Spring Break
Online classes draw mixed reactions
Yasuyo Nagata
Daily Staff Writer
- Page 1 of 1
In 1998, the university only offered one online class, said Corey Gin and Jeremy Kemp, instructional developers for SJSU.
Gin and Kemp both help faculty members to create online courses.
There are two different types of online courses at SJSU, Gin said.
"We have online courses which are considered totally online, and there are blended courses," Gin said.
Each semester, there are 35 to 50 online courses and 100 to 150 blended online courses are offered, Gin said.
Gin said blended online courses are on the rise.
In blended online courses, students still need to attend classes on campus, Kemp said.
If students are taking three-unit blended online classes, they are required to come to class 45 hours a semester, he said.
Mike Splane, a lecturer of management information systems has been teaching a course Business Productivity Tools as blended online class for two years.
In Splane's class, he provides all readings and assignments online, so students can study and review by themselves.
However, students need to come to a lab, Splane said.
Having a blended online course was Splane's idea, he said. Even though his course is a one-unit, five-week course, the students had been paying $50 for the textbook.
Splane said he felt sorry for the students and decided to post the readings online for students instead of having them pay for the textbook.
"If I were a student, I (wouldn't) want to pay $50 (for textbook) for a fi ve-week course," Splane said.
Some professors offer the same courses in both regular and online formats.
Dayana Salazar, an associate professor and an interim chair of urban and regional planning, has both a regular session and an online class called Introduction to Urban Design and Urban Design and Planning.
Salazar said the content of her online course is almost the same as a regular lecture course.
"The reason I'm able to do (an online course) is because the class lectures itself are delivered through Web streaming, so students can sit at home in front of computer and view them," she said.
However, Salazar said that majority of her students take the regular class in person, and she also likes to have them in class.
"I don't think I'm ready to go to fully online. I still need the interaction. I believe personal interaction with the instructor and with fellow students is important," she said.
In online courses, Salazar checks with each student weekly by e-mail.
"I'm checking with online students every week whether or not they are reading and following the class content," she said.
Salazar posts weekly questions on the class Web site, and students send their answers back to her.
Online courses are not only a benefit for students, but faculty members can also learn a lot through teaching classes online.
"What I have learned is I have to be very clear about the instructions I provide," Salazar said.
Salazar said her lectures are very visual, providing notes and slides with her narration and photographs.
A picture of her face also shows up on the screen, she said.
"They see my notes, hear (my) voice and see images. It's almost like watching a movie," Salazar said.
However, there are also technical difficulties at the beginning of each semester, Salazar said.
Some students can't download the Web streaming or images. These problems, however, can be solved along the way, she said.
The online courses aren't only useful for SJSU students, but also students from different places.
Sally Veregge, chair of biological sciences, started a course called Human Neuroanatomy and Physiology online since last spring.
Last semester, most of the students who took her online course were not SJSU students, Veregge said.
Human Neuroanatomy and Physiology isn't a common class, she said, therefore students apply for the class from different places such as San Diego, New York or Hawaii.
Before Veregge taught her class, she thought her class could be taught on online even it had a lab component.
"The reason that I felt it could be online was because the lab is the study of the anatomy of the brain. The human brain is hard to see anything in any case even if you got one in your hand," Veregge said.
Veregge thought if she made a video for the lab portion, students would be able to have a lab experience similar to that of a regular class.
Veregge put the brain model on the turntable and videotaped it, and she created the three compact discs for the lab portion of the online class.
Because the videos are on CDs, the students don't need to worry about downloading the videos, she said.
However, students must have a computer with a CD player, Veregge said.
When the students take her class from different places, they must have a certain time for available for exams, she said.
"They all have to take the exam at the same time," Veregge said.
The exams are usually scheduled around noon, therefore if the students live in New York, they have to take exam later and if the students live in Hawaii, they have to wake up early to take the exam, she said.
Veregge's students successfully took the exam without having time problems even though they are in different places.
However, some SJSU students had clock problems while they were taking online courses.
Phu Tran, a sophomore animation major, took an English class online, and said the most diffi cult part of taking an online course was the time setting.
For some reason, his computer's time and the Web site's time were different and it messed up the process of turning in assignments, he said.
Even though Tran completed his assignments on time, the computer didn't let him turn them in, he said.
It was very frustrating Tran said, and many of his classmates had the same problems.
Because students don't meet faculty members, it was hard to explain the problems to them.
Even though Tran and his classmates explained there was a problem with the Internet clock, they worried it would look like they were lying and had not really finished the assignment on time, he said.
Because nobody is watching, when Veregge's students take an exam, trust is vital for the online course, she said.
Veregge's exam is open book and open notes, however, the lab exam isn't open book.
