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Courses on the Web

(The following four categories are taken from an article by Judith Boettcher, CREN, entitled "Another Look at the Tower of WWWebble", in Syllabus, Vol. 13, No. 3, October 1999 [http://www.syllabus.com/]--the next categories are mine, as are the examples.)
 
  1. Web presence: offers a course description, syllabus, bibliography, book & course requirements.  Example.
  2. Web-enhanced or "Web-lite" course: replaces distribution of handouts, etc. and supports student access to electronic resources. Example.
  3. Web-centric course: supports communication between instructor and students, among students, between students and resources, shifting some of the communication hub from the classroom to the Web.
  4. Web course: no physical classroom is used; all communication takes place electronically.  All course material is on the Web.  As this course is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, it is very convenient for students who have jobs; they can pick their own time for accessing the course site.  The instructor's disadvantage, provided he or she enjoys a live audience of students as much as I do: he/she never meets the students personally.
  5. Distance Teaching: a course with a Lehman College instructor and students at LC as well as at other locations; communication is interactive, BOTH in live sessions held in our specially equipped rooms (all participants can see and hear each other) AND between instructor and students and among students (using listserv and/or e-mail).  The Web would be used to provide resources.  LC resources.
  6. Distance Teaching: a course with a Lehman College presenter and audiences at other locations, interactive, using video conferencing etc..  The Web would be used to provide resources.  LC resources.

Pros and Cons of Distance Teaching:

    (The term that has been commonly used over the last few years is "distance learning" but I do not think that there is such a thing.  So I want to start a, so far, one woman movement, to rename it to distance education.)

    Advantages:
    This is way to organize presentations and courses very inexpensively: one need not travel to other locations.
    A Web forum tends to encourage shy students.

    Disadvantages:
    One needs more time to prepare & rehearse a presentation which will include being familiar with all technical resources and needed controls.  One also needs time to organize, scheduling and reserving facilities and technical support at both the local and the far sites.
    A Web forum may frustrate talkative students.


Ursula Hoffmann, Lehman College.  Last rev. 10/1999.  I would appreciate comments.