Most students have nightmares about attending class in their
pajamas, but for Lisa Henson it's a common, real-life experience.
She's not crazy. She's just enjoying the perks of taking
classes over the Internet. After she deals with her three
energized little boys and her husband, teaches three classes
of eighth-graders , runs the computer lab and helps out
the school librarian, taking her college courses in comfort
is a blessing .
"I can put on my favorite pajamas, slide into my slippers,
and I'm ready for class," says Henson, who teaches literature
in Monahans, Texas. "And the best part of taking classes
over the Internet is that I can do it anytime, anywhere."
Henson is one of nearly 1,000 students taking UNT web-based
courses. These distance learners are coming online from as
far away as India and Thailand to take courses in every one
of the university's colleges and schools.
Education at the click of a mouse
In these fully interactive classes, students may view lectures
via Internet video feeds, interact with faculty and other
students through chat rooms and e-mail, and download class
assignments at their leisure, says Phil Turner, associate
vice president for academic affairs for distance education.
The Center for Distributed Learning, which reports to Turner,
assists in creating and managing the university's entire line
of web-based courses .
"We've definitely established a name for ourselves
," says Turner, who is also dean of the School of Library
and Information Sciences. "On account of our success,
other universities are seeking out tours of our programs
to see how it's done ."
For Henson, web-based courses provide a means to fulfilling
a dream.
"Being a librarian is the culmination of what I've
studied throughout college - English, reading and kids,"
she says. Henson is working on her master's degree in library
science, a degree she can earn entirely on the web.
"I can hop on the computer and work on assignments
during lunch breaks or in between teaching my classes,"
Henson says. "And even when I took my kids on vacation
to visit their uncle, I could go to class. I just logged in
on my brother's computer.
"Web courses are a blessing . Pretty soon I'll be
the full-time librarian."
Virtual hermits and Internet junkies
Henson's blessing is Carol Simpson's challenge. Simpson
is one of Henson's library science professors. All of Simpson's
courses are online. She still keeps office hours, but most
of her students prefer to contact her via e-mail since they're
spread out across the country. Simpson says the lack of personal
contact with students is the only downside to teaching this
way.
"I keep some goodies on my desk to bribe students into
coming by," Simpson says with a quick glance at a platter
of mini chocolate bars collecting dust. "What can I say?
I'm a people person ."
And Simpson says that sometimes she just feels like a "virtual
hermit ."
Despite it all, she feels her students get as much from
e-mails and chat rooms as they could from face-to-face interaction.
She says a misconception about online courses is that they
are automated instruction . In reality, Simpson spends hours
on the computer, monitoring student discussion forums and
reviewing assignments.
"When I began teaching this way, I was online 20 hours
a day, partly because I was still learning the ropes ,"
she says. "After a year and half, I'm online only six
hours a day. These classes take just as long as regular courses
and are just as much work for the teacher and the students."
Henson agrees, saying her web courses are intense.
"You can't sit in the back of the classroom and hide
with these courses," she says. "Participation is
everything in a web-based course."
Comfortable lectures
Distance learners also interact with guest speakers, who
lecture online at a scheduled time. The students can pick
the minds of the lecturers in chat rooms, and the speakers
love the simplicity of logging into a class . "
An expert in California lectured to one of my classes last
semester," Simpson says. "Normally, it's impossible
to get five minutes in person with this speaker, but online
it's a different story .
"After her lecture, the staffing expert sent me an
e-mail saying, 'This is the first time I've lectured in my
pajamas - it was great.'" Henson commends the web-based
library courses for bringing interesting people online to
share their points of view and expertise . Recent lecturers
have included a Texas Education Agency representative and
a 15-year-old hacker . It all adds to Henson's librarian
education.
"It's just such a great way to learn," she says.
"All of my eighth-graders know about my online classes
and they all keep saying that's how they're going to college.
I keep telling them, let's just work on going to class right
now."
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