The answer, according to Tony Bates, director of distance education at UBC, depends on us. Speaking this June at the first annual conference of Britain's new Institute for Learning and Teaching, Professor Bates argued that the introduction of technology into the lecture hall could significantly reduce the number of lectures and improve student learning.
This idea is not in itself a revelation – ever since the publication of Barr and Tagg's influential article (2), promoters of the new learning technologies have been heralding the advent of a paradigm–shift in university education "from teaching to learning". The excitement over this article puzzled me at the time, for I thought the shift had already been in progress for many years. What helped me appreciate the euphoria better was the realisation that in the context of new technologies, teaching is often equated with lecturing.
According to Tony Bates' research (2), students taught by CD–Rom gained better results than those attending face–to–face lectures...students learning from a CD–Rom had 30 percent better recall after three months compared with a control group attending conventional lectures. "Bates suggests two probable reasons for this, "First the students can refer back to their work more easily, and second, classroom lectures are transient and it is easy to miss bits."
Research on the lecture method shows that it is no less effective than other teaching methods. Indeed, several studies have recommended its use for specific purposes such as explaining ideas, conveying information, generating interest in a subject, or demonstrating how a discipline addresses a question. But there are problems with the lecture method too, and some of them can be ameliorated by technology as Bates' research demonstrates.
York faculty currently use a variety of strategies to improve student's memory recall and retention of information conveyed in lectures. Several have adopted high tech solutions, such as putting lecture notes, frequently asked questions, and even tape–recorded lectures on the Web. Others have developed equally effective but low tech solutions such as interspersing lectures with frequent opportunities for students to interact and engage with course material (see side bar for ideas).
The challenge, according to Bates, is to know when to use face–to–face lecturing and when to introduce technology to free up time in class for problem–solving and critical analysis. "We are not saying that lectures have no value. But lecturers will have to work differently, very differently, if we are to reap the benefits of educational technology." And our experience at the CST is that York instructors, in increasing numbers, are interested in exploring the potential of technology to improve student learning in their classes.
Literally hundreds of studies report "no significant difference" in objective outcomes between courses taught using instructional technology and those employing classroom instructors. This observation prompted Carol Frances and her colleagues (3) to conduct comparative research which included measures of student satisfaction. In their study, two similar groups of students were taught the same (health sciences) courses, one group face–to–face in classrooms and the other on a remote campus via videoconferencing technology. Both groups had opportunities to ask questions and interact with the faculty in real time.
While the study replicated findings of "no significant difference" on objective outcomes such as grades and test scores, there were very large differences between the two campuses in subjective measures of students' satisfaction. "Students using IT were apparently learning as much but enjoying it less. They clearly felt that the quality of the educational experience was much inferior when taught via technology." For distance education designers, this study raises the question of how to incorporate the human element so that students can have as positive an experience as those they have in the conventional classroom.
During the summer, a new Office for Technology Enhanced Learning (see www.yorku.ca/president/whatsnew/), co–directed by Ron Owston and Suzanne MacDonald, was established. In the coming months, the Centre for the Support of Teaching will be working very closely with the office to bring coherence to the support available for faculty and teaching assistants who wish to incorporate new technologies into their teaching.
Knowing when to use technology, putting student learning before teaching concerns, and choosing approaches that promote active learning are themes taken up by Bob Godwin–Jones in his article, Ten Ways to Enhance Teaching through Technology, on page 5 of this issue of Core. In another article, At the Click of the Mouse..., CST Librarian Associate Jody Warner gives useful advice on how to help students use the Web effectively as a research tool. Deborah Barndt's workshop series, page 4, Visualizing York, introduces a wide array of successful use of images in classroom teaching. Linda Briskin's article on page 6, The Challenge of Classroom Silence, invites us to think seriously about issues of silence and power in attempting to create an inclusive classroom environment.
One of the best ways to develop one's expertise and gain support for innovation is to talk to colleagues with similar interests. The CST facilitates this by establishing and supporting meetings of teaching circles – small groups of instructors who meet regularly to discuss a specific issue. For example, we currently support two circles, one on Problem–Based Learning and the other on Designing Web Pages. By request, this year we are establishing a teaching circle for instructors wishing to explore on–line teaching and another for those who wish to augment face–to–face teaching with on–line discussion.
For those who are interested in engaging in scholarship on teaching and learning, there is the York Assessment Forum (see page 8). The Forum meets again soon and welcomes new members. In particular, this year we initiate two projects, one of which will focus on the use of technology in teaching.
We welcome your ideas and involvement in all of our activities as well as suggestions for new ones. Please contact us at the Centre, 111 Central Square, (416) 736–5754, email cst@yorku.ca, and website: www.yorku.ca/admin/cst.
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