

Are HBCU Students Digitally Disinterested? - wfoster4
http://tnstatenewsroom.com/2011/01/are-hbcu-students-digitally-disinterested/

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iamdave
Drastically reducing that huge wall of text I had earlier:

As an African-American IT guy working for a call-center that supports nearly
1000 users, 70% of who are black, the issue isn't black employees being
disenfranchised from computer technology.

The issue is that computer technology courses are completely, and utterly
failing to train students on how to use a computer outside of the realm of
Microsoft Office. There should not be an Intro to Computers course ANYWHERE
that spends more than two days on Microsoft Office, and that course shouldn't
spend any more than an hour learning how to type memos in Microsoft Word.

NONE.

When a user submits a trouble ticket saying "I just moved to a new seat and
Webmail is still logged in as a previous user" I slap myself. This isn't a
task that requires a quick keystroke or an unknown to the average joe command-
line trick. The logout button is staring you in the face.

So here's my solution: spend less time on Microsoft Office beyond what is
absolutely essential enough so that the student can make an informed decision,
and then start teaching students how to navigate interfaces, understand how
buttons work, think on their feet.

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PakG1
Agreed that what's important is teaching people how to navigate interfaces and
think on their feet. I face the same difficulty trying to teach my parents how
to use computers. It was a most horrific experience teaching my dad how to
send attachments to someone via gmail.

My other friend was trying to implement a cms for his church's website. He was
pulling his hair out trying to figure out how to get the elder folk to
understand that the cms would most likely be easier and simpler than their
preferred method for typing something up in MS Word and posting that to the
website.

Now where I disagree with you. These kids seem quite adept at using various
user interfaces. Where they're lacking is being able to use computers for
increasing productivity in the workplace.

 _In assessing technology usage, the book also addresses computer skills and
reports while students come to campus knowing how to use a computer, they may
not necessarily be prepared to use it for the complex technology-based work
that employers demand. “Although students can send e-mails, download music
files and instant message, employers are looking for graduates who can use a
computer to enhance productivity and solve recurring problems,” explains Guy._

In line with that, there are many valid cases where further training on MS
Office is a good thing. I realize that this may not be in your cited use case,
but there are valid reasons why Excel and Access exist, and those things do
require extensive training (whether self-learning or 3rd-party teaching).
Statistical analysis, forecasting, and data automation are amazing things that
can be done by Excel that can't be learned just by looking at the program.
Another great example is Photoshop. Just because someone knows how to use
buttons, it does not mean they would be able to do amazing things with
Photoshop that make a design shop work better.

There are computer programs in the workplace that add real value and are easy
to pick up; there are also programs that are not so easy to pick up by just
knowing how buttons work, often enough because 1) they're complicated, and 2)
because they require a lot of background knowledge that isn't intrinsic to the
programs themselves.

I cannot tell you how many managers and clerks alike I have met who try to do
data tracking and analysis in Excel manually. An analysis task that could take
me 30 minutes takes them an entire day, just because they do not know how to
use Excel; they're simply pressing buttons, not using the program to its full
capability.

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noahlt
For anyone else who didn't know: HBCU = "historically black colleges &
universities".

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chr15
Examples: Spelman College, Howard University, Morehouse College

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mvkel
I think this is a problem more on the faculty side than the student side.
Students have proven that they’re more than willing to adopt new services if
it helps them become more efficient communicators. Facebook and Twitter are
examples of that. Ultimately, it’s up to school staff to decide which
platforms the institution as a whole should adopt. That’s where things can be
lacking across all higher ed universities, not just HBCUs.

There are some HBCUs, like Hampton University, that recognize the potential of
technology on a campus. My company, Localist.com, is working with Hampton to
help engage their students more on campus by offering a social calendar
system. It plugs into all the services students already use (Facebook,
Twitter, Foursquare), but provides the much-needed school context.

We’re going to be launching in the next couple weeks!

Anyway, like I said, I think the issue of students not engaging enough is a
problem at the staff level. Students have already figured out how to solve the
issue.

