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TOP STORIES FOR MONDAY, MAY 16, 2005 Replacing Books with Computers in Libraries Clicking on Campus Gaming Degrees on the Rise REPLACING BOOKS WITH COMPUTERS IN LIBRARIES As digital delivery of printed material becomes increasingly efficient and common, some colleges and universities are relocating books from libraries to make room for facilities where students access content on computers. The University of Southern California was one of the first to create such a digital learning laboratory in 1994, and in the past few years it has been joined by schools including Emory University, the University of Georgia, the University of Arizona, the University of Michigan, and the University of Houston. The University of Texas at Austin has recently decided to move all of the books from its undergraduate library to other facilities and create an "electronic information commons." No one expects books to disappear completely, but, according to Geneva Henry, executive director of the digital library initiative at Rice University, libraries should be primarily concerned with the exchange of ideas rather than simply storage of books. As colleges and universities work to provide appropriate services to students who have grown up with computers, the trend to use electronic resources is likely to continue. New York Times, 14 May 2005 (registration req'd) http://www.nytimes.com/2005/05/14/education/14library.html CLICKING ON CAMPUS Faculty at hundreds of colleges and universities are using small electronic devices similar to television remote controls as part of their in-class instruction. Commonly referred to as "clickers," the devices allow students to respond to instructor questions by choosing one of several options or, in some cases, by entering a numeric answer. Answers are transmitted by either infrared or radio frequency signal to a receiver connected to a computer, which logs the responses and can track individual students' responses, as for a quiz, or display responses from the entire class anonymously. Faculty who use the devices said that because they allow students to respond anonymously, they encourage participation from students who might be too shy to answer verbally in class, and they elicit more honest answers on controversial subjects. Stephen Bradforth, a chemistry professor at the University of Southern California, said that after he began using clickers in his classes, attendance and participation increased. He also noted that the devices force professors to think differently about how they teach their courses. Wired News, 14 May 2005 http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,67530,00.html GAMING DEGREES ON THE RISE Students at a growing number of colleges and universities have the opportunity to study video-game development, even as supporters of studies differ on whether the value of such programs lies in practical or theoretical application. At some campuses, such as the University of Wisconsin-Madison, students in gaming programs use video games as a foundation for understanding sociology, anthropology, economics, or pedagogy. Kurt Squire, who teaches at Wisconsin, said, "Our school is not in position a of turning out people for industry." Programs at schools such as the University of Denver, on the other hand, focus their efforts on preparing students to work as video-game developers. Officials at that university credit the program with reversing the declining number of applicants to the computer science department. Scott Leutenegger, head of the university's undergraduate gaming program, said that like academic film programs in the 1930s and 1940s, gaming programs were initially met with skepticism but have begun to earn wider respect. Still, he said, gaming programs are not for everyone. "This is an industry with high burnout rates, long hours, and incredibly tight deadlines," said Leutenegger. CNET, 16 May 2005 http://news.com.com/2100-1043_3-5706921.html ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, change your settings, or access the Edupage archive, visit http://www.educause.edu/Edupage/639 Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE RESOURCES The EDUCAUSE Resource Center is a repository for information concerning use and management of IT in higher education. 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