More students using computer to connect to classwork

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More students using computer to connect to classwork

Source: Boston Herald
Publication date: 2003-09-09


Amy Rafferty received her master's in business administration from Suffolk University - and never once set foot in a classroom.
Rafferty did her studies online, joining thousands of others who commute to class by booting up their computers and connecting to the Internet.

"I wouldn't have done the degree otherwise," said Rafferty, a Concord, N.H., resident who squeezed her studies into a 50-hour workweek. "The only way to do it was evening classes, and I didn't want to drive through the snow if I didn't have to."

The cyber-classroom is one of the fastest growing branches of academic institutions, with the U.S. Department of Education estimating that more than 127,400 distance-education classes are offered a year, with some 3.1 million students enrolled.

Advocates of online learning tout its convenience and flexibility. The cost is comparable to that of traditional courses, and students can finish a bachelor's degree, embark on a graduate program or earn a certificate in anything from Web site development to criminal justice. Many schools provide online tutorials and academic advising for technologically timid students, even allowing them to "test-drive" courses.

Boston University launched a master's degree in criminal justice last year, an online program that started with 50 students and has grown to 300. According to Susan Kryczka, director of distance education, this fall the school will offer a master's degree in insurance management - with 100 students already enrolled - and a doctoral program in physical therapy.

Framingham State offers 30 courses online, with plans to launch a bachelor's degree in liberal arts studies and a master's in elementary education online, said Robin Robinson, director of business education. Such growth is typical of other area online schools.

Mawdudur Rahman, president of the Association of Accredited Online Programs International and director of online programs at Suffolk University, says he believes teaching and learning online boosts standards.

"Here, because I am typing and it's archived, I am very careful about what I'm saying," Rahman said. "The students also have to write things that make sense."

Rahman added that the anonymity of distance learning encourages more class participation, even from shy students.

Though distance learning requires discipline and self- motivation, a common misconception is that online learning allows students to learn at their own pace without much structure or interaction with instructors and peers.

Not so, said Brian Mueller, chief executive officer of the University of Phoenix Online, a nationwide distance learning school that began offering online courses in 1989.

"Students are required to log on and participate five out of seven days a week, and each class is divided into modules by the week," Mueller said.

Many courses hold Web discussions or require students to spend online time together, working on assignments.

At Framingham State and Suffolk, systems personnel monitor activity on course sites. This information is made available to instructors, who can follow up with students who haven't visited the site in a while.

Romeo Marquis, Framingham State's associate dean for academic technology and distance education, recalled a class in which the only time there were no hits on the Web site was between 2 and 3 a.m.

"For the most part, I think (students) are working harder online," said Marquis, who will teach two online courses this fall. Marquis set up the first online learning course at Framingham College in 1999 and has watched online education grow in sophistication and structure ever since.

In 1999, he developed a course Web page and interacted with students only through e-mail. Now the school uses Blackboard, a content management system that allows faculty to load classes online and to customize course Web sites. Students access the coursework and talk with their peers and instructors through chat rooms and discussion boards.

At Suffolk University, live audio is used in some courses, allowing students to listen to lectures.

But whatever the setup, online education forces instructors to be extremely organized, Marquis said. Many schools also have a limit of 15-20 students per class, which allows instructors to spend quality time - electronically - with individuals.

"Our instructors tell me that online teaching is more time- consuming and more difficult, but they would rather do it than face- to-face teaching," Marquis said. "But it's not everyone who is willing to take that kind of challenge."

Today's online learning environment is a cyberspace free-for- all, in which anyone can set up a Web site and offer courses. Accredited institutions vie with startups, and it's easy for prospective students to be confused about a program's legitimacy. But the recently formed nonprofit Association of Accredited Online Programs International (www.aaopi.org) hopes to to set standards for online learning and help universities create accredited online programs.

The association, which has about half a dozen charter members, will hold its first conference, "Accreditation, Collaboration, Research," Oct. 17-19 at Suffolk University. Speakers are scheduled to discuss the future of e-learning, the benefits of AAOPI accreditation and the marketing of online education programs, among other topics.

`Online education is so new that there are not standards that are universally accepted," said Rafferty, who is now teaching an online class at Suffolk University. "There are a lot of diploma mills out there, and in order for online education not to be looked down upon, it has to meet certain standards."

Publication date: 2003-09-09