After a Market Lull, AV Vendors Finally Have Dazzling Tools and Technologies for ‘Smart’ Educators.

By Will Craig

Editor's Note: This article appears in the June issue of Campus Technology.

It’s been a few years since I’ve seen something in the “smart classroom” domain at InfoComm, NSCA, or NAB that has been truly exciting. Sure, the big projectors get brighter, control systems go cheaper, small projectors get even smaller, and the plasma and LCD monitors grow in size a little bit each year, but I’ve missed the Eureka! moment of walking by a booth and seeing something that will set the industry on its ear. That time is at hand again. I’m getting excited about several areas of technology, not because of PR agency spin or inflated manufacturer promises, but because of how these technologies will begin to affect the features, capabilities, and cost structures of tomorrow’s technology-enabled classrooms.

With projectors, the use of LED as a light source for projection has tremendous potential for future application in smart classrooms. Mitsubishi’s first-generation product using LED, the Pocket Projector (www.mitsubishi-presentations.com), is not bright enough for classroom use, but consider the other relevant specifications: 20,000 lamp life hours , and energy-efficient enough to run on batteries. Less energy consumption means less heat; and less heat means less fan noise, which can be a major contributor to the floor noise in a smart classroom. According to Frank Ansures, product manager for Mitsubishi Digital Electronics America, the initial focus of the LED projectors will be at the personal presentation end of the market, but if the product is successful, subsequent product development will focus on increasing brightness toward the levels now afforded by conventional lamp-lit LCD/DLP projectors.

Canadian 'Philosopher of Cyberspace' Sees New Internet Civilization with 'collective knowledge' and 'noosphere.'

Professor Pierre Lévy of the University of Ottawa, Canada, is called “the philosopher of cyberspace.” He "sees the changes in life resulting from the Internet as the birth of a new civilization. He explains it with the concepts of 'collective knowledge' and 'noosphere.'" (BBC World) Read more

Looking Ahead, Technology Shapes Campus Without Replacing It

"Imagine a 3D molecular model projected in front of you in a chemistry class. Imagine combing through the Rockefeller Library's collection while sunning on the College Green. Imagine attending section at 2 a.m. in your pajamas. It could all be part of the educational experience at Brown University in 2030." (The Brown Daily Herald)
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The Rise of Community Course Software

"Communty source" is a new name for 'open source' - and in neither case is it free software. A Business Officer article examines the rise to mainstream of 'community course' projects for course management software, enterprise business software, and more. Why is this important for administrators to understand? (NACUBO) Read more

Exploring Electronic Portfolios: An IHE NCATE Assessment Journey

By Jerome Ammer, Ph.D.
University of San Diego
Cheryl Getz, Ed.D.
University of San Diego
Lea Hubbard, Ph.D.
University of San Diego

With our first NCATE visitation two years away, the University of San Diego was in search of a viable mechanism for formal and summative assessment. Three key designs to implementation solutions seemed to create a roadblock. The three-dimensional lynchpin solution includes a grounded pedagogical frame, an integrated school wide assessment model, and a format for gathering and evaluating candidate performance. Bringing faculty from five different programs together to contemplate a major shift in instructional design and a fear of loss of academic freedom seemed insurmountable.

Hiring a statistician to lead the design of a comprehensive assessment system was our first moment of genius. The Assessment System provided the foundation for linking differing accreditation/licensure programs with flexibility for addressing a widely different set of state and national professional standards.

Pulling all these factors into a system that would be pliable by faculty, students, staff, administrators and the assessment accountability team seemed insurmountable. The Department of Learning and Teaching adapted a rubric based system portfolio system over a decade ago. However, the paper portfolio rubric evaluation process did not provide the types of measurable formative and summative accountability performance outcome required by recent revisions to the National Consortium of Teachers of Education Accreditation (NCATE) procedures. Converting to a standards grounded electronic portfolio evaluation system required long hours of discussion, explanation and convincing.

Looking at New Ergonomic Keyboards

D'es anyone really have the time for an additional learning curve? We suppose that if you suffer from repetitive stress injury, you might. A decade ago, the old standard typewriter keyboard, which was state of the art in the 90s -- the 1890s -- and is still an integral part of almost every personal computer from desktops to laptops, was seen as the culprit in repetitive motion wrist injuries. Keyboard inventors haven’t given up on finding a cure.

From the Reader Response Forum

Exchange ideas on the latest collaboration technologies. Moderated by Kevin Wood, Purdue University.