Using CU-SeeMe To Deliver a Masters-Level Class over the Internet.

This paper reports on a Masters level course in educational research given by Illinois State University that used instructional Internet technologies. Students were located in a public school district three and one-half hours from campus. The course utilized several in-person sessions (both onand off-campus), e-mail, and a dedicated Web site. The majority of classes, though, were held synchronously over the Internet using CU-SeeMe client and server software. Students reported generally enjoying the class, although the multiplicity of continuing technical issues and steep computer learning curve were problems for some. Evaluation indicated that all the students passed the course, with assignment grades and test scores no different from those earned by similar on-campus students in prior semesters. However, course delivery required an enormous amount of time and technical expertise on the part of the instructor and the school district technical staff. Instructors contemplating this mode of content delivery are urged to be aware of both benefits and costs, especially in terms of time for instructor and student training, multiple modality and error-alternative preparation, and practice. (DB) ******************************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ********************************************************************************