I had been thinking about Plato and Socrates and what they would think of a paperless world.  They really didn’t know paper anyway!  Then the article starts out with what Thucydides would think.    Interestingly, I have been having my own graduate students submit their research drafts, and final papers electronically for a while.  I do just what the professors at Columbia do and that is to make corrections and comments right on what they send me.   Truthfully, it is easier for me to catch mistakes with a hard copy, but all that paper is a waste.  Students want to know “now” if their thinking and writing is on track and it has become much easier for me to reduce their anxiety quickly by using email.  : )   The idea of a student being able to enhance his / her work with audio, video, or still pictures is super.  Their products are more developed, and intriguing, and they show a lot of thought and reflection. 

I don’t have the CU Analyzer, but I can imagine its worth.  I do a lot to build an in class learning community.  Building an online presence and community would only help each student learn, but learn, perhaps a little differently.  I totally can see an extension of in class discussion that continues online.  For example, we discuss Plato’s The Cave. I can see my students viewing an animated version of it online and then talk about its impact on Philosophy in general.  I think the entire conversation would be much more beneficial and worthwhile. Peter Awn, dean of the School of General Studies said this:

“The more access our students have to substantive research materials, the more they can enhance the seriousness of the class.  Many of our students have schedules that demand the flexibility of remote access, yet they still must have the experience of a classroom community—this class offers both.”

I think that access is a key element of the power of using the Internet and going paperless.  (I still want my students to take a trip to a college or university library if for no other reason that the experience of having to really search.)  It’s easier to search the Web, and from a time constraint standpoint, it makes sense to have that capability for my students.  They all work full time, most have families and other commitments, and the flexibility of going paperless is inviting!   Awn is right, however, on blending the face-to-face with online learning.  I think a totally paperless classroom is unrealistic, but certainly, reducing the amount of paper used is an idea for great consideration.  That concept would change my teaching role in that I could have my students find more of the information and present it to others in class.  They would become more responsible for their own learning and I wouldn’t have to lug so much around. 

As it is, I carry my huge notebooks, textbooks, laptop, and other things to each class meeting.  (I truly do have a shoulder ache after that!)  Learning would be changed, and in a good way actually.  I think conversations would be richer because students would be conducting their own research and their reflections of what they found would enhance what we discuss in class.  Besides, I’ve said it before – I’m all for saving our trees!  Measuring learning doesn’t really change all that much. 

I could design rubrics that specifically speak to the “new” requirements of online study and discussion.  My exams could be online, and students could take them anytime before a due date.  I think that what Marc Meyer said is true: 

“Studies have shown that the most effective learning takes place when a student develops an emotional attachment to the work.  If I’m using a program that can stimulate more senses, then the opportunity for emotional involvement is greater. The more they learn, the more it stays with them.”

Many of my students would be considered a part of the “Net Generation”; most are not, but I totally agree that we have to make learning fun, and exciting.  The ho-hum, hum-drum way must be changed and going paperless is certainly one way to do that!  For me, that makes the possibilities of being more paperless just plain smart! 

Sue