Making Education Green

The latest and greatest technology is making it easier for students and instructors to access information electronically which means the need to print is dwindling. With web enhanced and online courses more readily available now than ever before, how can we continue to learn, advise, and communicate information effectively without printing.

First, pause before clicking Print. Think about why you need to print a document and if it can be retrieved electronically by others. Consider forwarding the information using email. This will save on time and costs associated with making copies.

Next, take into account the amount of materials available to instructors and students online. For example, a syllabus, assignments, lectures, and PowerPoint slides can be reviewed and retrieved easily through an online course as needed. Students can submit assignments electronically and instructors can have the ability to preview submissions on screen as well.

Lastly, utilize editing tools such as Microsoft Word’s “Track Changes”. This would allow members of a group working on a project to preview edits made in different font colors or an instructor can offer feedback to students using this editing tool to add comments. Another option for editing documents would be to use Google Docs (http://docs.google.com). Google Docs allows students to work together at the same time to make changes to a document and a history of the edits is kept along with the document. Also, instructors can collaborate with other colleagues on updating materials using Google Docs.

Taking into account the choices we have to make education green can offer opportunities to allow for more time to discuss information and revisions with others, lower printing and copying costs, and reducing our carbon footprint.