Technology Expert to Look at Ways to Steer Through Waves of Information

SAN ANTONIO – Universities used to have a fairly straightforward way to pass on information to students.  Professors would lecture in class and hand out a reading list for students. It was a very manageable system. But the explosion in digital technology has unleashed vast streams of information. And today’s students are more apt to get their information from a screen than a page.  Susan Metros, professor of design technology and the deputy chief information officer at Ohio State University, will speak on navigating through waves of new information in a presentation titled “Visual Literacy in the Age of Information Abundance.”  The event will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 2, in Northrup Hall room 040.  It is free and open to the public.

According to Dr. Metros, higher education needs to prepare students to be the stewards of knowledge. A central part of this mission is to impart a central core of values that underscore what it means to be a literate human being in today’s society. However, these values Dr. Metros alludes to do not take into account the needs of the new breed of visually oriented learners.  In other words, the traditional ways of teaching may not be efficient to a generation raised on digital media. In her presentation, Dr. Metros will discuss new ways to teach students as well as explore new resources and strategies that  take advantage of how students now learn.

In addition her other duties, Dr. Metros is the executive director for eLearning at Ohio State University.

Her presentation is sponsored by the Coates Library, the departments of communication, art and art history, speech and drama, and computer science as well as the Office of the Vice President for Information Resources and Administrative Affairs. For more information, contact the director of the Coates Library at (210) 999-8121.

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