Representatives of faculty organizations and groups devoted to promoting college access announced plans to develop a new policy-oriented "virtual" think tank as part of a national campaign to defend government higher-education spending from what they characterize as a long-term political assault. More broadly, their "Campaign for the Future of Higher Education"—first organized at a meeting held in California in January and officially kicked off at a news conference at the National Press Club—seeks to have higher-education organizations work together to promote the idea that the nation's future depends on making an affordable college education available to all segments of American society. Steve Kolowich notes that for years, researchers have conducted studies in hopes of answering whether having laptops in class undermines student learning. In the avalanche of literature, one can find data pointing each way. A 2006 study of 83 undergraduate psychology students suggested that having laptops in class distracts both the students who use them and their classmates. Several law professors have written triumphal papers documenting their own experiments banning laptops, which one of them complained had transformed his students from thoughtful, selective note-takers into “court reporters” reduced to mindlessly transcribing his lectures. And yet other papers have argued that laptop bans are reductive exercises that ignore the possibility that some students — maybe even a majority — might in fact benefit from being able to use computers in class if only professors would provide a modicum of discipline and direction. What do you think? Have you tried using laptops as a tool in your classroom? If you were unsatisfied with your student's evaluation of your teaching this semester, now is the time to contact the CT+LE staff for help. Let's get together and design a plan to improve your teaching and in turn, enhance the learning of your students.