Blog Post #14

2. In the article Teacher Knows if You Have Done the E-Reading, David Streitfeld tells his readers about an electronic textbook called CourseSmart. He described CourseSmart to be beneficial for teachers who desire to help students improve their study habits. This tool can be benefitial to studying because it can allow the student to high light and make notes when at important points. CourseSmart can also help teachers improve in their teaching methods by showing them the students engagement index's, which shows their usage of the electronic textbook.  Further in the article Streitfeld told about how some students had insisted the textbook had "software bugs". He explained how this reaction from students can be comparable to "the dog ate my homework".  With many positive aspects of CourseSmart there are many negative outlooks of using this resource. At the end of the article a man named Mr. Devine says, " We'll ultimately show how the student traverses the book. There's a correlation and casuality between engagement and success".  He began this article by saying many positive aspects of CourseSmart then lead his readers to think about the negative aspects and see if CourseSmart is worth using in the classroom.

3. As an educator I think this this technology could be beneficial to young students who have not learned how to study effectively. This is a great way to see if students with low grades need help with their study habits. Also it is important to remember each student has their own unique way to study. This may not work with every student but it might make a difference in the ways some students study.

4. As a student I would not have a high engagement index. I am the type of student who would rather study from my own notes made in class. I would not be opposed to using CourseSmart because I do believe it would help me stay organized when I need to refer back to the textbook. As a student I would like using CourseSmart because it does not require me to keep pens and highlighters with me at each class meeting.

5. Questions I would ask the teacher:
1. How did you introduce CourseSmart to your students?
2. Do they frequently complain about using this technology?

6. Questions I would ask the students:
1. Do you find CourseSmart helpful with staying organized?
2. Do you think this technology is easy to use?

7. I think this unique technology could be beneficial to young students who have difficulty studying productively. This would give the student an idea of how to study and may help them find a technique that suits their learning needs. With an older student, who has mastered his study technique, there should not be regulations on how their study habits.