Education Tailor-Made for the Times

The computer in the classroom and computing in the curriculum are the impetus for major changes in higher education during the next decade, The changes needed in the curriculum and in the concepts and practices of instructional delivery, though accepted by most, will be considered radical and unorthodox by some and academic heresy by others. Prescribing a certain amount of contact time between the teacher and the learner as a requirement for the award of a corresponding number of academic credits will be reconsidered and redefined. The need for this artificial barrier to educational advancement no longer exists. The textbook no longer will be viewed as the source of knowledge on certain subjects, and going through the text from cover to cover at a certain pace no longer will be considered the only logical sequence for acquiring the requisite knowledge. Emerging concepts and complex subjects, along with multidimensional processes and systems, will be presented in forms that will achieve the greatest measure of clarity and understanding. Some of the needed forms do not currently exist. The major purpose of computing is going to be to provide insight through visualization. The instructor will need new skills and the traditional subject-matter expert will be inadequate. The teacher will facilitate the students\u27 link to the deluge of words and images of every imaginable kind from literally around the world and will do it at all hours of the day and night. The teacher who thinks he or she is in the business of 50-minute lectures will still be in that business 10 years from now

Tech\u27knowledge\u27y Anxiety

There is a plethora of literature on educational software and hardware. Equally as much has been written about technology and the learning environment. Conspicuous in its absence is discussion of the liveware component of educational technology, the faculty member. Changing educational technologies are threatening many faculty members\u27 sense of security and even, in some cases, their very livelihoods. Those faculty members who are willing to face their concerns \u27head-on\u27 can learn to convert their apprehension into the motivation needed to make changes that will assure them of success in today\u27s high technology, learning environment

Teaching Strategies for Today\u27s College Classroom

Everybody has something to say about teaching. Everyone has an opinion on the subject. This is probably because everyone has been on the receiving end of it. It is a favorite pastime of students to compare and contrast their professors. Much, if not most, of what they have to say is of a personal nature. Conspicuous in its absence is anything of substance about their teaching. Talk at faculty meetings isn\u27t much better. You will hear about lighter teaching loads, smaller class sizes, and fewer committee assignments. Invariably, some intrepid instructor might even suggest the need for better instruction. Talk about a conversation stopper

Teaching Techniques for the Long Haul

There is not a faculty member who has taught the adult learner in the non-traditional environment that has not pondered the question of how it is you keep a class going for four or five hours. I have talked with quite a number who have even reached a conclusion- You cannot! So just make the best of a bad situation. WRONG!!! There are proven strategies and techniques for keeping a class going and doing it week after week, term after term. And, believe it or not, it can be done without an inordinate dependence on there I was at 20,000 feet ... The answer cannot be found solely in traditional strategies and techniques--and that is where most of us are looking. The answer does emphasize multi-media presentations, simulations and gaming, and active participation and interaction by both faculty and the adult learner (the operative word being, active )

Airline Employee Slowdowns and Sickouts as Unlawful Self Help: A Statistical Analysis

Labor relations literature and numerous trade journals are replete with stories of labor slowdowns and sickouts. The consequences of this usually illegal activity are minimal because of the difficulty, if not impossibility, of proving a concerted effort. The authors suggest a means by which slowdown activity as a matter of chance can be ruled out. Further research suggestions are offered

Tech’knowledge’y Anxiety

There is a plethora of literature on educational software and hardware. Equally as much has been written about technology and the learning environment. Conspicuous in its absence is discussion of the liveware component of educational technology, the faculty member. Changing educational technologies are threatening many faculty members\u27 sense of security and even, in some cases, their very livelihoods. Those faculty members who are willing to face their concerns \u27head-on\u27 can learn to convert their apprehension into the motivation needed to make changes that will assure them of success in today\u27s high-technology, learning environment. Change in educational technology has always been, and continues to be, a constant. This being the case, why do today\u27s educational advances appear to be so much worse than the educational technology changes of the past? The answer lies, at least in some part, in the speed, constancy, scope, and complexity of the current changes. When it appears that rapidly advancing educational technologies will lead to obsolescence, it is logical and expected that faculty will be unsettled. The faculty member who is technology poor needs to take advantage of every available developmental opportunity to learn even a little bit more about \u27techknowledgey\u27. And, when he or she has mastered what is needed for the current change, it is time to prepare for the anticipated next wave of change. The only thing faculty have to fear is fear itself-and complacency. Faculty members must actively search for the ways needed to cope with the ever-changing educational environment. To maintain a faculty asset of the highest value, colleges and universities must make developmental opportunities related to technological change readily available to all faculty members