Visiting scholar sheds insight into technology in teaching

The USQ Business faculty and Learning and Teaching Support Unit (LTSU) staff were provided with insight into teaching strategies as part of the visit by Canadian scholar Conor Vibert.

An Associate Professor of Business Strategy at Acadia University, Nova Scotia, Conor shared content information and strategies for integrating technology in teaching.

Associate Professor Vibert said the visit was an important step in building a collaborative partnership with USQ for the future.

'I really want to look at collaboration and holding classes over the web. If we want our students to develop an international mindset one way to do this is to work with students around the world,' he said.

'Ideally students in the Business Strategy class in Canada could be working on the same projects as students at USQ. One group might present a video on the topic and the others could critique it and share ideas about it.'

'I'm constantly looking for ways to collaborate and new ideas. The Australian education system is similar but has subtle differences. It's all about building opportunities for two or three years down the track.'

Associate Professor Vibert shared strategies on using technology in teaching with Business faculty staff.

'In 1996 Acadia went with laptops, it was the 6th university in North America to do so and from there developed an international reputation for using technology,' he said.

In his classes Associate Professor Vibert uses technology to tailor the delivery method to suit the students.

'I'm on a podium with 30 – 40 students sitting there in their comfortable seats. They're all wired up, on the Internet. As a professor I have to somehow engage them,' he said.

Extensive web references, walking students through information sources and creative approaches to teaching are some of the strategies he employs to engage students.

'We might use a traditional business case but as opposed to doing it the usual way I might get them to go away and produce a 3 – 5 minute video and post it on the intranet. Then one group will get up after that and critique it.

'They're a MySpace generation, a YouTube generation, they're very visual. Wherever possible I use the software to suit the students.'

Associate Dean of Business Dr Bruce Millett said Associate Professor Vibert's information was relevant to USQ as both universities are situated in relatively rural areas with a strong community focus.

'It's really brought home to me how common Acadia is to USQ, being in a small town where half of the community are students at the uni. It's a very small but very reputable university,' Dr Millett said.

'From Toowoomba's point of view we can learn how to build a viable uni in a small town.

'One of the defining features of the Acadia University is all students have laptops. They have a much greater use of Internet resources and less reliance on textbooks.'

Dr Millett said there are a number of lessons to learn from the visit.

'Firstly they are a small community working with the uni and they are a very successful on-campus university.'

'Secondly, Acadia makes extensive use of their alumni and engage the business community in the wider region for teaching and learning. They have a business speaker series on video which is used as teaching resources.'

During his visit Associate Professor Vibert also spent time with staff from the LTSU and the Australian Centre for Sustainable Catchments.

Media Contact: Jane Urquhart USQ Media +61 7 4631 2559