Tech Overview

Tori Luna

Contributing Writer

For some students, social networking sites like Facebook and Youtube are ways to keep up with friends, get the latest gossip and put off completing homework assignments. However, Marilyn Staffo, assistant director of the center for instructional technology, said she thinks that social media has a place in the classroom.

“Several academic areas are using private Facebook groups,” she said. “One program is using a private group to connect their graduate students and another is using it to reach out to students enrolled in a joint program with other universities in Alabama who will be attending classes on the UA campus in the future.”

Catherine Handrahan, a junior majoring in special education, said she thinks using new technology is the classroom is a good thing.

“I think that it is a great way to learn and using sites like Youtube and Facebook makes learning more fun,” she said.

On the other hand, there are cons to using these sites for educational purposes.

“These sites are not designed for or limited to the academic world,” Rachel E. Shuttlesworth, coordinator of faculty development, said. “We all have to recognize that these tools and sites can be open to everyone, which means that our audience is not limited to our friends or to our campus.”

Most of the technology used on campus is handled by the Faculty Resource Center, which is best known for assisting faculty with eLearning, Staffo said.

“We also support other tools including Turnitin, Tegrity, RefWorks, Respondus and Turning Technologies Clickers,” she said. “We enjoy working with faculty to explore ways technology can assist with instruction and are continually researching and testing new and updated technologies.”