Background

The Symonds Digital Teaching Center and the Information Revolution

In the second half of the 20th century, society entered a period of accelerating technological change, mainly due to the growth of information technology. To cope with the demands of this change, our higher education system must evolve; otherwise, it might be rendered obsolete by the very technology that it played a crucial role in developing. Fortunately, the technology that led to this change has also provided a wealth of electronic tools for responding to this change. Our challenge is to harness information technology to reshape higher education.

It has become apparent since the early 1990s that a campus-wide infusion of information technology into the curriculum and into the education process is necessary for Rice to maintain its status as a leading educational institution. Since technology can have a dramatic impact on the education process, Rice cannot afford not to be in the forefront of experimenting with technology and teaching. Further elevating Rice’s status requires a deep commitment to information technology: Rice faculty need to lead novel exploratory and research programs on how information technology can enhance the education process.

The Gardiner Symonds Digital Teaching Center is an attempt at using technology to enable the creation of compelling new varieties of learning experiences for students. It is neither a traditional classroom, nor a traditional computer lab. Unlike a traditional classroom, the instructor is not the focal point. Unlike a traditional computer lab, interaction and collaboration between students is encouraged. The Symonds Center is a novel learning environment in which architecture and technology combine to create an educational laboratory, a space where instructors and students can rethink existing concepts of teaching and learning and fashion new ones.

Moshe Y. Vardi, Karen Ostrum George Professor in Computational Engineering and Director of the  Computer and Information Technology Institute.