"My philosophy is that I need not to facilitate them be attempted to something dishonest," Veregge said.
After Veregge taught the online course for the fi rst time, she said she learned a new thing.
"I do miss seeing students. I do miss face-to-face interaction," Veregge said.
However, she realized some students seemed more open in the online course.
When Shiv Ganapathy, a graduate electrical engineering major, took an online engineering writing course, he said it was easier to ask questions than in a classroom setting.
Ganapathy said he sometimes hesitates to ask questions or make comments in class, however, he didn't need to worry about it on online class.
"It (was) more comfortable to ask questions because no one is looking at (me)," he said.
One thing Veregge hasn't worked out yet is whether or not her feedback is appropriate for online students, and it's different from feedback in class, she said.
"(In class,) I can look at their faces (to know) 'oh, they're clueless,' and
I can get immediate questions, and I can adjust how I'm presenting things," she said.
To solve this issue, Veregge is considering a Web cast for future online students so they would be able to talk and see her through the computer.
This semester, Veregge wasn't planning to have an online course, however, some students needed to take it this semester, Veregge said.
"Usually during the day, I have all kinds of obligations. (However,) I can respond to students and interact with them (online). I can do that anytime during the day," she said.
"I feel like I'm giving the right amount of my attention (to the online students). They aren't ignored," she said.
Students who are taking online courses meet their professors or classmates once or twice during the semester.
"(Students) meet only one time, which is at the end of the semester to take the fi nal exam," said Ge Gao, a professor who teaches the online courses Communication Theory and Research and Nonverbal Communication.
Gao said she started teaching online classes about three years ago.
She said online classes are more suitable for nonverbal communication classes.
"Many people think that nonverbal communication needs facial expression. They think that they can't take it online because they can't face each other online. However, facial expression isn't the only part of nonverbal communication," Gao said.
In her online course, Gao teaches various forms of nonverbal communication through colors, accents, signs, symbols and objects.
Through online classes, Gao found differences between having students in a classroom and online students.
"In class, students tend to (have) very spontaneous responses, but online I want to make sure that they reflect the common issues," she said.
If students don't read textbooks, they will have a hard time answering questions online, Gao said.
"A big difference I found is in class, sometimes they don't read (the textbooks), but online they have to," she said.
Another benefit of online classes is they can review it, Gao said. They can always go back to the Web site anytime they want to.
Creating online courses takes a long time for most professors who start teaching online courses.
Donna Thompson, a lecturer of art and design teaches Studio Art Experiences for Young People.
She is one of the faculty members who took a long time to create her course Web site.
"It took me 100 hours," she said.
However, even though faculty members spend a long time creating their Web sites, students still have some problems trying to study online.
When Tran took an English class online, he said even though there were instructions, he wasn't sure whether or not he was doing assignments correctly. "Because there was no teacher, and I had no one to talk to," Tran said.
Thompson said accuracy is very important when faculty members create online courses since students aren't able to talk with them in person.
"You have to be very specific when you are working online," she said.
Thompson receives both positive and negative feedback for her online class every semester. Some students said the class was too much work to do online. However, others said they leaned exactly what they needed to for teaching art, Thompson said.
Splane, who teaches blended online courses, keeps comments from students and posts them online so that prospective students can see what the class will be like.
Even if students criticize him, Splane said he can benefit from it. When he receives negative feedback, it allows him to improve, he said.
However, students still have both positive and negative views about online classes.
"I don't mind taking online classes," said Dustin Nguyen, a senior biology major.
However, Nguyen said the classes he wants to take aren't offered on online. Nguyen has never taken a class online, but he assumes that it might be easier to take classes online in terms of coming to school.
Nguyen said if he could take an online class, he wouldn't need to use gas to come to school.
Some students worry about losing interaction with faculty members and other classmates.
Kenny Chai, a junior graphic design major who has never taken a class online, said he wouldn't consider taking an online course.
"In class (might be) better because (I can) get to know more people," he said.
After Tran, a sophomore animation major took an English class online, he said he would not take an online course again.
"I prefer meeting (people) in class," Tran said.
On the other hand, Ganapathy, who took an engineering writing class, said he can't take all classes online, but in some cases, online courses are very beneficial.
"It was flexible. (I could) work from home or a computer lab," he said.
Another student, Supreme Patadia, a senior biology major who has never taken an online course said,"I don't mind one or two, but not all of them. The online course is the last option (for me)."
Even though students have had various reactions to online courses, Gin, Kemp and other faculty members are trying to provide more options and educational opportunities for SJSU students.
Creating online courses isn't difficult, Gin and Kemp, the instructional developers, said.
"It's as simple as knowing Microsoft Word," Gin said.
"We provide access to the quality
of education. Using technology
for tools and resources," Gin said.
