Chapter 17, Additional Case 2: Mandatory Computers at Your School?

Chapter 17, Additional Case 2: Mandatory Computers at Your School?

This case is best for groups.

Background

For more than a decade, a number of colleges and universities have had some form of mandatory-computer policy: all students (or all students in certain majors) are required to lease or purchase computers for use in their academic work. Proponents of such programs see them as ways to ensure that students become computer literate and to enable faculty to integrate computer resources into their courses. Opponents argue that students acquire computer literacy in other ways, that the hardware and software become outdated quickly, and that the policies drain students' valuable resources.

You and the other members of your group work in your college or university's academic technologies department. The director of academic technologies, Tiffany Albrecht, wants your advice on whether a mandatory-computer policy would be beneficial at your college or university. She would like you to write a progress report in about one or two weeks and then a final recommendation report.

Your Assignment

To complete this case, perform the following tasks:

  1. Study Chapter 17, focusing on progress reports.
  2. Research and briefly describe the mandatory-computer policies at two or three colleges or universities. Do students buy or lease the computers? How much do students pay? Are students required to acquire a specific make and model, or do they choose from a list of acceptable systems? Do students use laptop computers that they bring to class, or are they required merely to have a desktop computer? See, for example, Virginia Tech's laptop policy and University of Florida's computer and software requirement.
  3. Describe the major advantages and disadvantages of mandatory-computer policies. See an online article by Lisa Guernsey in the New York Times about the controversy in Texas over whether the state should devote a large share of its textbook budget to purchasing laptops for schoolchildren.
  4. At this point, prepare a 500-word progress report addressed to Tiffany Albrecht, evaluating how the project is proceeding.
  5. Next, focus on your own college or university. If your college or university does not have a mandatory-computer policy, determine if it is considering such a policy. Check with the information-technology office and, if appropriate, interview someone from the office. Write a brief questionnaire to distribute to your technical-communication class to determine whether your classmates would favor such a policy. If your school or university already has such a policy, survey your class to learn the students' attitudes toward the policy and their recommendations for how to improve it. (See Chapter 6 for information on interviews, questionnaires, and surveys.)
  6. If your instructor requests it, prepare a report of about 2,000 words that presents your findings and recommendations. (See Chapter 18 for information on recommendation reports.) Address the report to your supervisor.