2017 UBIT faculty survey results

An instructor lectures in a UB classroom.

Published October 27, 2017 This content is archived.

by Benjamin Blanchet

In April 2017, UBIT surveyed nearly 500 members of UB’s faculty. Their responses will shape the technology and services UBIT provides to ensure faculty and student needs are met in the future. 

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Benjamin Blanchett.

Benjamin Blanchet (UB student, Class of 2018) is an English major with an interest in journalism. After graduating from UB, he hopes to attend grad school and pursue a career writing about music and the arts. An Albany, NY native, Benjamin enjoys biking and reading in his spare time.

Technology by the numbers

  • UB-provided devices: 68% of faculty respondents use desktop computers, and 45% use laptops.
  • Personal devices: 64% of respondents use their personal smartphones and laptop computers for work tasks.
  • 58% of respondents use Windows devices; 34% use Mac devices.

Classroom technology that works

Following recent upgrades to classroom technology on campus, respondents ranked every category of classroom technology in terms of ease of use. 59% of faculty responded that UB classroom projectors were easy to use. 54% and 47% of faculty said that internal teaching station computers and touch screen panels were easy to use respectively. 

The lowest ease-of-use ratings were given to lighting controls (40% of responding faculty rated favorably) and classroom scheduling (21% rated favorably). 

Smartphones in the classroom

Most faculty who responded when asked “How do you encourage the use of smartphones and tablets in your classes?” offered some ways in which they find the devices useful, including mobile notetaking (18%), fostering collaboration (16%) and responding to clicker questions (12%). 15% of respondents reported not currently allowing mobile devices in the classroom in any capacity.

The use of mobile devices in the classroom is a polarizing topic among UB faculty. One faculty member responded: “the use of technology in the classroom is a distraction,” while another said, if there “were obvious and simple ways to use them to improve student learning,” then they would allow it. 

Delivering on support and services

Faculty satisfaction with UBIT services varied depending on the service or application, but “daily use” services like MyUB and UBlearns were rated favorably (69% and 62% satisfaction, respectively).

75% of faculty respondents are familiar with UBbox, UB’s free and secure cloud storage and file sharing service, and over 50% are satisfied with it.

When asked what features could be added or enhanced in order to improve UBbox, “improved sync functionality” and “more intuitive user interface” were at the top of the list (note: UBbox has recently been upgraded in both these areas; Box Drive makes syncing easier from a desktop, and UBbox’s web interface was recently redesigned also).

Read more

You can read the summary of our first Faculty IT Survey online. For specific questions about responses and data we’ve received, contact us at ubit-communication@buffalo.edu.