Published: April 21, 2008 12:10 pm      

'Computers have changed the education model'

It wasn't all that long ago when just one computer on the Pitt-Johnstown campus had Internet access.

That was only in the early 1990s.

Now, 50 percent of UPJ's classrooms are described as "tech ready" and most students can access the Web from the comfort of their own dorm rooms.

"We've gone from no student access to 93 percent student access in just a little over

10 years," said Rob Eckenrod, UPJ's director of user services.

"It just amazes me."

In the mid-1980s, UPJ was a front-runner in the state Department of Education's instructional technology program that provided money to schools to train teachers on how to use and implement technologies in the classrooms.

UPJ was one of 14 Instructional Technology Education for the Commonwealth (ITEC) centers in the state.

"We had Apple IIe computers and they were an adventure," Eckenrod said. "Response was slow and it was a challenge to get educators to use these materials."

Through the 1990s, it was a matter of funding and getting the latest technologies onto campus.

Today, UPJ teachers and students expect technologies to be readily available.

"We have full Internet access with an array of Web-based software, so it's very multi-media," Eckenrod said. "Kids today grow up with this and they don't want to read a book to get information."

Eckenrod believes UPJ is preparing its students to work in the competitive technology-based world.

"Every job has this aspect built into it," he said. "We are preparing students by showing them what advances have occurred in their discipline so they are able to get the job done."

At Cambria-Rowe Business College, all entering students at the Johnstown and Indiana campuses are given a laptop computer.

"We started this in 2000 and spend about $2,400 per student - but it is worth it," said executive director Mike Artim.

"We're focusing on interactive learning."

Artim said in 1988 the college received an IBM microcomputer that cost roughly $4,000. It came with a 20 megabyte hard drive.

"We were told this would be more megabytes than we would ever need and it'll last a lifetime," he said.

Then came the 1990s, which saw the introduction of three computer labs.

"Now every classroom has computer access and is using the same software, plus we've added wireless access to the buildings," Artim said. "Computers have changed the education model."

With 24-hour access to the college's programs through their laptops, students can get more study time outside of the classroom.

"An 8-to-5 schedule doesn't always fit for everyone, so now students can access online courses plus information on grades," Artim said. "Students have built better online relationships to share information as well."

Artim noted the importance of keeping current with technologies to make the students better future employees.

"About 98 percent of our students go to work for local small businesses where they need tech leaders," he said. "We hear how our grads are taking these businesses to the next level because of the technologies they have used and learned here."

At Mount Aloysius College, the Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) organization is actively involving students in projects that reach into the community to improve lives.

"Technology is so ingrained in everything we do these days," said Christopher Mingyar, chairman of the department of business administration and adviser to SIFE. "Only a few years ago, when we had presentations, everything had to be printed out. But now everything is done through e-mails and digitally, so technology has changed how we communicate."

SIFE is mostly using communications technologies such as cellular devices, Web sites and wireless Internet.

"We are able to share files and get everyone's information, so it's not a cumbersome task," Mingyar said. "Students are becoming more creative."

In September 1994, St. Francis University developed the Center of Excellence for Remote and Medically Under-Served Areas (CERMUSA) as a research and applied technology center.

The university received the center after responding to a request from the U.S. Navy for proposals to establish a Rural Healthcare Demonstration Project.

CERMUSA, which is independent of the university, is broken down into several departments that include telehealth, distance learning, information technology, operations and National Telerehabilitation Service System (NTSS).

The goal is to design and implement high quality health care and medical education to remote and under-served communities.

"We are a research arm," said Robert Griffin, the assistant director for distance learning.

"We were started as a grant project and have really evolved."

Under the distance learning division, Navy personnel are able to attend school from any location they choose and receive a bachelor's degree in heath science. Students then have the option of working toward a master's degree. Upon graduating, students are offered a career in the heath care profession that is tailored for the Navy.

"We are using virtual classroom software so students can take classes from wherever they may be," Griffin said. "The university does a good job with its residential learning and now we have to do a good job with distance learning as well."

Griffin called himself an "old goat" when it comes teaching, and said when he started his career, meeting in a classroom was the only way courses were taught.

"The mere fact that my students and myself can be anywhere there is Internet access and can still get together is impressive," he said. "This is the generation that wants everything and now you really can pretty much have everything."

It's not only institutes of higher learning that are preparing students for a technology-based world, high schools are engaging students in technology like never before.

The Classrooms for the Future initiative is a three-year, multimillion dollar investment by the state to provide laptop computers, interactive whiteboard technology, high-speed Internet access and state-of-the-art software to high school classrooms. The goal is to prepare students to enter and successfully compete in the high-tech global market.

"Competition is tough out there and students need to know what they are up against," said Marlene Harbart, a CFF coach in the Westmont Hilltop School District. "We are now training students for jobs that didn't even exist 10 years ago, so that is the challenge to keep up with changing technologies."

Westmont is in the second year of its grant, and Harbart said CFF is reinforcing technology that students already use every day.

"Students are able to share and collaborate ideas online, which is what it's about," she said. "We are helping students get ready for the next step."

Other school districts that participate in CFF in Cambria County are Blacklick Valley, Cambria Heights, Central Cambria, Conemaugh Valley, Ferndale, Greater Johnstown, Penn Cambria and Richland. Somerset County school districts include, Berlin Brothersvalley, Meyersdale, Rockwood, Shanksville-Stonycreek, Somerset, Turkeyfoot Valley and Windber.