Douglas J. Herman

Cognition; cognitive technology

What are the findings or theories from your area of expertise that we could apply to higher education?

There are many, especially with the rapid advance of computer and other computer related devices.  I have an especially strong interest in personal data-management devices.  I have been interested in how palm-held devices can be used as a tool to help both time management and studying.  There is also a large amount of technology on the web and different technologies that have come out of distance learning courses, such as graphic displays, that could be used in the classroom and also to advance personal learning.

What are the (most important) unsolved problems? What should be included in an agenda for research?

In the case of learning I think that the most important unsolved problem is how people can learn to focus their attention or their consciousness on a learning task.  For example, when I talk with my students I tell them that I could give them new information about something that they are interested in, such as sports or music, and they could pick up the new information without having to take notes. They would be able to focus their attention on the new information in a way that they are not able to for a typical class lecture.  I think that this is an area where we have a huge opportunity for success.  If we can figure out ways to capture attention even when people are not necessarily trying to give it, we will have a real possibility to change learning.

Research is needed in how learning occurs in a broad framework.  The environment of the educational setting must be included in the research in order to have a true sense of how learning takes place.  For example, if someone is teaching in a school where there are many commuters, the effect of commuting on the ability to study and learn must be addressed.  Each campus has an individual environment that creates different outcomes in learners.  Often we look at learning in a strict situation of how long it takes a person to learn a particular amount of information; while this is needed research, it does not generalize well.  We really need to look at the social context and setting of the school in order to understand how learning takes place.

What prototypes can you point us toward where principles from the science of learning are already being applied?

One example of a prototype is science classrooms that have computer communication between the students and the instructor.  In these classrooms students have access to a computer keyboard that will allow them to respond to questions posed by the instructor.  Students are able to respond electronically to simple “yes” or “no” questions or they can also respond to things such as a 5-point likert scale that rates the lecture from interesting to not interesting.  This allows students to have more interaction in the lectures.  Something that I have noticed with distance learning is that students are more willing to offer criticism over e-mail than they are in classroom situations.  We now have the ability to use technology in a way that students can interact with the professor.  This allows students an opportunity to express whether or not they understand material without the pressure of demonstrating their lack of knowledge to other students. Often when you ask students whether or not they understand a concept, it is only the top students that will give an answer. 

What are the major problems with or barriers to redesigning higher education? Do you have any ideas for overcoming them?

I personally think that a very big problem is the relationship between basic and applied research.  The idea in our society is that basic researchers generate some excellent ideas and applied researchers put these ideas in practice and then basic researchers come back and modify these ideas.  Our students should be socialized into that process regardless of what field they enter.  Students need to have an understanding of the give and take relationship between basic and applied researchers.  The current state of science in America segregates basic researchers from applied researchers.  I think that students see some of this and they do not have a good example to demonstrate how these two groups can work together.  The productivity of American science is held back by that problem.

In order to overcome this barrier we need to create more communication between basic and applied researchers.  By segregating the basic researchers from the applied researchers we perpetuate the problem.  Conferences, such as this one, and other places where people can come together and share ideas from both sides of research are very important.

What additional questions should we be asking?

It might be good to look at questions about people that are not comfortable with technology.  Is there something unique about the way these people interpret their environment?

Some other areas to consider relate to the use of distance learning.  Should the same credit be applied for a class that is offered over the web as it is for the classroom?  Is it possible that certain types of pedagogical activities are good over the web and that there are other pedagogical activities that are better for the classroom?  To what extent are people able to learn through new modes of technology?

What techniques work to help get students to maintain attention?  Electronic classrooms could go a long way towards this.  If students could express their pleasure or displeasure about the lecture it would help students feel more interactive.

What do we need to do so that one outcome of the retreat is to effect change (in ways that we want)?

Empower some practicums or small studies and then provide feedback from the study. I think that what is going to be important as well is for people to be able vocalize their resistance to the ideas of other people.  There are lots of good people at this conference, but it is limited in time.  People often do not want to be rude, but it is important that people are able to express their disagreement with ideas that they do not think will work. It is important to create an environment for people to feel able to open up and express their ideas.