The Design, Development And Delivery Of An Internet Based Course: Experiences Of A Novice

Rob Huebert
University of Calgary
Rhuebert@acs.ucalgary.ca

Video Presentation
Conference Discussion

INTRODUCTION

The main purpose of this paper is to critically evaluate the efforts of the author to develop a web-based course. Entitled Issues and Trends in World Politics, this course was based on a traditionally delivered course that is an introduction to the study of world politics at the University of Calgary. The hope was that by taking a course that had already been established, the transformation to a web-based course would be more easily achieved. Ultimately, the course was delivered. However, it proved to be much more labour intensive than expected and did not fully meet the expectations of all of the students who took it. However, it is equally clear that this form of delivery still holds tremendous potential and that there are clear advantages for some types of students.

The second objective of this paper is to consider the challenges that face university teachers who have a limited knowledge of the electronic format and attempt to utilize the new communications technology. It will soon be apparent to the reader of this paper that I am not an expert when it comes to the new electronic formats. However, I am willing to explore the possibilities offered by this new medium and as such I was willing to develop and offer an internet based course. The following comments are based on my experiences, both positive and negative.

THE DECISION TO DEVELOP THE COURSE

Several factors led to the decision, of the department and of myself, to develop and offer the course. As a new member of the faculty, I was willing to undertake new initiatives. Furthermore, I had also been involved in the development of distant education courses at my former employee, the University of Manitoba. Thus, I have had some experience meeting the requirements of a distant education delivery format and some rudimentary understanding of HTML.

The Department of Political Science at the University of Calgary had been attempting to develop a shared course with Athabasca University and had received funding to do so. I arrived on campus at the time that efforts to proceed with this course had slowed down. I soon agreed to be the point person in the development of the course and to undertake the bulk of the course development. The Athabasca University agreed to develop a virtual library for students taking the course.

Once agreement was reached that I would develop the course, it then became necessary to plan for its delivery. Since this was a new form of delivery, I was given the freedom (and challenge) of undertaking most of the course design on my own. My first step was to visit the web-pages of other universities and to see what forms of courses already existed. I did this in the spring and summer of 1997 when a large number of courses were available.

After examining about 10 courses, I came to the conclusion that most courses are essentially traditional styles of distant education systems that incorporate some electronic features. Since I was a novice with respect to this type of project, I decided that I would not attempt to be too ambitious. Furthermore, my decision to limit the scale of the course was also dictated by the audience that both universities were hoping to reach - rural-based students. It was suggested to me that, in all likelihood, many of these students would probably be using equipment that was limited in its capability. For example, I know that many of the students were limited by the speed of their modems and processing capacity of their computers. The bottom line is that most pre-pentium IBM style computers are incapable of handling the graphic rich environment of most web sites, let alone being able to download any form of video capability. Thus, I decided that I would attempt to minimize the amount of "bells and whistles" that I was to put into the course. In particular, I decided not to use the most recent developments in the use of video and audio files.

SYLLABUS: THE INTRODUCTION

The first step was to transform the syllabus of the regular course on World Politics into a web-based format. It can be downloaded by going to http://www.ucalgary.ca/UofC/faculties/SS/POLI/poli283/index.htm. You will note that it contains many of the normal aspects of a syllabus. It lists the objectives of the course and the marking format. However, several minor changes were required for a web-based course. First, it was necessary to specifically explain how to contact the instructor and the other students taking the course. However, an unanticipated problem occurred with resect to the student's very first contact with the course. Once the students had registered for the course, there were no means, via the internet, by which to tell them how to proceed. It became necessary to phone each registered student to tell them the address of the web-page. In the case of this particular course, the numbers were small enough (twelve students) that this was not particularly onerous. However, it is obvious that a system for informing students upon registration as to how and when to access the course will have to be developed.

With respect to the issue of security, the decision was made, for the sake of simplicity, to place the course on the department's web-page without any form of security. In the future, it may become desirable to protect the course through the use of passwords. This would limit access to the materials only to those who are registered in the course. In such a case, it would also be necessary to ensure that all registered students be given the password to gain access. At the University of Calgary, it is not entirely clear how this would be done. The questions that arise is whether this would be the responsibility of the registrar or of the department and how the student would be notified.

As it stands, the students taking this course were personally contacted by myself and told where the web-page could be found. They were also warned that this was a first attempt at offering the course through such a format and that technical difficulties may arise. They were also requested to contact the instructor through E-mail and were informed that their own electronic addresses would be provided to all students taking the course. This was done through one group E-mail that listed all of the students' names and E-mail addresses. The objective of this was to allow for the students to have some form of interaction among one another. In fact, this did occur and there was some communication throughout the course between students.

