Daily Bulletin

Friday, December 12, 1997

University of Waterloo • Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

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Distant students use the Web

The World Wide Web "provides a more flexible framework for the design and delivery of online learning" than tapes and papers arriving in the mail, UW's thousands of "distance" students are told in the current issue of their newsletter. There was one Web-based course in UW's distance education offerings last year, but at least eight courses (out of more than 250 distance courses altogether) are now using the Web in some form.

"Complete courses can be developed for online delivery," says the new issue of the UW Correspondent, "or an instructor may choose only to use group conferencing and electronic submission of assignments. What we also like about online learning is that our distance students can be more connected with their instructor and fellow students for lively online discussions, solving problems, or just to say hello.

"The administration tools that support online learning assist in the registration of students in courses and conferences. And we think the experience and skills our students will acquire using the World Wide Web to take our courses will be an additional plus."

Use of the Web for what used to be called "correspondence courses" started with English 210G, a technical writing course, last year. Now, for example, Computer Science 100 is using the Web to provide online conferencing for discussion, not to mention that assignments are sent in and returned by e-mail. Use of the Web is "a natural choice" for Environmental Studies 220, the newsletter says, "since the course looks at the ways information technologies can assist in understanding eco-systems". And in the winter term, Economics 301 will require "full Web access" -- students will get their course notes on the Web, rather than by mail as they do in other courses. There will be still be audiotaped lectures, the backbone of UW correspondence courses for the past three decades.

"As more and more students get on the Internet," says the newsletter, "we hope to offer additional courses through that medium. We'll be evaluating the experience students have with these new courses and continue to work toward a method which blends the best ways of presenting material.

"We are conscious of the impact this will have on those who do not have access to a computer and the Internet and we can assure you that it will be some time before even the majority of our courses are offered in an advanced format. The traditional tapes and notes are still the mainstay of our program and will remain so for a long time."

A recent survey says that 70 per cent of UW's distance education students are female; ages range from 19 to 83; they live an average of 80.5 kilometres from the nearest university campus. And while students on campus are looking ahead to something of a break at Christmas, the holiday sees no relief in the academic stress for distance students, who are looking ahead to Saturday, January 10, as exam day for fall term courses.

Throngs will hear Meichenbaum

"As a result of the terrific article written in this week's Gazette," says Sharon Adams in the psychology department, "we've had a number of calls from the campus community asking about how they can attend the Meichenbaum presentation scheduled for this Friday." It's a talk by Don Meichenbaum -- distinguished professor emeritus, and once listed as one of the ten most influential figures in the history of clinical psychology -- on "Life After Retirement: Gallbladders, Youth Violence and the Melissa Institute".

The talk today, she says, was originally meant to be a small workshop for graduate students in clinical psych. "But given the interest generated by the article and title of his presentation, we decided we had better open the doors wider to be more inclusive to the campus community. We were able to quickly change the room."

So, the talk will be given this morning from 10:00 to noon in PAS (the Psychology building) room 2083. Meichenbaum will focus on his involvement with the Melissa Institute (Florida), which has as its mandate the prevention and treatment of youth violence. All are welcome to attend.

Seeking a dean of arts

As I was saying here the other day, Brian Hendley's second term as dean of arts expires June 30, 1999. "Therefore," says a notice from the university secretariat, "the process of setting up a Dean of Arts Nominating Committee, as required under Policy #45, is under way. Notices to this effect have been sent to the Chair of the Arts Faculty Council, to the Presidents of the Staff Association, Federation of Students and the Graduate Student Association, and the Chair of the Heads of the Colleges advising them of the need to constitute the committee and requesting them to forward the names of the individuals selected to Dianne Scheifele in the University Secretariat.

"The expectation is that the Nominating Committee will be constituted by mid-January. Details about the nomination process can be found in section IV.A&B of Policy #45, or by contacting Dianne Scheifele at ext. 3183 or e-mail dscheif@secretariat."

Other notes and events

The January-February schedule of computing courses offered by the information systems and technology department is now online. Or, a printed brochure version of the list should be available by this afternoon from any of the computing consulting offices on campus. Registration for these courses is done on the Web.

The current art exhibition in the Modern Languages gallery, "The Persistent Tradition: Canadian Contemporary Landscapes", winds up this weekend. The gallery is open Monday to Friday 11 to 4, Sunday 1 to 4 p.m.

A family variety show, a fund-raiser for the K-W Association for Community Living, happens at noon and 3 p.m. Saturday in the Humanities Theatre.

The arts alumni group is sponsoring an outing Saturday afternoon to the Water Street Theatre production of "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe". Information: ext. 2119.

Everyone is invited to attend a candlelight Christmas service at 9 p.m. Sunday at Wesley Chapel, St. Paul's United College.

CAR

TODAY IN UW HISTORY December 12, 1959: Colours are picked for the new University of Waterloo: gold, black and white.

December 13, 1989: Seven days after the "Montréal massacre", a memorial service for the 14 women killed at the Ecole Polytechnique is held in Federation Hall.

Editor of the Daily Bulletin: Chris Redmond
Information and Public Affairs, University of Waterloo
credmond@uwaterloo.ca -- (519) 888-4567 ext. 3004
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