Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/63429
THE LEARNTRAC SOFTWARE, WHICH WORKS ON PALM PILOT HANDHELD COMPUTERS, ALLOWS STUDENTS TO RESPOND TO THEIR PROFESSORS WIRELESSLY IN THE CLASSROOM, WITHOUT SAYING A WORD. feature within WebCT Vista from WebCT, Vancouver, British Colum - bia, allows students to progress through a course based on their mastery of the material: A student who achieves a certain score on a quiz will move to one set of content, while a student who does not achieve that score will move to another for assistance. The efforts toward standardization need? How will they integrate with your other systems? Who will have access to what parts of the system? These are policy decisions that must be made now, because of the num- ber of options that are available now and will be available in the future." "To believe that the sum product bring software providers one step closer to the "holy grail" of e-learn- ing: individualized learning experi- ences in which the software selects materials and paces course speeds according to the needs of each stu- dent. The next incarnation of e-learn- ing software promises to offer a more holistic way of presenting e-learning than was prevalent in the past, explains Karen Gage, WebCT's vice president and director of marketing. "We have to go beyond thinking about e-learning as a way of sup- porting individual online courses controlled and delivered independ- ently by instructors, to thinking about e-learning as an institutional framework for delivering compre- hensive educations to students," says Gage. The technology will make valuable information readily available to professors. Access not only to stu- dents' grades, but also to their level of participation in online discussions and their areas of weakness in the materials will allow professors to bet- ter gauge how well students are suc- ceeding and to identify at-risk stu- dents more easily. School administrators will need to think ahead, advises Gage, to plan policy that will make the succession of e-learning capabilities easier to inte- grate into their systems. "What hard - ware will you need to run these sys- tems? How many machines will you of the Internet and e-learning has already been invented would be naïve," says Pittinsky of Blackboard. "Most of the interesting capabilities of e-learning have yet to be invent- ed, because clients still need to point out what those needs are." Handhelds Come to Campus Many business students use handheld comput ers, but now business schools are starting to get into the act. Last year, the Bryan School of Business and Eco nomics at The University of North Carolina at Greensboro part- nered with eLearning Dynamics of Washington, D.C., to bring the LearnTrac software application to its campus. The software, which works on School. "As educators, we are really trying to teach and engage our stu- dents in the learning process. This is a tool to help us do that job better. With this system, I know instantly how well students are learning the material." Students also appreciate the instant feedback they get when using the Palm devices, says junior Cindy Swaim. "Based on my response, I can instantly see where I am versus others in my class. Even if I don't raise my hand, our professor knows if I'm having trouble." LearnTrac is based on technology Palm Pilot handheld computers, allows students to respond to their professors wirelessly in the classroom, without saying a word. To test the program, Palm Inc. provided 40 handheld computers for use in the first class. Each electronic response is sent directly to a central personal computer, allowing a professor to track each student's progress in real- time. During a quiz, for example, professors know how each student responded to a question, as well as what percentage of the class answered the question correctly. "LearnTrac will replace many of the things we do and help us to do some things differently," says Don Sowers, a professor at the Bryan that has been used previously by cable and television networks to poll view- ers, gathering information to make programming decisions. The technol- ogy also has been used by govern- ment to assess voter opinions. When Chase Weir, co-founder of eLearning Dynamics and a graduate of the Bryan School, offered the Pilot project to the business school, dean James K. Weeks jumped at the chance. "This advancement is a home- grown startup that combines our educational assets with technology," Weeks said. "It builds our strengths and our mission to prepare students to perform successfully as business professionals and enhance their edu- cation through high-quality teaching and technology." LearnTrac is scheduled to be avail- z able to schools in late 2002. s Quinnipiac Set to Build New Tech Center BizEd JULY/AUGUST 2002 57