Having the Right Stuff Is Only the Beginning: Technological and Institutionaal Challenges at the United States Military Academy

The Laptops Arrive

In August, 2002, Jeff returned to the West Point classroom after a four-year hiatus. Jeff had taught first-year and junior-year composition at USMA from 1995 to 1998, and during the 97–98 school year had been the assistant course director for the first-year composition course.  He returned to the Academy confident about what the institution expected of him as a teacher, confident of his ability to deliver.  At age 39, after having weathered the email revolution in office administration, the PowerPoint revolution in information presentation, and the Excel revolution in quantitative analysis, Jeff was not at all keen to learn that the Academy would issue every plebe a laptop, and that each department would be figuring out how to best integrate this new technology into their courses as the instructors (receiving the same automation package as the plebes) became more familiar with the technology. 
West Point cadets work studying in the hallways.
Jeff was even less thrilled to learn that the Academy had installed Blackboard course management software, yet relieved that there was no mandate to use it beyond activating one's course Blackboard site and posting syllabi.  Maybe he was not so well prepared for a return to the classroom, after all, Jeff thought.