The Handheld Computing Initiative: Placing Technology in the Hands of All Faculty

Abstract

Indiana State University (ISU) is providing handheld computers to every faculty member in its School of Education. In addition, a substantial pool of handheld computers has been created for faculty to be used with students in the classroom. What started as a small pilot program a year ago has grown into a project that is challenging the way faculty are thinking about technology and its application in the teaching and learning process. This initiative also provides an opportunity for faculty and administration to think about classroom assessment in new ways using the handheld computer. This paper and its presentation center on the challenges, successes, and failures of the project encountered by the implementation team.