Student
perceptions of technology in the classroom: The good, the bad, and the ugly
Gabie E. Smith, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, Elon University
A recent report sponsored by the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges stated that institutions of higher education make the goal of “life-long” learning an integral part of their mission statements and that instructional technology has an important role in achieving this goal (McCollum, 1999). Yet, in the past faculty have been described as slow to adopt new technologies for use within their classrooms (Rice & Miller, 2001). Recent studies have suggested that faculty members are becoming savvier with their technology use, as demonstrated in the increased number of faculty regularly using email, the Internet, and multimedia instructional tools (Green, 1997). In addition, faculty members have expressed increased interest in having a decision-making role in the acquisition of technology on campus (Rice & Miller, 2001). Given the increased interest and use of technology in higher education, a positive future for instructional technology seems all but assured.
The faculty member, however, is just one member of the educational team present in the classroom; students are important members in this team. The perceptions and attitudes of students must be considered in the use of instructional technology, if we hope to use technology to enhance the educational experience of our students. This article describes the results of a survey assessing college students’ experiences with and perceptions of classroom technology. Specifically, students described the types of technology that they have experienced in college classes. On the survey, students also rated their attitudes regarding current and future levels of technology in the classroom, and described how faculty members make technology use effective and ineffective. These results are summarized in the sections below.
Students reported being exposed to a variety of technologies in their college classrooms. As seen in Table 1, all students reported use of “traditional forms” of technology. More than half the students responded that they had assignments with online requirements (such as the use of a webpage in an assignment); had assignments and syllabi posted online by their instructors; and had regular contact with faculty via email. Approximately one-third of students had Power Point used in a college class. Less common forms of technology included the use of Internet discussion groups and taking online or distance education courses.
Results from this survey demonstrated that, in general, students have good attitudes toward classroom technology use. For example, when asked to describe the “best level” of technology use students’ responses reflected positive perceptions with 31.1% of those surveyed responding that “All classes should have some technology use.” and 62.5% responding “Some classes should be using technology, but only if it is integrated into the class topics.” Only 6.4% of those surveyed responded “Most classes should not be using technology in the classroom.” In addition, when asked about technology use in future classes 18.7 % of students responded they would like to see “somewhat more”. Only 9.4% of those surveyed said they would like to see “somewhat less” and 71.9% responded “about the same level”.
In an open-ended survey question, students described reasons they believed faculty members use technology in the classroom. An analysis of their comments demonstrated that students perceive faculty as using technology for very positive educational goals - to improve the learning environment of students or the teaching ability of the faculty members (59.4% of responses were in these categories). Another 25% of student responses commented that use of technology was related to the need for faculty members to stay current in their discipline.
When asked to describe ways in which faculty members make technology use effective, students commented on linking technology back to course topics (32.3% of student responses). In addition, students suggested that the use of technology is particularly helpful in describing complex or abstract phenomenon, where computer enhanced technology or online resources can demonstrate processes that cannot be seen otherwise (35.4%). A number of students listed specific programs or activities that they found effective (32.3%), such as Blackboard, CourseInfo, or emailing about grading concerns.
The “bad” side of technology use in the classroom became evident when students described ways in which faculty members are ineffective in their use of technology. One surprisingly common response was that faculty members “speed up” or go too fast when using computer-enhanced technology (such as power-point presentations or internet resources). In fact, 36.8 % of the responses to this survey item mentioned faculty speeding up the pace of their teaching. Another group of responses (23.7%) stated that technology use contributes to the process of faculty glossing over complex topics too quickly. For example, one student suggested that faculty forget “we need time to let the information sink in before they go on to the next slide”. Other student responses emphasized that faculty may not relate the use of technology to the particular topic of the course (18.5 %); that faculty may not know how to use the technology itself (10.5 %); or that the technology in use requires too much class time or personal time on the part of students (10.5 %).
Unfortunately, the “ugly” side of technology use in the classroom was seen in several areas of the survey results. For example, several student responses described faculty members as using technology in order to “hide behind it”. In other words, some students perceived technology as a way faculty distance themselves from their students. Related comments suggested that use of technology made the classroom environment or the teaching style of the faculty member more impersonal. Other student responses indicated that the use of technology allows “bad teachers to become worse,” stating that disorganized instructors are made even more so with use of technology. Although there was evidence of the “ugly” side of technology use, these comments were infrequent (6.3% of student responses).
Evidence of the good, the bad, and the ugly were all found in students’ perceptions of technology use in the classroom. However, the overall results of the survey were positive. These results suggest that students are open to the use of technology. Students find technology use particularly helpful when it relates directly to course topic areas or when learning about abstract concepts. Students perceive technology as a worthy teaching and learning tool, although some problem areas were described. Moreover, the problems described by students (class pace, proficiency with technology, teaching style) are issues that faculty can address with practice with the technology or participation in teaching and technology workshops.
Green, K. (1997). Campus Computing. Claremont, CA: Author.
McCollum,
K. (1999). Colleges urged to use technology to promote ‘life-long learning’.
Chronicle of
Higher Education, 46, A39.
Rice, M.L. & Miller, M. T. (2001). Faculty involvement in planning for the use and integration of
instructional
and administrative technologies. Journal of Research on Computing in
Education, 33, 328-336.
Table 1
Percentage of students exposed to different types of technology in their college classes
Technology Used % of students
Traditional forms of technology used by faculty (overheads, films, etc.) 100 %
Assignments with an online resource requirement 75 %
Syllabi posted online by faculty member 69 %
Assignments posted online by faculty member 59 %
Regular email communications with faculty members 52 %
Power point presentations of lectures 34 %
Use of Internet discussion groups 16 %
Complete course taken online through your university 9 %
Completion of distance education course from another institution 3 %