Rationale Educational research has shown that traditional lectures may create a passive environment with little student engagement in the learning process. College instructors today find themselves in the midst of a paradigm shift from an instructor-centered learning environment to a student-centered environment. Thus, science instructors are continually challenged to create an atmosphere which promotes active learning, rather than relying on standard lecture formats to cover large volumes of content. In addition, there is the perennial challenge of addressing a culturally diverse student group with varied learning styles, and varied degrees of willingness to participate in class discussions. Students who do not make personal connections with students/faculty through discussions are less likely to be retained in the major or even at the institution. Mobile technology, in the form of the Tablet PC, offers the opportunity to promote contributions by all students. Students who learn that they can safely make anonymous comments via the Tablet PC are more likely to contribute to class discussions. As they begin to become part of the group process of sharing knowledge and experiences, they may be more likely to make the kinds of academic and personal connections that will help them remain in college.

Implementation (pedagogy) The immediate goals of the project are to create an interactive learning environment with novel teaching modules and strategies using mobile technology in one of our core biology courses. The core course targeted for redesign in the pilot implementation of this initiative is Biology 113, Introduction to Cell and Molecular Biology (lecture and laboratory course). Novel teaching objectives using the Tablet PC mobile technology include but are not limited to: 1) student collaboration on problem solving by sharing information, ideas, and hand-drawn digital models/diagrams electronically in the classroom, 2) student access to online resources for research, 3) ability of instructor to tailor lectures to student comprehension and misconceptions using real time web based research during lecture, and 4) student collection, analysis, and sharing of data in the laboratory.

Implementation (Technology) Faculty members Hutchins, LaShell, Shuler, Lemur, Sluss, and Brooks designed and/or implemented a number of new lecture and laboratory activities that required students to use the HP Tablet PC. These included the following: Discussion of ethical issues in public land management Discussion of ethical issues in medical technology Microscopy instruction in biology laboratory Interactive lectures in soil science Digital annotation of lectures by instructor and students in sustainable agriculture, agricultural issues in society, and cellular and molecular biology Software simulation of physiological processes and experiments in human physiology laboratories

Impact on Teaching The Tablet PC became a valuable teaching tool for us in a number of ways, all of which contributed to creating an environment which increased student engagement. Novel teaching strategies in this project have incorporated: 1) interactive lectures using digital annotation by both instructors and students, 2) web-based research in the classroom and laboratory, and 3) anonymous student contributions to ethical discussions and problem solving. Using the Tablet PC in conjunction with computer projection equipment provided instructors with the ability to digitally annotate lecture materials including the use of digital "white boards" for sharing of ideas and solutions. This capability was very useful in recording lecture notes for future retrieval by both teacher and student. When students used the Tablet PC to take digital notes concurrent with their instructor, outstanding opportunities for highly interactive lectures were created. Personal observations of students confirmed that students were much more engaged in the lecture when they played this kind of active role. One of the biggest challenges of science instructors today is to keep their lecture materials current with rapidly changing technology. The ability to assign students to do real time web based research, either individually or in groups, provided a way to integrate current discoveries into lecture with less burden on the instructor. The initial implementation of the Tablet PC into our classes required significant time for the three investigators involved with the project to become proficient in their use. Significant class and/or laboratory time was also invested in training students in proper use of the computers. Instructors wishing to adopt Tablet PC technology to their classes need to be realistic and generous in allocating time for these necessary processes. However, with repeated use, both instructors and students became more skilled in use of the Tablet PC, which eventually made them a much more effective teaching and learning tool. As the first group on our campus to systematically integrate this type of teaching technology into our classes, we worked very closely with our Instructional Technology staff to discover and solve a variety of problems and in this way we helped to advance the educational technology vision of our campus.

