by Kristiana Hunt
In the Spring 2011 semester, WVU Parkersburg was introduced to a new way of online teaching. Math 011, Arithmetic, and Math 021, Elementary Algebra, were put together in a program called CourseCampus.
CourseCampus is very similar to a regular online class, with a few exceptions. Rather than a textbook, an ebook is provided in the package to the students at a much more reasonable cost. Also, attendance in the clasroom is required.
Students work with this course in the school’s computer lab at their own pace. Before each section, a required pretest is given. A score of 80 percent or higher allows the student to move on to the next section, skipping the section that they already know how to do.
A system like this allows the students who learn at a much slower pace to do exactly that. Not only do they go at their own pace, but if the course is not completed when the semester is over, they can register for the course again and start right where they left off. This avoids having to retake the course and go through sections they have already completed, like one would have to do in a traditional class should they need to retake it.
This system also allows those students who work at a much faster pace to move ahead and not wait around. Students taking Math 011 get the advantage of moving onto Math 021 if they finish Math 011 before the semester is over. Travis Dennis is a prime example of this advantage. Three weeks into the semester, he is ready to take his final for Math 011. “I like it a lot better. It's self-paced and I don’t have to wait around to make progress,” Dennis said. No extra tuition charge is added, so Dennis will complete two math courses for the price of one.
Though attendance is required, work outside of the lab is encouraged. Poor management is the biggest cause of struggle in this course. “They either love it or they hate it,” Math Department Coordinator, Al Edwards said. “There is no middle ground.”
An overall review showed that students scored much higher on their final exam for the CourseCampus than students in a classroom setting did for the same math courses. As a result, the CourseCampus is here to stay. “We’re not mixing two different ways to take these courses, this is the only way now,” Edwards added.
In the Spring 2011 semester, WVU Parkersburg was introduced to a new way of online teaching. Math 011, Arithmetic, and Math 021, Elementary Algebra, were put together in a program called CourseCampus.
CourseCampus is very similar to a regular online class, with a few exceptions. Rather than a textbook, an ebook is provided in the package to the students at a much more reasonable cost. Also, attendance in the clasroom is required.
Students work with this course in the school’s computer lab at their own pace. Before each section, a required pretest is given. A score of 80 percent or higher allows the student to move on to the next section, skipping the section that they already know how to do.
A system like this allows the students who learn at a much slower pace to do exactly that. Not only do they go at their own pace, but if the course is not completed when the semester is over, they can register for the course again and start right where they left off. This avoids having to retake the course and go through sections they have already completed, like one would have to do in a traditional class should they need to retake it.
This system also allows those students who work at a much faster pace to move ahead and not wait around. Students taking Math 011 get the advantage of moving onto Math 021 if they finish Math 011 before the semester is over. Travis Dennis is a prime example of this advantage. Three weeks into the semester, he is ready to take his final for Math 011. “I like it a lot better. It's self-paced and I don’t have to wait around to make progress,” Dennis said. No extra tuition charge is added, so Dennis will complete two math courses for the price of one.
Though attendance is required, work outside of the lab is encouraged. Poor management is the biggest cause of struggle in this course. “They either love it or they hate it,” Math Department Coordinator, Al Edwards said. “There is no middle ground.”
An overall review showed that students scored much higher on their final exam for the CourseCampus than students in a classroom setting did for the same math courses. As a result, the CourseCampus is here to stay. “We’re not mixing two different ways to take these courses, this is the only way now,” Edwards added.