. As part of an economic recovery process, organizations of all sizes typically increase their dependency on technology and electronic business transactions. Recovery means they will again be looking for qualified people to fill positions such as network managers, Web administrators, eCommerce developers, and security specialists. This paper relates one university's experiences in addressing technical complexity by increasing the experiential learning component in each of their major courses, while still delivering a quality business education. A new major in Networking and Telecommunications was developed at Boise State University in the College of Business in 2000 that strives to combine a solid foundation in core business courses, the technical theory important to understanding complex networking environments, and handson experiences that reinforce theory and bring it to life. A cornerstone of the experiential learning approach is an upper division elective course that runs BSU.net, a fully functional Internet Service Provider, continuously operating since 1996. This non-traditional, semi-structured course gives students the opportunity to apply technical skills along with business decision-making related to the application of technology, and the real world requirement of supporting live customers.Additionally, the authors present a summary of the foundation literature on the benefits of experiential learning, highlight the efforts of other universities to include experiential learning in their curriculums, and offer a set of criteria for universities who seek answers to the challenges of offering a combined business and technical curriculum. With this challenging methodology, universities can attract students to technical programs and better prepare them with the education and experience to qualify for and succeed in rapidly changing technical positions.
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