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Jan. 10, 2005 Volume 29, Issue 19 |
Faculty supports totally online courses
Mississippi State administrators are taking a close look at the results of a recent campus survey that indicates most MSU faculty would welcome an opportunity to teach classes offered totally online.
Associate Provost Jerry Gilbert said 407 faculty members responded to an online survey posted by MSU doctoral student Teresa Gammill. It was conducted as part of Gammill's dissertation research in the Agricultural Information Sciences Department.
Although only about one-fifth of faculty members has taught a course exclusively on the Web, according to Gilbert, a large percentage of those responding to the survey indicated they would be open to the idea of offering totally online courses, with proper incentives.
"We were very pleased with the faculty response to the survey," said Gilbert. "The survey results will provide us with valuable information that is useful in making decisions about future technology issues in instruction.
"We would like to see MSU professors enabled to most effectively carry out our teaching mission," he added. "Web-based and Web-assisted instruction provide opportunities to extend and enhance our professors' teaching methods."
Gilbert said President Charles Lee has established the improvement of classrooms as one of his priorities and is providing funding to upgrade 43 classrooms with advanced teaching technology. Lee said it is through the additional technology in MSU classrooms and facilities that the university better serves its educational mission.
"Extending our educational resources via technology to meet the needs of people who cannot come to campus, even in the evening, because of location, job or other reasons, is a very significant part of our commitment to providing educational opportunities," said the president.
Gilbert said this effort and others are improving the delivery of instruction to MSU students. "The input from faculty was greatly appreciated," he added.
The associate provost said results of the faculty survey have been presented to the university's Instructional Technology Advisory Committee. He said the ITAC plans a survey next spring to document student perspectives on Web-based instruction issues.