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Some New Technologies Helps Students Learn

When we were growing up we were always promised that the new millennium will bring the best technology into everyday life. From flying cars to microcomputers, we were promised the world and then some. Although some of this technology was just a pipe dream, other promises are being kept and new advancements in classroom technology is helping students learn. In one of the most futuristic settings on any college campus, Digital Age students at Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) are discovering the ?why? behind the ?what? of history.

"This isn?t about being high tech, it?s about unleashing the new dynamics of learning,? says Steven Hoffman, Ph.D., associate professor of history at SEMO. Enter, Room 311 of the university library, a true concept classroom designed for flexibility and interactivity, which includes special reflected lighting to reduce glare on the computer screens, an LCD projector linked to an interactive white board, and two dozen Gateway Tablet PCs connected wirelessly to the Internet and to each other in a peer-based network.

It?s here that Professor Hoffman orchestrates his interactive learning sessions using ?Making History,? the multiplayer history simulation game from Muzzy Lane Software. ?We used Making History for the first time in the fall semester and based on that I?ll be using it as a regular part of my curriculum,? says Professor Hoffman.
In a group of 20 Honors students, 17 of whom were women, professor Hoffman?s fall class relived the world-shaping events of 1936 to 1945, playing in teams, each operating a different country, including the USA. According to professor Hoffman, the lessons learned went far beyond the names and dates of treaties and battles.