5 Higher Education Technology Trends for 2010 January 4, 2010
Since this is an online education blog, and it is a new year (welcome to the future), and I saw the high-tech Avatar this weekend, I was particularly struck by Bridget McCrea’s Campus Technology article listing 5 higher education technology trends for 2010. Check out what some higher education technology experts had to say:
1. Interactive Classrooms
From web-based applications that allow students to interact with professors via handheld devices during class time, to streaming video that professors can use in lectures, classrooms will use such technology to create a more interactive educational environment.
2. Faster Access to Information
In some classrooms this year, information will literally be at students’ fingertips with the use of electronic book readers, smart phones and search engines. Some schools are even providing tablet PCs to the incoming freshman classes in hopes of giving students an extra boost towards succeeding in their studies.
3. Technology Mash-Ups
Why use an application in only one way when you can combine it with other applications to make it even more useful, “customized and specific”? According to the experts, this trend will become more common in education in the coming year.
4. Touch-Enabled Whiteboards
This is the coolest trend as far as I’m concerned. Touch-enabled whiteboards “allow for unprecedented participation and collaboration among students.” With this technology, students are freed from the isolation of their personal computers and instead use technology in a more social and engaging way.
5. 4:1 Computing
There’s no point in using one device for one single task when you can use one device for multiple tasks. 2010 will see more instances of such technology, referred to as 4:1 computing, where students use “multiple technologies and switch gears quickly between them” in order to enhance their learning experience.
Reading this article made me want to go back to school just to experience what it could be like to learn with the assistance of technology. I especially want to try the touch-enabled whiteboards! Which technology trend most interests you? Have you seen any of these trends already in your higher education pursuits?
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When I was in graduate school in 2007 we were just starting to see whiteboards installed on campus. It was really exciting to interact with the professors and other students using the technology, rather than just sitting in a lecture. The whiteboards allowed us to get up out of our seats and play with the technology and engage each other.
Hey, that’s great, AndreaGenevieve — could you give us an example of how an interactive whiteboard is actually used? What kind of exercise or lesson would your professors have on the whiteboards that you students would engage with? Could you walk us through a class? Thanks! The Editor