Student-Centered Learning
Rich, Poor, and War: Technology Enhances Theology Course
Students use keypads to answer the probing questions Associate Professor of Theology Todd Whitmore digitally posts on the screen in front of the class. The course, "Rich, Poor, and War" is theology and technology driven; Classroom Response System (CRS) software enables Whitmore to create lectures that incorporate relevant music, imagery, and questions into discussions of and responses to violence.
The end result is that students learn more than just the philosophy behind the Catholic Social Teaching or Western secular views of violence, remember more than statistics regarding the gap between the world's rich and poor. Students peer into domestic, workplace, and political violence; confront the images of those who suffer there; and then reflect upon their own experiences.
In his class, Whitmore asks his students how many pairs of shoes are too many. He also asks his students to estimate their family income and to share if they know anyone who has been a victim of domestic violence. They don't show hands. They press their keypads, anonymously, and look to the screen for the calculation of class answers.
Whitmore believes that use of CRS allows students to locate themselves in regard to the difficult material they study. The anonymity of the program leads to more intimate discussions – a student who feels alone finds comfort when she realizes a percentage of the class answered a difficult question as she did.
The University makes a concerted effort to keep up with technology, which makes such a class possible, Whitmore says. The University's Office of Information Technologies (OIT) and the Kaneb Center for Teaching and Learning provide CRS training and support to faculty interested in using it to enhance their teaching methods.
Whitmore credits Kevin Abbott, who works with the OIT and the Kaneb Center, with encouraging him in his efforts. CRS is just beginning to be used outside of more technical fields and Whitmore has pioneered the system in the Department of Theology.
"I'm less concerned with the specific conclusions students reach [in my class]," says Whitmore. "My goal is that they carry a broader purview with them after the course has ended—and that they continue to ask questions."