By ABIGALE M. ROTHSCHILD
A BYU education reaches students in areas all over the country and in other countries through Internet Independent Study classes.
Scott Howell, director of the Office of Course Development, said there are advantages to Internet classes.
“Students can be free from time and space restraints and be engaged in some very interactive learning,” Howell said.
Dwight Laws, director of Independent Study, said the Internet offers some unique features such as instantaneously graded assignments and links to a wealth of knowledge.
BYU offers 64 Internet classes and nonmatriculated students pay $88 per credit hour to take a class, Laws said.
This semester, 10 Internet classes will be offered for matriculated students and there is no additional fee to take those courses besides tuition, Laws said.
Laws said right now the class with the highest enrollment is a Doctrine and Covenants class, and Accounting 200 also has a high enrollment.
He said one thing that teachers must take into account when designing an Internet class is using too many videos.
“You have to live within the limitations of the Internet itself, and the Web is not presently capable of streaming too many videos,” Laws said.
He also said teachers need to be aware that Internet classes must be designed to fit everyone’s equipment.
Laws said he anticipates that BYU will have 200 to 300 courses on the Internet over the next two years.
“Ninety-five percent of people still use the paper-pencil model, but I anticipate that to change,” he said.
April 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. there will be a video conference on using the Web to enhance learning experience in room 4826 HBLL. The conference will also be broadcast over Cougar Cable channel 21.
