New technology greeted students in one classroom this fall.
The classroom at the University Greenhouse now has three 85-inch flip televisions. All three are touch screens, allowing students and instructors to interact, making lectures dynamic and driven by the discussion.
The three screens can also be used as whiteboards. Instructors can make notes and save them, allowing them to be uploaded to the web for later viewing.
Instructor Josh Kardos was the first instructor to use the new technology in his Indoor Plants class. “It is forcing me to become more comfortable with new technology and will help to keep my teaching methods relevant to the students,” Kardos said.
The classroom is also equipped with a soft microphone, which can be passed around the room, allowing everyone to hear, as students take part in the discussion.
“SPES is working to upgrade its teaching facilities. This classroom was upgraded to bring lectures to life,” Michael Evans, director of the School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, said. “Now, students and instructors can interact with presentations to enhance the learning and teaching experience.”
Students taking part remotely will have a first-row seat during presentations. The classroom is equipped with a camera that will track the instructor and can rotate nearly 360-degrees to show everyone in the room.
Kardos believes this will benefit students by providing a more engaging and interactive environment, saying, “The technology helps to connect students to the learning experience much better than the old projector and screen.”