Anthropology, counseling among classes offered online, more to come

By Jonathan McFadden

mcfaddenj@mytjnow.com

As opposed to physical courses, Winthrop is offering online options for students during the summer. Late-start classes are also on the agenda for those interested. Photo by Stephanie Eaton • eatons@mytjnow.comWinthrop is getting wired, with 21 classes being offered online this summer.

The university is considering adding more online classes to the overall curriculum, said Kimarie Whetstone, online learning coordinator.

This semester, nine classes were piloted online, ranging from anthropology to counseling and development. 

The benefit: students will be able to exercise greater flexibility with their schedules, especially during the summer.

“They’ll still have the opportunity to complete courses over the summer and not physically be here on campus,” Whetstone said.

Most often, courses placed online are still offered in the traditional face-to-face format, Whetstone said.

But this won’t always be the case.

Some new classes may be developed online for the first time.

Not only will students be able to rack up credits during the summer, but online courses may help them finish their degree faster. 

Yet, taking an online class may not be the best route for everyone.

“They [students] really should consider whether online is the right format or method for their learning, because we all have different learning styles,” Whetstone said.

For Sierra Lewis, it was pretty good. 

Taking a music appreciation class online, Lewis, sophomore integrated marketing communication major, said most of the readings were easy and she got an easy “A.”

The online class wasn’t too time-consuming, either, Lewis said.

“You don’t have to go out of your room to do your work or anything,” Lewis said.

While online learning may be great for some, for others it may not be as easy.

“They [students] prefer the face-to-face connection with their instructor,” Whetstone said. 

Online classes have proven popular with professors, too.

Just ask Sarah Quick, professor of anthropology.

When Winthrop offered professors a trial run of online courses in the summer of 2010, Quick bit the bullet and tried it, offering her introduction to language and culture course online. 

The results were effective. 

Though she was reluctant to teach an anthropology course online, Quick said the online discussion forum helped foster more student perspectives in the class than it may have if it were only offered face-to-face.

Her verdict: online courses aren’t so bad; in fact, they may encourage students who otherwise wouldn’t speak or participate in class to open up.

“I didn’t even think about that going in; that you get more perspective in the discussion forum than you might get in the classroom,” Quick said. “In the classroom, you might ask a question and get three or four answers.”

Though transferring more courses online will save the university money, time is the biggest investment. 

In terms of class development, instructors have to take the time to modify courses for online use.

Better late than never 

On another token, more classes will receive late-start dates in the near future.

Late-start dates, which basically consist of classes starting around March and ending in May or beginning in January and ending in March, is another example of the university’s effort to give students and faculty more flexibility in their choices.

Helping students walk across the stage upon graduation is also another reason to institute late-start dates, said Tim Drueke, assistant vice president for Academic Affairs.

Departments that have used late-start dates include: accounting, economics, psychology and chemistry.

There exists a challenge with late-start dates--scheduling.

“The challenge is getting a room you can use for two time blocks consecutively or five days a week,” Drueke said.

Barbara Pierce was all too familiar with this challenge and others when she taught an accounting 280 class, which started in mid-October during the fall 2009 semester.

Pierce, department chair of accounting, finance and economics in the College of Business, taught 10 students at 8 a.m., four days a week.

The conditions weren’t too favorable and attendance was somewhat dismal. 

“That’s hard for anybody, professor or student,” Pierce said. 

With only seven students left to count,  Pierce stopped keeping roll mid-semester. 

The purpose for offering the half-semester accounting class was to help students who were doing poorly in the full-semester class, Pierce said.

That goal never came into fruition.

“Well, if you’re doing poorly in a full semester, how good are you going to be in a condensed half semester?” Pierce said. 

Better planning and more marketing aimed at students may be more helpful in the future, Pierce said, but students who are already struggling may not do any better in a faster-paced class.

Pierce said she thinks late-start classes are a good idea, but the mistake would be sticking them in the wrong time period, especially if they’re at 8 a.m. 

The key is figuring out when to offer the classes, Pierce said.

“I think it can work, but someone’s got to figure out when to offer it that doesn’t interfere with everything else a student might have to take,” Pierce said.

Three-credit courses will have to stay that way, meaning the classes will have to meet for at least 100 minutes a week instead of the normal 50, Drueke said. 

With classes lasting only seven to eight weeks, late-start classes may have to meet five times a week or in two time-blocks. 

“If it’s half a semester, you’re going to double the daily time roughly or double the weekly time,” Drueke said.