X-Sender: gilbert@tltgroup.org (Unverified)

Mime-Version: 1.0
Date: Thu, 16 Apr 1998 20:18:20 -0400
To: The TLT Group <aahesgit@list.cren.net>
From: "Steven W. Gilbert" <gilbert@tltgroup.org>
Subject: AAHESGIT90: Balancing Learner-Centered vs. Teacher-Centered
X-MIME-Autoconverted: from quoted-printable to 8bit by list.cren.net id HAA14432
Reply-To: aahesgit@list.cren.net

Sender: owner-aahesgit@list.cren.net X-MIME-Autoconverted: from 8bit to quoted-printable by list.cren.net id HAA14560

(4/16/98 AAHESGIT #90. Approx. 100 lines from Christopher Levan of St. Stephen's College via Michael Szabo of TIES, U. of Alberta <mike.szabo@ualberta.ca>.

I rarely post items that were first published elsewhere, but this one appears to be sufficiently interesting and the attribution/citation/permission seems clear. Levan asks "...to what extent has the model of higher learning evolved to suit the desires and ambitions of instructors rather than the needs and aspirations of our students?" He then discusses the U. of Phoenix approach and concludes: "Perhaps to refuse to offer our educational menu in a palatable manner is not only testimony to our intellectual snobbery, it is also evidence of an immoral spirit." Under growing political pressure, many academic leaders are claiming that their institutions must be re-structured to become student-centered. I worry that this may reflect another unreasonable "pendulum swing" response to an existing imbalance. Wouldn't it be better to strive for a balance between being overly faculty-centered and being overly student centered? Most faculty members began their academic careers as students. Like students, they still have varying needs and capabilities. Ideally, colleges and universities will use information technology to provide options that enable teachers and learners to develop working relationships that take advantage of those differences -- and provide conditions in which all can contribute to the teaching/learning efforts in an atmosphere of active inquiry and mutual respect.) Steve Gilbert =============================================== Finally flying home from Jacksonville -- after a mere 6 hour delay in flight departure time. =============================================== I received permission from the author to distribute his piece, as long as it is given credit, and the newspaper, the Folio, should be credited with copyright ownership. I can't help but be impressed with this piece from the Folio ©, 5 December 1997. Coincidentally (?) that very day, our chief academics were winding up a retreat to establish a vision for the university and information and instructional technology. In case you missed it.. Opinion Guest Columns McUniversity: Our Worst Nightmare By Dr. Christopher Levan, principal at St. Stephen's College Don't sugar-coat your education"' That was Mrs. Jennings' axiom when it came to religious instruction in church. We were sitting around the minister's house trying to decide how to approach the teaching of young children. Having suggested we might create an atmosphere of trust by structuring our lesson plan according to their needs, my colleague fired back that she was not about to change just to suit little kids." They would have to get used to her style, buckle down and learn her way. "It had worked for twenty three years, and there was no reason to change now." At the time, I admired her spunk and determination but shook my head over the narrowness of her pedagogical vision. I suppose Mrs. Jennings' methodological paranoia still rankles my soul. I sense a similar, though much more sophisticated inertia in our universities. We have designed a system of education that places heavy demands on students. They must live within commuting distance of our classrooms. They are obliged to adjust their work schedules and life styles to suit our timetables They are required to fit their learning style to a monochrome lecture delivery method. And they must squeeze their response to our teaching into an all too limiting and often irrelevant format-the academic essay or the true and false mid-term exam. No one can deny the University of Alberta is an exceptionally fine university, but like other universities, to what extent has the model of higher learning evolved to suit the desires and ambitions of instructors rather than the needs and aspirations of our students? It was with this disturbing thought rattling in my brain that I became aware of the University of Phoenix-the first "for- profit" university in the United States. With a current enrollment of 40,000 students and 47 campuses, the U of P has expanded to meet student demand in two ways. First, it wants to have a classroom within twenty minutes of its students, choosing to locate near the off-ramps of major highways and urban arteries. Education at your doorstep. Second, it adapts its instruction to meet the career demands of its clientele. Classes are often taught by well-educated practitioners rather than academics. Consequently, course content tends to be more integrated with life experience. (Not all good education happens within the confines of a 20 page paper!) All education is applied technology. Class times and durations are tailor-made to the constraints of the constituency that requires the specific course ... All right, I can hear the objections clearly. This university has reduced higher learning to the accumulation of techniques. The height of instrumentalist thinking, it leaves no room for the wisdom that arises from speculative and detached exploration of questions that run well past life's immediate demands. Moreover, we object that a drive-through style of education misses the essential dimension of research. Any university worth its subsidies must continue to expand the horizons of knowledge. Medical discoveries and sociological insights do not drop from the sky like a fast food commodity. They only happen through the concentrated and consistent care of dedicated professors. Models such as the U of P send shivers down the spine of academic administrators everywhere. Our worst nightmare. If we adopted that model, we would be turning our four-star restaurants into a McDonald's. As an administrator, I have sympathy for those who are leery of such user-friendly education. But Mrs. Jennings' admonition still haunts me. What is the matter with making our education more suitable and accessible to our students? Is it possible that we have become so captive to assumptions of "academic excellence" that we have lost sight of the primary purpose of education which is to enlighten? The University of Phoenix discovered there was a pool of people with a tremendous appetite for learning if the academic meal was served in the right way. Perhaps to refuse to offer our educational menu in a palatable manner is not only testimony to our intellectual snobbery, it is also evidence of an immoral spirit. To read more on the University of Phoenix see "Drive-Thru U. By James Traub, The New Yorker, Oct. 20 & 27, 1997, p.p. 114-123. Michael Szabo, Ph.D. (DR MIKE) Director, TIES Project Professor of Educational Psychology and Technology 3-104 Education North University of Alberta Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Tel (403) 492-3667 x 225 Fax (403) 492-3179 <mike.szabo@ualberta.ca> "If cars were like computers,... they would be cheap, they'd go faster and they'd be more efficient... and they'd crash once a week at least..." --Attributed to Bill Gates. EDIT571 Web Site http://www.quasar.ualberta.ca/edmedia/ETCOMM/ithome.html TIES Project Web Site (currently under development) http://www.quasar.ualberta.ca/edmedia/TIES/Ties_home.html

