Is this the future of learning at Imperial?

I have to admit that I did feel slightly nervous as I sat down in the back of the Clore Lecture Theatre. I had a slight hope that something would become familiar to me and that I wouldn’t feel like a fish-out-of-water Humanities student in a Mathematics lecture... no such luck!

However, I wasn’t here to learn any maths (phew!) Instead, I am here to see how Professor Richard Thomas encourages student to use their web connected phones to interact during class. My immediate thought is that it is dangerous territory to encourage students to bring phones into class but, although it is early days and despite having substantial fears about constant interruptions by a harmony of ringtones, Professor Thomas says that he has yet to be interrupted once.

Excitingly only 5 minutes into the lecture I have the opportunity to link my iPhone up to the interactive webpage set up for the class in order to test out my maths skills. Professor Thomas writes out a rather complicated looking question for the students, which means nothing to me but looks impressive. The students seem to know what it means though, which is good! These examples are not prepared in advance; Professor Thomas just writes down questions “on a whim” and gives multiple choice answers.

On the screen in front of me I am given a list of different options. Each member of the class then chooses which option they think is correct and ‘vote’ by ‘pressing’ the button next to their option. I decline from voting and let the person sitting next to me vote in my place. After a short delay a simple bar graph depicting the lecture hall’s answers pops up in front of me of the screen. It’s very basic but effective. When I ask Professor Thomas about this straightforward process he says that something “as simple as possible meant that [he] can use it at the same time as writing on board or visualise without disrupting the lesson.”

It “disrupts the 'copy down lecture notes' mentality and has [the students] think hard for a minute about something.” Professor Richard Thomas

Professor Thomas believes that the use of this technology wakes up the students in the room. It “disrupts the 'copy down lecture notes' mentality and has [the students] think hard for a minute about something.” I can see from the undergraduates sitting around me that this method provokes discussion and also induces a competitiveness to get the answer right. But for the shyer members of the class, it allows them to contribute without having all eyes on them.

Professor Thomas explained, “[I] can use one example to illustrate a whole piece of theory, and be sure [the students] really thought about it because they answered a question on it.”

This interactivity is not new; the class had previously used physical ‘clickers’. It had however turned out to be a logistical nightmare and so the use of devices that the majority of the students already carry round with them seemed like a logical step.

Although I am no expert in education practices and theories, the ability to actually experiment and test ideas just learnt in reality surely must provide each student with immediate feedback about how well they have picked up what is being taught. Interaction may be beneficial but when there are over 200 students in a lecture, it turns into a challenge.

In the maths department, Professor Thomas is the only lecturer to be currently using the online technology and I believe it is no coincidence that he is one of the younger members of Imperial’s faculty. Professor Thomas assures me that his efforts are being closely watched. Some others may soon follow but others remaining dead against it. He explains that there is the occasional playful joke by other members of the faculty, teasing him about the technology use, but most of the faculty are very supportive.

There is the occasional playful joke by other members of the faculty, teasing him about the technology use, but most of the faculty are very supportive

Technology now invades every single place in our lives and has revolutionised society. Although thus far technology in education has lagged behind the rest of society, surely it is only a matter of time before it fully invades? The fact that the internet is now portable gives us the ability to access our digital world and integrate it with our physical one. It seems prudent for Imperial, as one of the UK’s leading universities, to start integrating it now and lead the way.

“It’s basically one big experiment at the moment,” Professor Thomas said. What is the future for Imperial? It’s a tricky one. Although the influx of technology into teaching seems both inevitable and positive, have a one size fits all approach may actually be detrimental. Each lecturer is unique in the methods they employ and style of teaching. The ultimate question therefore is what method should Imperial adopt to being greater technology integration into the classroom?

“Of course [other technologies] get forced at us all the time, and various people have various incentives to get us to use as many as possible as soon as possible. But usually they’re not ready for easy robust use,” Professor Thomas explains, “If they’re good and easy to use then we’d use them. The problem is that education seems not to be a big enough market for them to get developed properly. So they’re often clunky/unusable/etc. it’s only when business or ordinary people have a use for something that it gets developed well enough to be useful.”

Interactive technology is widespread at Imperial. The old style clickers that Professor Thomas used to use are in use amongst a large number of departments. John Conway, senior learning technologist at Imperial says that researchers are getting excited about using different types of technology more. In fact, he has heard that the Business School are interested in developing an iphone app!

There are, however, many considerations that need to be made when trying to introduce these technologies. For example, what kind of devices can access it, and what ICT support is needed. Mr Conway says that pilot studies need to be done to tease out these problems early on but that there is much promise. He also commented that in the economic times where more people are vying for a smaller funding pot, it will be interesting to see how use of more technology in education could help improve financial efficiency without jeopardising quality.

Back in the Clore Lecture Hall, the lecture draws to a close. Unfortunately, I haven’t picked up any more mathematical knowledge, but I am excited about this development which is encompassing modern technology. I ask some students around me who had been voting what they think of the ‘voting system’. “If gives us a break and time to think,” says one and others explain that it gives them a chance to check they understand everything as they go along, both things Professor Thomas is aiming to achieve! The consensus is that it’s definitely a good thing, and it will be interesting to see if the rest of the Maths Department and even other faculties will develop their own version.