Wireless tablet PCs for enhanced teaching at an Australian regional university teaching both campus and distance modes

This paper examines the concept of using Tablet PCs as a potential effective learning and teaching (L&T) enhancement tool in classroom environments for on-campus and distance teaching modes. It reports on findings and recommendations of a faculty sponsored L&T enhancement project in the Faculty of Engineering and Surveying at the University of Southern Queensland (USQ), which aims to investigate the role of wireless enabled Tablet PCs as a teaching and learning enhancement tool and its impact on student's retention and progression. The project has identified scenarios of using Table PCs by educators in classroom settings. These include using Tablet PC as a presentation medium with hand-drawing functionality, an electronic assignment marker, a lecture recording tool, and a wireless video projection. Pedagogical aspects of wireless tablet PCs are also briefly discussed in this paper. It has been noted in our project that the use of tablet PCs as a teaching tool has assisted to improve parity between on-campus and external students, improve interactivity between teachers and students, illustration of concepts, and turnaround of marking assignments.