I just spent 25 minutes in one of my classes waiting for my professor to project her PowerPoint presentation onto the overhead. Last week, I sat for 15 minutes in class with nothing to do because a different professor was not able to play a video for class. Just a few days ago, a guest speaker, kind enough to come and visit my class, had to wait patiently while my professor left the room to search for someone who could run his video clips.

The amount of time wasted in classes while professors or TAs experience 'technical difficulties' is not only annoying, it's unacceptable. Marquette introduced Smart Rooms in order to aid professors and TAs with their lectures and presentations and to provide students with audio-visual supplements to class material. These Smart Rooms have proven to be little short of a big nuisance. It does me no good when valuable class time is spent watching a professor clumsily operate the Smart Room equipment.

I have had very few professors who could competently operate these mechanical beasts. It makes me wonder: did any Marquette professors or staff receive training of any sort when the Smart Rooms were introduced? Why are classes always delayed or interrupted because their presentations won't start? It is incorrect to assume that because the world is increasingly becoming technology driven that everyone is familiar with and competent in the use of technology. All too often I have sat in class with nothing to do while my professor embarrassingly blames the Smart Room equipment for the blank overhead screen that is supposed to be showing us the next unit of study. But it is not through the fault of these machines that students won't be learning anything in class.

All Marquette staff and faculty should have been educated in the use of the Smart Rooms before their implementation into the classroom. Mandatory training for all Marquette faculty, staff and administration would greatly benefit them and the students by alleviating the frustration of experiencing 'technical difficulties' and having to wait patiently for sometimes half of a class period while the difficulties are being fixed. I expect my educators to come prepared for class just as I do each day. Instructors should know whether or not their files will be compatible with the Small Rooms. A Marquette professional community that is fully knowledgeable in the use of the Smart Rooms will allow for smoothly run classes, the utilization of class time and content students and faculty.

Julie Piwowarczyk is a sophomore in the College of Communication.

This viewpoint appeared in The Marquette Tribune on May 2 2005.