However, upon reflection, this may result in potential problems. It is possible that the sharing of E-mail addresses could be viewed as an invasion of privacy for some students. An even more problematic issue is that of inappropriate contacts. As a result, a specific warning was placed in the syllabus that warned students to use these addresses only for the educational purposes of the course. But since these addresses are being made available through the university, there is a degree of shared responsibility if these addresses are ever used in an abusive fashion. Once again, it is not entirely clear as to how this problem can be minimized.

One option would be to not share the E-mails addresses. But this creates a bigger problem. Since the students never see each other, a certain sense of isolation exists. Several students commented that they appreciated the ability to contact classmates. Such interaction is an important element of the learning process and any steps to eliminate it should only be taken with careful consideration.

The introduction to the course also warns the students about the penalty of plagiarism. One of the problems that the internet has exacerbated is that of "bought papers". This problem undoubtedly exists in regular courses but the distance between the students and the instructor in an electronic based course could make it easier for the students to submit work that they have not completed themselves. Once again, there is no easy answer to address this potential problem except to appeal to the students' sense of honour. A direct link to the online version of the university's policies was provided to the students in order to ensure that they were fully aware of the penalties for plagiarism and academic misconduct.

SYLLABUS: COURSE OUTLINE

The students were instructed to go to the course outline once they had read the course introduction. In keeping with the requirements of the University of Calgary, the students were provided with a specific list of course objectives and requirements. Included in this section was a discussion of the required text, web-pages that they could use for research purposes, and a link to a virtual library.

The virtual library was developed at Athabasca University, and is a detailed collection of links to important electronic sources of information for political science studies. While it is now off line, it was detailed enough to allow students to undertake all of their research needs without accessing a traditional library.

A problem that emerged was the necessity to constantly check whether or not the links were still valid. The policy of some academic journals to electronically post one or two articles from their most current editions created a problem. While this policy provides the students with access to the most up-to-date articles, it also meant that the information would not be available for long. These articles would be posted last only as long as that particular edition of the journal is the most current.

SYLLABUS: ASSIGNMENTS

Once the students had read the course outline they then had to go to the course assignments. This was linked directly from the main web-page and included the marking scheme to be used and links to a detailed explanation of each assignment. A note about the university's withdrawal policy was also included in this section. Since this was the first time the course was being offered in this format, it was important that the students be made aware of what they could do if they found the format to be problematic.

One of the initial decisions made about the format of the course that may need re-evaluation for subsequent courses pertains to the mix of course requirements. During the development phase of this course, it seemed logical to simply use the same forms of evaluation that had been used in the course given in a traditional classroom format. In that course there were four main assignments: i) a research paper proposal; ii) a research paper; iii) participation in a simulation exercise; and iv) a final exam.

One lesson of the course seems to be that in the case of an electronic-based course, it may more appropriate to have a larger number of assignments, each worth a smaller proportion of the final grade. By offering more assignments, the student is required to be more engaged in the course. Some of the students had mentioned that there was a tendency to put off working on the course until an actual assignment was due. Since there was no requirement to come to class this was reported to have led some of the students to neglect the course. Some students observed that a larger number of smaller assignments would have forced them to stay more sensitive to the course requirements.

A second benefit would be more interaction between the student and the instructor. By marking a larger number of assignments, the instructor will have a greater opportunity to engage directly with the students. At the same time, it needs to be recognized that this will come at the cost of an increased demand on the instructor's time. The question emerges as to what is a reasonable amount of time that the instructor can be expected to give to an increased marking requirement.

RESEARCH PAPER PROPOSAL AND RESEARCH PAPER

In this particular course, the most important element of the students' evaluation was their research paper and proposal. This is in keeping with the pedagogical belief in political science that a student's ability to undertake critical research is one of the most important skills for understanding the field.

The rationale for a paper proposal is to provide the student with feedback as they prepare to develop their research paper. Given the fact that the students were encouraged to use electronic sources as the main means of their research, the proposal also became a means by which the instructor could provide information on sources that they had not found or considered.

Students were provided with a number of possible paper topics from which they could choose one for their research paper. They were also allowed to develop their own topics but if they did so, they had to receive the approval of the instructor.

Once the assignments were completed, the students had several options as to how they were to submit them to the instructor. On the day that they were required, they could deliver them in person, fax it to the department, or E-mail it as an attachment. A benefit of submitting the paper as an attachment is that the instructor is able to respond electronically on the paper itself. This eliminates the problem of "messy handwriting" that is often the mark of a university instructor. However, it appeared to take longer to mark a paper on the computer. Another problem is that the locations where marking on the paper attachment can be done is limited unless the instructor has access to a lap-top computer. One last problem that developed was the spread of computer viruses. I found that an assignment submitted via E-mail carried a virus that infected my main computer. Although this problem is not unique to the use of internet-based courses, it raises the potential for future problems. If a student's work is only on computer and a virus infects the work, then a serious problem may arise. It is essential to remind the students to back up all work and to keep hard copies of their work.

