Questions for Discussion and Writing

 

1.      Were you surprised that the first reading selection for this scenario was a poem?  Why?  What is your initial reaction to this short poem?  What do you like or dislike about it?

 

2.      In your college classes, do you ever feel like the speaker of this poem, who notes that when "shown the charts and diagrams" and while listening to "the astronomer where he lectured," the speaker "became tired and sick"?  Why or why not?  Do you think you might feel differently if you heard about and worked with those "charts and diagrams" in an online class?  Why or why not?

 

3.      Do you think that Whitman is saying that personal experience (looking “up in perfect silence at the stars”) is as valuable—or perhaps more valuable—than working with “charts and diagrams,” or sitting “in the lecture room”?  Why or why not?

 

4.      Do you think that either of the types of learning Whitman describes—sitting and listening to a lecture or looking at the stars yourself—can effectively be replicated in an online class?  Why or why not?

 

5.      Have you ever taken an Internet class?  If so, what is your sense—now that you’re in college—of whether an Internet class is a “real” college or university class?  Can you provide details to compare the two types of classes?  If you have not taken such a class, would you take one now that you’ve read a bit about them? Why or why not?

 

 

 

Questions for Discussion and Writing

 

1.      What is your initial reaction to the quotation in paragraph 5 that says, "A decade from now, it wouldn't surprise me if the majority of education took place in people's homes, in people's offices, on the production line, wherever it is needed"?   Do you agree or disagree? Why?

 

2.      In paragraph 10, Cwiklik begins a discussion of how the private sector is entering the field of higher education, and in paragraph 11, he discusses Kaplan Educational Centers' plan for an online law school.  How do you feel about the private sector moving into public education?  Do you think that such a move will make for better schools?  Why?  Would it matter to you if your degree came from a public college or university or from one operated by a major corporation?  Why or why not?

 

3.      Starting in paragraph 25, Cwiklik outlines how campus libraries are becoming virtual libraries, where "most everything you need will perhaps be available" online (paragraph 26).  Does the concept of conducting only online research appeal to you?  Why or why not?  Do you think it would be easier, faster, or more reliable to conduct research online than to work in your own college or university library?  Why or why not?

 

4.      Ethical question: If you knew that a class offered through one of the avenues explored in these articles (on the Internet, for example) was bogus and that you’d receive a good grade just for paying the fee and buying the books, would you take the class?  Why or why not?

 

 

 

 

Questions for Discussion and Writing

 

1.      All college classes should have some mechanism for assessing whether learning has taken place—that is, whether students have learned what the curriculum was designed to help them learn.  In paragraph 8, Merisotis and Olsen suggest "three broad measures of the effectiveness of distance education": (1) student outcomes, (2) student attitudes about distance learning, and (3) student satisfaction with distance learning. As a student, do you think that these three areas can accurately reflect what you "got out of" a college or university course?  Jot down your answers to these questions:

 

·        What "outcomes" do your present college classes have?  What should you know or be able to do when you complete them?

·        Can “student attitudes” accurately measure the learning that takes place in a college class? Do you feel more “satisfied” with the classes in which you learned a lot—and have negative feelings about those classes in which you didn’t learn as much?

 

2.      Merisotis and Olsen note that "students in distance learning courses tend to drop out of their courses . . . at a higher rate than students in conventional classes" (paragraph 15).  Why do you suppose that happens?  In what ways might online courses be improved to aid retention?

 

3.      Which of the articles you’ve read so far do you find the most persuasive? Why? Which data from the articles you’ve read do you find the most convincing?  Why?  If you had to argue for or against online education, what facts or figures or illustrations from these articles might you use in your statement?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Questions for Discussion and Writing

 

1.      Now that you've read Koeppel’s article, what is your response to his title?  Why or why not?

 

2.      Ethical question: In an employment interview, your prospective employer mentions that another job candidate has a degree from what you know to be a bogus online university.  Do you mention what you know?  Why or why not?

