Students off campus can now interact with professors and fellow classmates thanks to the University's virtual classroom. Now in its third semester, virtual classroom use has virtually skyrocketed. More than 70 classes have their own pages. Involvement depends on the professor's initiative.
"It's very helpful for students to be able to communicate with each
other," said Prof. Cynthia Jahn, who has used the virtual classroom
since its inception. "It gives the students the opportunity to teach,
to work with each other." Most virtual classroom pages include a
syllabus of the course, student assignments, additional information
or website links, and a chat room where students and professors can
share their research. Some professors use it as a medium for essays
and exams.
According to Alejandro Eluchans of Web Services, setting up a
classroom is amazingly simple. Virtual classrooms have four main
features. First, they offer a password protected environment where
only registered students get access to the information, and only
faculty given specific permission can edit the pages. Second, faculty
can edit files and create links without spending hours learning html
language. Third, professors can upload images -- photographs, charts,
etc. -- to augment information placed on the page. In the future,
Eluchans hopes students will also have the ability to upload images.
Fourth, the classroom provides a forum for "live" discussions.
Professors can create topics to which students can respond.
"Some professors use just the posting of information, some use just
the forum, and some use the whole thing… I'd be listening to a
wish list professors have, basically, and I would be taking from
that," said Eluchans.
Jahn has witnessed teams of students using the classroom for their
research projects. She said having University support is important
because classrooms need to address UMass Boston students' needs. But
don't expect the virtual classrooms to replace face-to-face
interaction. "The idea is to extend the class, to improve the class
presence," said Eluchans. "It's never meant to take away the
classroom."
Eluchans organizes virtual classroom presentations each semester, and
is willing to make special appointments for groups of six to 15
professors. He can be reached at 75411 or alejandro.eluchans@umb.edu.