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News

WebCT a valuable tool

New technologies foster better learning and communication via Internet 

by ROLANDO DANS, JR.
The Daily Cougar

Nearly 28,000 of the University's almost 35,000 students are enrolled in one or more of the 993 courses currently online in WebCT Vista this semester, administrators said.

Beginning with only 40 courses in the spring of 2000, WebCT came as a replacement for IntraKal, one of the first Internet-based teaching tools used on campus. WebCT was chosen for its user-friendliness and versatility, an improvement over IntraKal.

"WebCT has been a tremendous classroom management tool that allows faculty to distribute assignments, post grades and communicate with their students," Director of Educational Technology and University Outreach Marshall E. Schott said.

Schott, who was involved in the early stages of implementing WebCT, said that the number of courses utilizing WebCT will continue to grow as instructors continue to embrace the technology.

"WebCT and other educational applications are provided as tools for faculty to use. The decision to use those tools is driven by instructional needs," Schott said. "If faculty feel as though these tools provide a value added to the learning experience, they will adopt them."

Schott and his department have been involved in seeking technologies that can benefit the University and foster a more active learning environment.

"We have a number of pilots ongoing using desktop conferencing software (allows live, conferencing with chat and/or audio/video) and podcasting," he said.

In the spring of 2006, the University completed its transition from the initial Campus Edition version of WebCT to the newer Vista. WebCT Inc. also saw itself get bought out by rival Blackboard Inc. in the same year.

Instructors can deliver course content such as PowerPoint slides, streaming videos, documents and lectures. 

An integration of Turnitin.com with WebCT allows students to submit papers to their professors while checking for signs of plagiarism. Other technologies, such as Wimba's Live Classroom, allow for voice chatting, application sharing and an electronic whiteboard that students and their instructors can write or draw on together, Schott said.

Aside from being a medium for delivering content, Schott believes that WebCT also serves as a tool for creating learning communities on the Web through which instructors, students and their peers can communicate. 

"The Internet has allowed for the creation of more dynamic, interactive learning environments," he said. "This, I think, helps promote a sense of community and more actively engages the learners." 

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