Impact on Student Learning Students who participated in the project were surveyed to determine the effectiveness of this technology in enhancing their learning experience. The survey population included over 150 students encompassing 22 different majors, distributed across 10 different courses. Courses included in the survey population were BIO113 (Introduction to Cell and Molecular Biology), TS2T402 (Agricultural Issues in Society), AG101 (Introduction to Animal Science), AG203T (Introduction to Medicinal Crops), BIO260 (Genetics), AG204 (Forage Production and Management), AG235 (Soils and Soil Fertility), AG180 (Sustainable Agriculture), AG325 (Beef Science), and ANTH243 (Food Systems). Additionally, a quantitative impact on student learning outcomes was assessed in the BIO113 (Introduction to Cell and Molecular Biology) course. Student performance on laboratory assignments such as independent research project design and lab reports was compared for classes before and after implementation of Tablet PC use. Also, student access to online resources for training and research was only available outside the classroom and laboratory setting. Academic Year 2005-2006 Surveys were conducted to assess the background and experience of our study population with regard to educational level, self-rated computer skill, attitude toward the use of technology in teaching, prior experience with wireless networks, and prior experience with the Tablet PC. About 79 percent of our study population was traditional age college students, with similar numbers of men (46 percent) and women (54 percent). Although about 82 percent of the study population had some prior experience with wireless networks, only about 17 percent identified themselves as having significant experience with the Tablet PC. Only one of the three investigators involved in this project had prior experience with the Tablet PC. Before the advent of this project, the Tablet PC was virtually absent in our classrooms and laboratories. After using the Tablet PC, students were asked to rate how the Tablet PC impacted their learning environment and their ability to interact with each other and the instructor via a 5 point Likert Scale. More specifically they were asked to assess the impact of the Tablet PC with regard to seven criteria of the learning environment and five criteria of classroom interaction. Student responses to the ability of the Tablet PC to enhance their learning environment were overwhelmingly positive. For example, 75 percent of students agreed or strongly agreed with the following learning criteria: "Integrating the Tablet PC activities with lecture enhanced my ability to understand key concepts in lecture or laboratory." Similarly, 78 percent of students agreed or strongly agreed with the statement that: " Using the Tablet PC as an individual allowed me to work at my own pace to master important concepts or skills." One of the primary goals of this project was to use the Tablet PC in a way that would faciliate and enhance interaction between students themselves as well as interaction between student and instructor. Exercises designed to foster student interaction using the Tablet PC were integrated into selected classes, i.e. a subset of the larger survey population. For example, Dr. Phil Shuler, Project PI, designed and implemented an exercise in his "Introduction to Medicinal Crops" class which required students to comment on a case study in medical ethics. By it's nature this topic was challenging and uncomfortable for some students to discuss openly. By using the Tablet PC, students could comment with relative anonymity and in writing. After completing these types of exercises using the Tablet PC, 46 students from 4 different courses were asked to rate how the Tablet PC impacted their ability to interact with each other and their instructor via a 5 point Likert Scale. Interesting, 94 percent of students indicated that they were comfortable in contributing to open class discussions about ethical issues in science. This data is also paradoxical given the common experience by faculty that in practice a relatively small percent actually participate in these types of discussions. Student response to the remaining 4 criteria of interaction was very consistent, with a range of 60-63 percent either agreeing or strongly agreeing that the Tablet PC enhanced their ability to interact with each other and with their instructor. For example, 60 percent of students either agreed or strongly agreed that "Using the Tablet PC helped me interact more effectively with my instructor". Similarly, 63 percent of students agreed or strongly agreed that "Participating in electronic discussions via the Tablet PC helped me to articulate my thoughts about ethical issues in science more effectively than I would in oral discussions". Additional quantitative data regarding an impact on student learning outcomes was available for the Introduction to Cell and Molecular Biology course. We were able to compare student performance on assignments such as independent research project design and lab reports before and after use of Tablet PC's for in-class writing and web-based research with instructor feedback. Students performed on average 1 letter grade higher (88.3 vs. 79.6 on assignments than in previous sections of the course without use of Tablet PC's. Beyond the quantitative assessment, all of the project investigators inevitably made a number of personal observations that provide anecdotal evidence of the effectiveness of the Tablet PC in learning. Dr. Phil Shuler, Project PI, has taught one of our targeted courses, Agricultural Issues in Society, for about 10 years on a regular basis. Student oral discussions of complex and controversial ethical issues has often been characterized by hesitation, a dearth of critical thinking, and less than optimal articulation of key issues. In the first semester of HP Tablet PC use, Dr. Shuler developed an exercise where students used the HP Tablet Computers to respond to a controversial issue in land management, i.e. livestock grazing on public lands. After watching a video that illustrated both sides of the issue, students used the tablet PC to compose their own response to the issue during the class session. Using the classroom wireless network provided by the HP grant, students emailed their response to Dr. Shuler during the same class period. In examining the student responses, Dr. Shuler soon determined that he had received some of the most skillfully articulated responses he has received on this kind of exercise in the past ten years. Being able to comment with relative anonymity (in respect to their fellow students) seemed to facilitate more candid and substantive responses from students. Academic Year 2006-2007 As indicated in our grant proposal, we expanded use of the Tablet PC with regard to new classes and additional faculty involvement. In the 2006-2007 academic year, three additional faculty members in the biology and exercise science programs began to utilize the Tablet PC in lecture (Freshman Biology) and laboratory (General Physiology). As predicted in our earlier report, this required a thoughtful process involving a number of technical hurdles. The Fort Lewis College Instructional Technology staff put significant time and effort into helping us expand the range of our wireless network as well as overcome challenging software issues. Some of the more challenging software issues were related to the desire to maintain a high security environment. In the summer of 2006, qualitative student reaction observations were conducted with a small group of middle school age students attending an ecology themed science summer camp at a nearby field station. The key issue and key advantage of the Tablet PC in this highly interactive environment was portability. This younger audience of energetic students valued the abililty to be involved in hands on activities that took them into a natural setting. The Tablet PC enabled instructors and students to enter data in the field setting and this was invaluable for keeping timely and accurate records. With regard to our college student population, additional instructors in the biology and exercise science programs utilized the Tablet PC in physiology laboratories. Once a number of technical hurdles were overcome, the Tablet PC allowed the inclusion of simulation software in the laboratory environment. The Tablet PC / docking station combination allowed the software to be used flexibly during the 3 hour lab session. Given the dynamic nature of student laboratories, having this flexibility was invaluable to the lab instructors in maintaining a high quality learning environment. Students benefited from the ability to run simulated, yet realistic physiological experiments in the laboratory without being overly distracted from other laboratory activities. Our continued experiences with student learning and the Tablet PC have reinforced our earlier conclusions that proper use of the Tablet PC in lecture or laboratory can significantly enhance the learning environment. Using the Tablet PC in class has inspired some of our students to begin bringing their own mobile computers to class. In an ideal future setting students will bring their own Tablet PC technology to the classroom. This will remove the responsibility for Tablet PC distribution and maintenance from the instructor which should provide a more efficient use of time in lecture and laboratory.

