Dive Brief:
- Campus Technology's recent survey of more than 524 faculty members at public and private institutions reveals that more than 50% of participants support institutions providing personal devices to students for learning, but 67% believe that students should furnish their own technology.
- The inaugural "Teaching With Tech" survey also suggests that a majority of faculty believe most students have Internet access at home, and that 56% of students are required to bring some form of technology for learning usage.
- This model closely follows the popular secondary 'Bring Your Own Device' initiative, which encourages students to occasionally bring a device or for schools to furnish devices to expand learning capacity.
Dive Insight:
Personal technology in learning has been a focus for several years, and it was at the center of a recent forum held by the U.S. Department of Education in Washington, DC, about new opportunities for higher education to redefine the learning process through technology and innovation. Many surveys indicate that faculty members endorse technology in the classroom, but bearing the cost is something that most institutions will be unwilling to do without outside investment or funding.
Some schools work directly with tech vendors to provide free or lower cost learning resources to meet the need, like Jackson State University's participation in the "Distinguished Apple School" program. Other institutions build in technology fees to upgrade campus resources to meet the need, but with the emergence of distance learning courses and credentialing modules, technology is soon to become an even bigger part of the collegiate learning experience.