THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 19, 1995 TAG: 9503190020
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PHILIP WALZER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS LENGTH: Short : 49 lines
Karl Kassel, a city firefighter, wanted to go back to school to get his bachelor's degree - but not if it meant going on campus.
``I work 24-hour shifts, and it's hard for me to take time off from work to go to class,'' he said.
He found his answer at Christopher Newport University, which last year began its first ``on-line'' bachelor's program, in governmental administration. ``All you need is a computer, modem and phone line,'' said Buck Miller, a government professor who runs ``CNU Online,'' which has about 200 students, mostly from Hampton Roads.
Students pay the same tuition as on-campus students. The on-line students are expected to do the class readings, but there are no lectures. Instead, when a student logs onto his computer every few days, he finds a question or an exercise from his professor.
He responds by e-mail, but the class doesn't end there. Students are required to send five to 10 computer messages, asking other questions or raising points, every week. Half the messages go to other students.
``We're moving students from passive to active learners,'' Miller said. ``We need people who are active and asking questions and thinking.''
Robert Doane, another government professor, has found that women in his computer courses are more assertive. ``One female said to me: `The anonymity of cyberspace has given me courage.' ''
Evan Davies, academic affairs coordinator for the State Council of Higher Education, says student give-and-take reaches a higher level on the computer: ``You are forced to put into more logical form thoughts you want to express because you cannot rely on gestures.''
Kassel says the computer classes are, in fact, more challenging: ``The students who are involved are really interested in the class; you've got to give them your best.
``You do lose some social interaction by not seeing students,'' he said. ``But as a 34-year-old professional firefighter, I've done all the socializing I need to do. Profession-wise, it's an advantage.'' MEMO: Main story on page A1.
KEYWORDS: OFF-CAMPUS COURSE DISTANCE EDUCATION by CNB