Professors need to respect laptops

Laptops and tablet PC's are some of the newest tools students have for learning. With a computer, students and teachers are given an edge toward learning and teaching.

Students are able to take neat and detailed notes while professors can present well timed and organized multimedia presentations and lectures. Students can bring all their previous assignments and materials with them to class and have them at their fingertips.

With all these advantages available to students and teachers, why are students treated with contempt when they have a laptop in class? Rather than having teachers hassling students about having laptops in class, they should make learning more available to them by way of technology.

The reason I ask this question is that I have personally had teachers in class ask me why I have a laptop in class. It can be intimidating to a person when you have the only computer in class other than the one that the school has provided for the professor and it is not being used.

I find that being able to type 60 or more words a minute can come in handy when you are taking lecture notes and the professor does not like to slow down. This is an example when it is more practical for me to type on a keyboard than try to keep up by hand.

A favorite story I share with other people that use computers in class is when I had a professor stop the lecture, come up to me and ask me if I was on the Internet. I was not and answered accordingly to him. Then the professor proceeded to look at my computer screen to make sure that I was taking notes and not wasting time. I felt slightly insulted, especially with other classmates daydreaming or doodling on their papers.

This is an example of professors not taking technology seriously and instead thinking it can only be used to play in class. Why would someone discriminate against people that learn better by using a computer to aid them?

Laptops are now even included in many universities' tuition or are required for students. Clemson University in South Carolina is good example of this practice. They require that students purchase a laptop that meets their minimum specifications and bring them to class. To Clemson, requiring a student to have a laptop is as much help to the students' success in a class as requiring the purchase of a textbook. Schools should work with students to help them use computers in the classroom and integrate technology as part of the learning process in classes.

Teachers need to embrace how students learn now. Chalkboards and overhead projectors are not the best ways to present information anymore. I do not say they do not have a place, but they are not the only way. Educators and institutions need to keep up with the technological needs of the students they are teaching. I hope to see more teachers using the technology that their students are, so both groups can take full advantage of the most current tools available.

Jared Larmore is a sophomore nursing major from Cedar City. He can be contacted at jaredlarmore@suu.net.