One last point that needs further consideration is the correct method of citing internet sources. Although agreement is slowly evolving as to how internet based sources should be cited, most students were uncertain as to how to best proceed, and I found it difficult in some circumstances to offer advice on this matter.

SYLLABUS: SIMULATION

One of the major elements of most courses that I have taught is the inclusion of a simulation exercise. In a traditional classroom setting, the use of a well constructed simulation exercise gives students the opportunity to role play and to apply the theoretical knowledge that they have acquired from the course. It has the added advantage of allowing students to also develop their inter-personal communication skills.

For those unfamiliar with the use of simulations as a teaching tool, the normal format is to assign students roles as decision-makers in some type of political institution. This may be the United Nations, the Canadian Parliament or any other similar type of body. They are then instructed to either react to a crisis or to develop policy through negotiations with the other members of the class. In general, most students are very enthusiastic in their support of such a learning experience and expend considerable effort in preparation.

The basis of the simulation exercise in the traditional classroom based World Politics Course was to replicate the actions of the United Nations. Students were assigned to represent different states and to then develop an international agreement promoting the protection of women's rights. Transferring this exercise to an electronic format was difficult but not impossible. Instead of arranging a face-to-face meeting of the students, the decision was made to use a chat-line as a forum in which the students would be able to engage in their negotiations. Furthermore, they were provided with the electronic addresses of the states that they represented with instructions as to how to research the actual policies that have been developed regarding the rights of women in the international system. In this manner, they could access the existing policies of the actual states. The students representing some of the poorer states were probably as current on this issue as some of the actual diplomats engaged in these issues.

Ultimately, the exercise proceeded quite successfully. The students were able to engage in a meaningful discussion on the issues and were moving towards the development of an international agreement. Time limitations prevented the successful completion of a new "treaty" on women's rights, but with additional time, such a outcome was likely to have occurred. Nevertheless, there are certain problems unique to the new format. But most were the result of inexperience and should be easy to overcome.

On the positive side, the use of a chat-line allows the instructor to monitor the discussion of all participants. I was able to keep a record of the discussion and use it as a means of evaluating the participation of the students engaged in the exercise. A second advantage was that in this exercise, more timid members of the class were less inclined to remain quiet. In normal simulation exercises (or classroom discussions in general), it is often the case that the more aggressive students will be able to dominate the discussions. Often a student who is not well practised in public speaking will refrain from participating fully in such discussions. However, with a chat-line, there is no need for a student to feel as shy and most people were more willing to express their views in the discussion.

While these are important benefits, certain problems did arise. First, and perhaps most humorous, was the selection of a free chat- line. In preparing for the exercise, I had not anticipated that it would be difficult to down-load a chat-line for use in the exercise. As a result when I requested assistance from a computer technician on campus, I had not realized that it was preferable to buy some of the programmes on the market as it is increasingly difficult to find free chat-lines. As a result, the first free chat-line that we were able to locate had the unfortunate name of "French-Kiss". Since this chat-line would be located on the web-pages of the course I had thought that only the students would be using it. I had not anticipated that, despite the fact that it was located on a specific location, other users could locate it through various chat-line search engines. As a result, when I was testing it, I was surprised to find that someone else had logged on to it. I was even more surprised when the individual began to ask me who I was and then asked for "dirty E-mail". Needless to say, I then asked the technician to find another chat-line with a different name. In discussions with others following this experience, it is obvious that a chat-line that can only be accessed through a password is necessary.

A second problem with the simulation concerned the timing of the exercise. One of the most important elements of offering a web-based course is the flexibility that it offers to the students. They are not restricted to the times when the lectures are given. As a result of this desire to provide students with the maximum flexibility, no thought had been given as to when the simulation was to take place. Therefore, when the time came to begin the exercise, it proved very difficult to find a time at which all could participate. A clear specification at the beginning of the term as to when the exercise is to take place is required. Students can then schedule their time accordingly so that they can participate.

A third, and perhaps most serious, problem were the difficulties faced by many of the students that attempted to participate in the exercise through their computers at home. Almost all of the students who used a modem experienced problems staying connected to the chat-line. Conversely, those who accessed the programme from a university based computer did not. This suggests that there are currently real limitations as to what can be expected of students operating without the benefit of the best equipment and computer links.

SYLLABUS: EXAM

The final exam for the course remains the most problematic element for internet-based courses. For this course, the students were required to come to campus to write the exam in the traditional fashion. This was necessitated by the inability to develop a format in which the security of the exam format could be assured. It is not yet clear to the author how it is possible to ensure that an exam can be written over the internet without a substantial risk of cheating. Unless the exam is presented as either an open-book exam, or as a take-home exam, there appears to be no technical solution to this problem.