Dr. Ginny Hutchins utilizing the HP Tablet PC in Freshman Biology " In my view, effective teaching will utilize educational technology in an appropriate balance with other teaching techniques, especially those that are considered more active, student centered learning approaches." - Dr. Phil Shuler, Project PI

Quick Facts Department: Agriculture and Biology Department, Fort Lewis College, Durango, CO 81301 Courses Impacted: Introduction to Cell and Molecular Biology, Agricultural Issues in Society, Introduction to Animal Science, Introduction to Medicinal Crops, Genetics, Forage Production and Management, Soils and Soil Fertility, Sustainable Agriculture, Beef Science, General Physiology, Agroecology Summer Camp, and Food Systems. # Students Impacted: 550 # Faculty Involved: 6 This project is funded in part by an HP Technology for Teaching grant.

Contact Us Dr. Philip E Shuler, [email protected], 970-247-7192 Dr. Ginny Hutchins, [email protected], 970-247-7327 Ms. Beth LaShell, [email protected], 970-247-7189

References & Publications Bush, D. 2004. The impact of white boarding on learning by secondary school biology students. On-line article. physicsed.buffalostate.edu/pubs/JCST/WB-GenBot/Diandra-Bush-2004-MSEd.pdf (Link verified 5/15/06) Rivero, V. 2006. What's ahead in ed-tech. American School Board Journal. January 2006. Sargenat, D. 1997. Moving Toward a Mobile Teaching and Learning Environment: Using Notebook Computers. University of Minnesota at Crookston. In The Learning Revolution, Oplinger and Rush (eds). Warschauer, M. 1995. Comparing face-to-face and electronic discussion in the second language classroom. CALICO Journal 13:7-26.

This project supported in part by an HP Technology for Teaching grant.