 

3.      Starting in paragraph 12, Koeppel lists several "defining characteristics" that indicate when an online school might be a "diploma mill."  These characteristics include giving credit to students for work and life experiences, accelerated degree completion, payment on a degree basis instead of a semester or per-course basis, little interaction with faculty members, and a lack of accreditation.  Although lack of proper accreditation seems an obvious weakness, how so you feel about the other characteristics Koeppel lists: 

 

·        What’s wrong with giving college credit for work and life experiences?

·        What is the problem with getting a degree more quickly than what traditional colleges allow? 

·        Why is paying for your degree all at once, rather than by semester or by course, an indication of a bogus degree?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Questions for Discussion and Writing

 

1.      Now that you have a sense of the problems that Mendels outlines in this article, to whom or what do you attribute those difficulties?  Were these problems the teacher's fault or were they caused by the technology?

 

2.      Mendels lists a number of problems a researcher discovered about an online class, including:

 

·        Too much e-mail for both students and the instructor.

·        Misunderstandings in communication.

·        Technological problems.

·        A lack of visual clues some students needed to fully understand what the teacher wanted.

 

If you were to redesign this course, what changes would you implement to eliminate the problems Mendels outlines?

 

3.   If you had been a student in the course that Mendels describes, would you have dropped the class, or would you have done something to improve the situation?   Why?  What might you have done?

Questions for Discussion and Writing

 

1.      What is your initial reaction to Michael Saylor's idea of an "online Ivy League-quality university"?  Would you sign up for classes there?  Why or why not?

 

2.      Morse quotes the responses of many people from traditional universities to Saylor’s ideas. Do you agree or disagree with their comments?  Why?

 

3.      Outline what you see as the benefits of Saylor's idea.  Also detail what you see as potential problems with his concept.

 

4.      Morse notes that "traditional campuses are also getting wired.  Stanford offers a virtual master's degree; the University of Chicago and Columbia, among others [are creating] a for-profit online college" (paragraph 3).  If that's true, what could be wrong with Saylor's ideas?

 

 

 

Questions for Discussion and Writing

 

1.      What is your immediate reaction to the methods Carnevale outlines for stopping online cheating?  Are they necessary?  Under what conditions might they work?  Why or why not?

 

2.      Ethical question: Do you think college students are more likely to cheat in an online class than in a traditional classroom?  Why or why not?

 

3.      Ethical question: If you knew that a classmate was cheating, would you turn him or her in?  Why or why not?

 

4.      Carnevale quotes a professor who suggests that "continuing-education students . . . are usually more ethical than traditional 19-year-old undergraduates" (paragraph 31).  Do you agree? Why or why not?

 

Questions for Discussion and Writing

 

1.      Do you agree or disagree with support Perley and Tanguary's title, that "Accrediting On-Line Institutions Diminishes Higher Education"?  Is this evidence persuasive?  Why or why not?

 

2.      What is your reaction to what Perley and Tanguary refer to as "unbundling" (paragraph 9)?  Do you see this process as positive or negative for higher education?  Why?

 

3.      Perley and Tanguary argue that three things distinguish higher education in the United States: academic freedom, collegial governance, and a strong research program (paragraph 11).  Should undergraduates participate in academic research?  In your classes, are you involved in research?  In what ways?

 

Questions for Discussion and Writing

 

1.      Do you agree or disagree with Crow's position, as stated in the title of his essay, that “Virtual Universities Can Meet High Standards”?  Why?

 

2.      Now that you've read and thought about some of the issues in accrediting online colleges, do you believe that online college and university classes can offer students the same educational benefits as the traditional model?  Why or why not?

 

3.      Think about the articles your instructor asked you to read, and construct two lists: one that shows the benefits of distance-learning classes and another that lists their possible problems.  Does this list change your mind about whether these types of courses ought to replace some of your traditional college or university classes?  Why or why not?