The Giving of Gadgets

Earlier this week, Ohio State announced their plan to make "it easier for medical students at OSU to navigate classroom lectures and clinical duties with patients." How? The iPod Touch. The popular device can be used to view high quality images from different angles, to access videos of medical treatments, and to request review quizzes.

Some other med schools in the U.S. have also tried incorporating popular media players into their programs, but Ohio's plan has one key difference: they're giving their students the device for free. Not that this is likely to be a growing trend. After all, history tells us that gimmicky give-aways, from laptops to iPods, rarely catch on.

What we can see in these attempts are three movements in higher education: first, the intense competitiveness in attracting students; second, the increasing pervasiveness of technology (often in the form of gimmicks); and third, the desire to incorporate these changes with the consequent shifts in the learning environment.

For years, it was the competitiveness driving post-secondary institutions, but thanks to technological advances, many universities are beginning to remember their mandates: the public good. One example is MIT, where technology not only refocused their learning environment but increased access as well. Today, the institute is renowned for their open courseware.

And most recently, MIT has created a version of their website for smartphones, taking advantage of the latest in gadgets. But instead of capitalizing on this idea, they are sharing the code with all institutions who may want it, making everyone's life a little easier.