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- <p>

Information below last updated: 2/8/98

Steven W. Gilbert, President THE TLT GROUP -- a Non-Profit Organization The Teaching, Learning, and Technology Affiliate of AAHE

202/293-6440 X 54 FAX: 202/467-6593 GILBERT@TLTGROUP.ORG http://www.tltgroup.org

One Dupont Circle, Suite 360 Washington, DC 20036 USA

SCHEDULE FOR TLTR WORKSHOPS AVAILABLE FROM AMANDA ANTICO 202 293 6440 EXT 38 ANTICO@TLTGROUP.ORG Order TLTR Workbook at Special AAHESGIT Reader Rate: Call 202/293-6440 x 11 and give code "SGIT 4/98" - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - NOTE: Anyone can subscribe to the AAHESGIT Listserver by sending the EMail message (with subject line left blank): SUBSCRIBE AAHESGIT yourfirstname yourlastname to LISTPROC@LIST.CREN.NET If you would like to post a message to the AAHESGIT Listserv, send it to AAHESGIT@LIST.CREN.NET With over 7,000 subscribers, not all messages sent to AAHESGIT can be posted. Those that are selected for posting are reviewed and may be edited for clarity. Authors are often asked to expand or clarify their messages before distribution to the List. Facts, including URLs, are not checked or confirmed by me. Opinions expressed in AAHESGIT's postings do not necessarily reflect those of anyone officially affiliated with the TLT Group or AAHE. I intend that each posting be protected by copyright as a compilation. As the copyright holder for the posting, I can and do give permission ONLY for duplication and transmission of each compilation complete and intact including this paragraph. IN OTHER WORDS, PLEASE FORWARD THIS POSTING AS OFTEN AS YOU LIKE -- AS LONG AS YOU FORWARD THE _ENTIRE_ MESSAGE INCLUDING THIS SECTION. Otherwise, duplication and/or transmission of any portion should be guided by "fair use" principles, and explicit permission should be obtained when needed. Except when permitted by "fair use," permission to duplicate or transmit any portion written by a contributor must be obtained from that person. - Copyright 1998 Steven W. Gilbert