Class-conscious: Teachers want tech to enhance — not replace — lectures

Chuck Wight forayed into the tech-savvy world of his University of Utah students several years ago, posting his lecture notes online in hopes of engaging more students in his chemistry discussions.

The plan backfired. One-third of Wight's students stopped coming to class, lost to the enticement of reviewing class notes online in a dorm room instead of trekking to class.

"The students thought they were getting everything because I was putting PowerPoint notes online, but they were missing all the discussion that was happening in the classroom," Wight said. "They were unwittingly fooled into thinking they could get by in the class without ever coming to the classroom."

Wight, a chemistry professor and assistant vice president for academic affairs at the U., found himself facing the technology dilemma of whether electronic teaching tools enhance classroom learning or simply replace it. With tests online, video discussions posted on the Internet and, most recently, class lectures via iPods, professors are grappling to counter the boredom of chalkboard lectures while also encouraging students to come to class, Wight said.

Now, Wight refuses to put his class notes online, revoking the luxury that had become just one more excuse for absenteeism.

"Students are really busy. They're working full time, and if they think they can get a little bit of extra time by not coming to class and still learn the material, that's absolutely what they'll do," he said. "For most of them that stopped coming to class, it was detrimental to their education."

Weber State sociology professor Rob Reynolds decided he wasn't going to give his students that choice. While other professors post lecture videos online, Reynolds tells his students that if they want to learn, they have to be in their seats. Most importantly, he said, students need to be in class to interact with him and other students to get the full effect of the sociology course.

"I'm the come-to-class-to-get-your-notes kind of guy. Sometimes I do PowerPoints, sometimes overheads and sometimes it's just chalk," Reynolds said. "Being there is part of what you're paying for. Having that discussion with the teacher and other students, you're not going to get that online."

But both Wight and Reynolds agree there is a place for technology in the modern university classroom — there just have to be limits.

For Wight, pulling his lectures from the Internet upped his class attendance. But he continues to post quizzes online and requires students to post entries in an online discussion board. Most homework assignments and handouts also are online, Wight said, adding that he has not passed out a paper copy of his syllabus in more than five years.