teach naked?

StudentsaredecidedlyunderwhelmedbytheirProfs’techskills.

do we have to

anepaperbysidneyevematrix

image:anuntrainedeye

Whenstudentswerepolledinanationalsurveylastfall,

almost half said their profs do not understand how to use technology.

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thesecomputer‐savvy(orattheveryleast,connectedandtechno‐curious)kidsinhighereducationalclassroomstodayuse,andexpecttheirprofstousedigitaltechnologytocommunicateandteach.

Andforthemostpart,theyareunderwhelmedwithboththelowlevelsofedtechuptakeanddigitalliteracyoftheirprofs.

Call them the gamer generation, millennials, digital natives, Gen Y

image:SimonWhitaker

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withprofessorsclaimingthat,beyondfacebookandtexting,studentsarenotdigitalwizardswithmadskillz,farfromitinfact,despitemanyclaimstothecontrary.

The feeling goes both ways of course

Professorsalsodisagreedwithstudentperceptionsaboutfacultytechnicalfluency.

Inthesamesurvey,two‐thirdsofprofsself‐reportedthattheyaresatisfiedwiththeirlevelofpersonaldigitaltechknowledge.

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ThesediscrepanciespointtowhatHenryJenkinsandDanahBoydcallthedigitaltechnologyparticipation gap thatemergesbetweengenerations.It’sanotherapproachtounderstandingthedigitaldividesthatseparatecohorts,classes,anddemographics.

Basically,studentsandteachershavepotentiallydifferentskillsets,butmoreimportantly,itseemsapparentthat

tocommunicate,learn,create,connect,andparticipateinculture.

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we prefer different digital technologies

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image:AndrewFeinberg

What kinds of technoteaching do students want? WeknowwhattheydoNOTwant:morebadpowerpoint.Nosurprise.Oftenrepeated,death‐by‐powerpointisbynowpartofourculturalidiom.

Still,presentationsreadaloudword‐for‐worddirectlyfromtext‐heavy,clip‐artaccentedslidedecksarebusiness‐as‐usualinclassroomsandatconferences.

AsreportedinTheChronicleofHigherEducation,astudypublishedintheAprilissueofBritishEducationalResearchJournalfound59%ofstudentssurveyedsaid:

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bad powerpoint interferes with their ability to focus, retain, and learn.3

Inresponse,SouthernMethodistUniversityDeanJoséA.Bowensuggestedprohibiting powerpointfromthelecturehall,shiftingtomoreinteractivediscussionsduringface‐to‐facemeetings,anduseofpodcastsforlecturedelivery.

Bowen called it teaching naked.4

image:Bonnaf

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It'sunknownhowmanyprofessorsfollowedBowen'sadvice,swappingpowerpointlecturesforon‐demandpodcasts,butmanyclassesarecoursecasting.

andnotjustbecauseitmeanstheydon’thavetogotoclass.

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Students like Podcasts

Forvisuallearners,ESLstudents,special‐needs,busyschedules,orexamcramming,acoursethatcomespackagedwithaudio‐videodigitalassetscanbeabonus.

Thisisespeciallysoifthepodcastsaretrulyvalue‐addedfeatures,notreplacingtheprof,P2Pdiscussions,lectureorslidepresentation.

image:luclegay

EarlyadoptersatYorkUniversity,CarletonandMountAllisonreportedthatstudent engagement was up considerablywhentheyputtheirlecturesonlineinaudioorvideoformat.

Insteadofactingasadeterrenttoattendingclass,podcastshaveleadto more student involvement.“Myaveragestudentwatches120percentofthelectures,”saysoneprofessoratCarleton.“Studentsdoacombinationofcomingtolectures,watchingthemonTVandwatchingthemontheiriPods.”

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image:ThomasHawk

This is learning on-demand.

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students also like social media technologies.StudentsknowhowtouseFacebookandaregenerallyinterestedinothersocialmediatools.Thosepre‐existingdigitalskillscanbeleveragedforformallearningoutcomes.

