Fresno State launches tablet program, opens hub on first day of class

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- On the same day nearly 23,000 students returned to Fresno State for the fall semester, the university launched a brand-new tablet program to incorporate technology in the classroom. The cutting-edge program was designed to incorporate technology in the classroom.

On Thursday, Fresno State President Dr. Joseph Castro officially launched a new interactive tablet curriculum with a virtual-ribbon cutting ceremony at the new DISCOVERe hub; a technology help desk located on the first floor of the campus library.

"We're beginning to transform the way our students learn and our faculty teach, and I could not be more proud of all the work that's been done," said Castro.

For the first time this fall 1,200 students and 33 faculty members will use tablets to do everything from take notes to participate in group discussions.

"We're kind of moving from a traditional lecture-based style of teaching to flipping the classroom where students are getting the lecturing at home through video and then coming to the classroom to get hands-on experience with the courses that they're working in," said Hub Manager Dr. Chris Vieira.

Students, faculty and members of the community can also visit the hub for training on how to use their tablets. They can even attend free workshops on apps to learn how to make their devices more effective.

"We're platform agnostic so it doesn't matter which operating system you want to use. They can bring their own as long as it meets the minimum specifications," said Project Manager Mike Pronovost.

Trained student guides like David Padilla can also provide help on laptops, smartphones and other technology during library hours.

"We are adequately trained. We have over 100 hours of training and we're able to help students, faculty with simple problems such as connecting to Wi-Fi," said Padilla.

Padilla is not only helping others learn the technology, he's also using it in a business law class. Although class hasn't yet started, he said he can already see the benefits.

"I think it's going to keep students more engaged. Sometimes people get lazy and say I don't really feel like going to class today, now I got a tablet I can play around with and be more engaged with my learning," he added.

Castro said his vision for the new program is to help make tablet technology accessible to all students so they have the tools they need to succeed and are well prepared for careers that are increasingly dependent upon technology.

"The response has been overwhelmingly positive. We now have a waitlist of faculty who want to be a part of the program and we'll scale it up to about 150 faculty next year. In terms of students we'll go from about 1,200 to 5,000," he said.

A grant from the Fresno State Foundation provided each student enrolled in the program with $500 toward the purchase of a tablet.

Students had the option to choose an iPad Air (iOS), Asus Memo Pad (Android) or Lenovo ThinkPad (Windows).

The cost of the Asus MemoPad is completely covered by the grant.

Each tablet comes bundled with one year of 4G Internet provided by AT&T to ensure students can connect when they're off campus.

Beyond the classroom, the tablet transformation will carry over to other aspects of campus.

Advising services staff members have been outfitted with iPads and adopted videoconferencing software so off-campus students can remotely meet with counselors, tutors and advisers during normal business hours.