It’s hard to imagine a chalkboard or an overhead projector inspiring nicknames.
But the coolest gadget making its way into education–the iPod–has digitally enhanced a moniker for Georgia College & State University professor Rob Viau.
His students simply call him, “iRob.”
IPods–known for playing music–are being used to listen to languages and other material in a few college courses, quickly making the pocket-sized gizmos the newest sweetheart of the college learning experience.
At Duke University, the accessory was given to 1,650 incoming freshmen for free as part of a pilot program. IPods, generally used for storing music, will be used for language lessons, audio books and class lectures, according to Duke officials.
But at cash-strapped state universities in Georgia, iPods, which cost anywhere between $300 to $400, are only on loan.
Melanie Laphand, 20, a senior at Georgia College & State University in Milledgeville, is admittedly jealous of her Duke counterparts and is saving money to buy her own.
“It actually really came in handy,” said Laphand. “IRob gave us music that reflected the optimism and the pessimism of an era. We listened to Bob Dylan and Nine Inch Nails.”
She also listened to Martin Luther King Jr.’s famous “I Have a Dream” speech.
“When I heard Martin Luther King saying the speech, he sounded more clear, and you hear the emotion and passion and the actual desire you don’t get when you just read it,” she said.
Viau, who teaches English and interdisciplinary arts courses, has experimented with iPods for about 21 1/42 years in courses such as Utopia Dystopia and Gothic Imagination. He believes the gadgets are an excellent resource for his students to easily download the sound portion of their studies, which can include everything from political speeches to Tibetan chants to rock music.
The iPods cap off a decade of surge in technological advances at colleges across the country.
Notebook computers are ubiquitous. Many schools have at least part of their campuses set up as wireless zones. Students use Palm devices to keep tabs on their schedule.
They can use their cell phones to photograph friends. Dell recently unveiled a printer, fax machine and copy machine all in one, designed to fit into a dorm room so the student won’t need to step out of his or her room to fax or make copies.
“College students have grown up with technology,” said John Mullen, sales vice president for Dell’s higher education segment. “They are used to it, and they expect it.”
Will iPods soon become the latest thing to add to a list of must-haves for college life?
The typical freshman brings 18 appliances from home, which include cell phones and cell phone chargers, a Palm device and a computer, according to a Miami University survey.
But how much time will students use iPods for brainy activities, and how much time will they use them to rock out?
The Miami University survey found students use half of their time on the computer doing academic work, the other half for personal pursuits.
Not everyone is convinced of the academic potential of iPods. Thomas Skill, associate provost and chief information officer at the University of Dayton, doesn’t expect widespread use of iPods at his campus soon.
“I can envision students deleting all of the information relevant to learning to make room for their music,” Skill said. “I also worry about the perception by the public and how it might be viewed as college spending getting a little bit out of control.”
Laphand openly admits to using her borrowed iPod for more than just course work. No reason why work and play can’t mix harmoniously.
“I was working out and had it randomly play some of our class music. While I was stretching, I listened to Mozart, and then–as I sped up my workout–Nine Inch Nails started playing. It was perfect.”