Integratingsocialmediabasedassignmentsintocourseworkpushesthedigitalliteracyenvelope.Intheprocessstudentsarebetterpreparedfortheirjobsearchandperhapsevenfuturecareers.

Usingsocialmediatoolsalsohelpstoconnecttheclassroomtotheworldoff‐campus—makingcoursesappearmoresocially relevant.image:bittermelon

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Nothingilluminatesthegenerationalparticipation gapbetweenmanyfacultyandtheirstudentsfasterthansocialmediacommunicationtechnologies.Thesetoolsarepartofthereal‐timeweb.

Thevelocityofaninstant‐messaging,status‐updating,twitter‐trending,andnowlocation‐awareandmobiledigitalcultureisshiftingcommunicationsandconnectivityhabitsoncampus.

Theconnectedcohortisaccustomedtohavingaccesstoinstantaneousinformation—includingideally,always-on profs.Increasinglystudentsexpecttheirprofessorstorespondtotheirquestionsimmediately.

Facultycontemplatingadoptionofsocialmediatechnologiesshouldsetclearexpectationsaboutonlineavailability.Designasetofsocialmediaguidelines.Distribute,share,androtateresponsibilityforsocmediamoderationamongstudentstoencourageownership,engagement,&authenticity.

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However

image:PinkSherbertPhotography

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Makeyourcoursemoreon‐demand,social,andmobilewiththeseonlinetools.

1. Distribute video podcasts.Createvideovodcastsoraudio‐onlypodcastsoflectures,extramaterial,orofFAQ(answerthepredictablequestionsonce,notrepeatedly)andpostonYouTube,iTunesU,andVimeo.Getsomevideocontentintoyourcoursebyassigningstudentstoproduceashortaudio/videointerviewforcoursecredit—thensharethemonline.

2. Create a Facebook page or group for the course.Facebookismobile‐readyandmanystudentsaccessitfrequentlyeverydayontheirsmartphones.Invitestudentstojoin/fanthecourseonFacebookandusethatspacetosharerelevantnewsworthylinksandvideosfromYouTube.Assigncoursecreditforthiscontentcuration(andhaveadiscussionaboutthefutureofsocialnews‐sharingculture).

3. Post presentations on Slideshare.Postlectureslides,studentpresentations,ordesignstandaloneslidedeckstoteachmaterialnotcoveredduringface‐to‐facemeetings.Createacourseaccountandfavoriteotherdesigners’slideshows,thenaskstudentstoreviewthosepresosinclassorafterclass.Thiskindofassignmentusingslideshare.netexposesstudentstoavarietyofprofessionalandamateurinformationdesigners—andopensupopportunitiestodiscussbestpracticesinconstructingpresentationslides.ConsiderputtingFAQintoadeck.

In Review12..

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1.http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/11/05/survey2.http://www.studentaffairs.com/ejournal/Summer_2009/DigitalDivide.html3.http://chronicle.com/article/Teach‐Naked‐Effort‐Strips/47398/4.http://www.openeducation.net/2009/07/31/dean‐encourages‐professors‐to‐teach‐naked/5.http://www.universityaffairs.ca/how‐technology‐is‐transforming‐the‐lecture.aspx6.http://campustechnology.com/articles/2005/12/students‐take‐to‐podcasts.aspx?sc_lang=en7.http://mashable.com/2009/06/19/teaching‐social‐media/8.http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/10/weekinreview/10stone.html?ref=todayspaper&pagewanted=all

Works Cited

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image:.krish.Tipirneni

Attribution‐Noncommercial‐ShareAlike3.0License.

about the authorSidneyeveMatrix,PhD.Queen'sNationalScholarofFilm&MediaatQueen'sUniversityinCanada.Professorofdigitalculture,masscommunication&marketing,popculture,television,&filmcourses.Website:sidneyevematrix.net