LECTURES

The development of the lectures required for the class seemed, in theory, easy enough to develop. Issues in World Politics is primarily a course that examines five to six issue areas pertaining to international relations. It is intended to provide students at the junior level with an introduction to the study of world politics. The course itself is offered in several sections with each professor granted the right to select the specific issues to be examined. The main issues examined in my course were: i) the development of the modern international system; ii) the nature of the international system; iii) the use of force in world politics; iv) terrorism; v) international environmental issues; vi) human rights; and vii) the role of culture and identity in world politics.

The format developed for examining each of the issue areas in the internet course was as follows: a detailed outline of the issues to be covered, the readings required from the text, and a listing of readings that could be accessed from the internet. The expectation was that a detailed set of notes would then be added to outline throughout the term. Since this course had already been offered in a regular format, all that seemed necessary was to convert into written format the main elements of the lectures as they had been given. However, it was quickly found that this was considerably easier said than done. Furthermore, it is not clear that the students receive the same benefits from posted lecture noted as they do from an actual lecture. When the technology allows for the transmission of video files of lecture length, then these difficulties will be overcome. Currently however, the following problems were encountered.

The first problem was time. The amount of time needed to type the entire body of a lecture was much greater than was anticipated. While it is possible that some of the new voice interface programmes may assist in the process, it currently takes a long time to type up all elements of a lecture.

A problem that occurred, but which can be readily resolved the next time the course is offered, pertained to the availability of trained personnel to post the materials. I encountered some problems in this area due to the fact that the department did not then have a designated web-master. This meant that I was depending on the good-will of certain individuals to assist me in preparing the materials in an HTML format. Further problems developed when our schedules were in conflict with each other. The obvious solution is to designate or to hire a web-master with clear hours of operations.

Some students also found that simply reading the materials was much more tedious than going to lectures. Most lecturers are unaware as to the degree to which they depend on visual cues from students as to when they require further elaboration. I became very aware that I tailor my classroom lectures to how well students are responding to what I say. When the class looks confused, it generally indicates that I need to expand on a point that I am attempting to make. The absence of these visual cues in the internet-based course is problematic. By simply typing up the lectures, the point tends to be made more quickly, but it is impossible to know when further elaboration may be warranted. While this problem can be overcome through direct communication with students on an ongoing basis, it is impossible to ensure that all students are following the lectures.

It is possible to add to the context of the lectures by linking relevant web-pages throughout the lecture notes. But once again, anyone considering such a technique has to recognize that it takes a considerable amount of time to locate and download the necessary links onto the lecture. Furthermore, such links need to be constantly reviewed to ensure that the link is not broken or modified.

COURSE EVALUATION

One issue that this course did not resolve is how students can evaluate it. The traditional means of ensuring confidentiality for student course evaluations do not work for an electronic-based course. It is not clear to me how a student can send in an anonymous e-mail. Nor is it clear how it can be ensured that only the course's registered students are those submitting the evaluations and that each student only sends in a single evaluation. One can easily imagine scenarios of abuse of the system either against or in favour of an instructor. A system where the student can be assured of confidentiality and where the university and instructor can be assured that the system is not open to abuse, is necessary. It is not clear to me how this is to be done.

EVALUATION

What then can be said about the use of an internet-based course on the basis of my experience. First, there is no doubt in my mind that current developments in technology will make such delivery systems more amenable for use. As it becomes increasingly more practical to offer real video connections, it will be possible to reach more students beyond the geographical locations of the university. This will provide universities with the opportunity to reach students whose lifestyles do not normally allow them to consider advanced eduction. One immediately thinks about single parents or individuals with other family commitments. There is no question that courses such as the internet-based, Issues in World Politics will hold great appeal.

However, the question that arises is whether such courses will ever replace the traditional format of course delivery. I am inclined to argue that this will not happen for a considerable time. First, there is no question in my mind that the students who took the course missed the daily interaction of a university student's life. It was apparent to me that the students in the course relished the ability to discuss the course material with other students on both a formal and informal basis. One should not be too quick to downplay the value of sitting around a student lounge having a coffee and discussing the elements of any course. I found this non-formal interaction to be an important element of the university experience.

I also found that in order for an internet course to be successful, it requires substantially more preparation time than is the case for traditional courses. Anyone who argues that electronic courses will reduce the workload for university staff simply has not examined the issue in close detail. It may be that over time, the existing time requirements can be reduced, but currently, my experience tells me that anyone developing such a course needs to ensure either that they have assistance or that they dedicate substantial blocks of time to the project.

Overall, I found the experience of developing and delivering an internet-based course to be both challenging and rewarding. There is no doubt that others will have different experiences. There is also no doubt that many of the challenges I faced were the direct result of my inexperience. But I hope that, in the dialogue offered through conferences such as this one, my experiences can assist others. In addition, I also hope that others who may have better techniques may be able to assist me in developing my skills in teaching electronic-based courses.