A partnership between the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) and Toshiba has allowed the university to be the first in Australia to use Tablet PC technology across the campus. The University of Southern Queensland (USQ) is taking the use of technology within education to a new level, thanks to a burgeoning partnership between the university and Toshiba. In a cutting-edge new project funded by a USQ Senior Learning and Teaching Fellowship as well as the deans of all faculties, more than 50 USQ academics have begun using Tablet PCs to aid their teaching. While it's not a new technology, project leader Dr Birgit Loch said USQ was the first university in Australia to fully explore its use across faculties in tertiary education in a co-ordinated approach.
While the tablets may look like an ordinary laptop their special hardware allows users to write on the computer with a special pen known as a stylus. The PCs are more expensive than ordinary laptops because of their specialty nature, however international technology provider Toshiba is so interested in the project it has decided to partner with USQ and has provided the university with discounted computers for the fellowship project. Toshiba Queensland representative Mason Wong said Toshiba was supporting the university's initiative because it mirrored the corporation's own attitude toward technological advancement.
