IT 743 - Internet Resources & Tools for Educators- Emporia State University
This site has links to course contents with a course description,
choices of projects to do for 1 credit to go with the 2 credit class, a
link to Lifelong Learning
@ Emporia State University (online courses), class directions
and grading assignment requirements for grades, WebCT instructions, course
outline/assignments, and online resource links for educators
Attractive home page with nice background and text that is eye catching and some graphics. I didn’t see any technical assistance information.
Math 112 - College Algebra- Elgin Community College
This site has links to a course description, prerequsites, summary, course syllabus, how to get started (w/system requirements, software needed, course requirements), instructor email, a bulletin board for classmates to communicate, and a link to Elgin Community College. All instruction is through interactive CD-ROM.
The home page is very bland, black background with yellow and red writing, no graphics. Limited by use of Windows 95 or Windows NT Workstation 4.0 Certified computer only. This means that if the only computer you have at home is a Macintosh, you can't access the course.
Plano Independent School District
This is a web site that builds partnerships with school districts, consortiums, and individual high schools to provide online courses. From this site I went to a link called the Plano ISD (Independent School District) eSchool http://planoisdeschool.net/classhome.html, which allows high school students to take courses online on their own time, with the guidance and support of certified teachers. The courses are designed for home school students or students enrolled in school. The contents at this site are a home page, about us page, faculty page with information of each instructor, a course page with links to each course offered, a frequently asked questions page, and a contact page. There is technical support through the phone and other help through e-mail, fax or mail. I went to a link of some courses and at each there was a description of the course, course materials, activities for the semester, and a link to register for the course. There are some background graphics and the site is easy to negotiate.
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All of these sites were easy to get around and the resources at each were valuable. They all had links to the many resources available which made for easy access. The materials in these courses are different from a traditional face-to-face courses that might be passed out on paper because none of them have books, but are all through online access, CD-ROM software, WebCT, and web sites. There are no additional costs to the materials, as they are included in the tuition. An advantage of having these types of materials are that many of them are interactive and there is much information to be found on the online sites. Paper formats limit you in this sense and don't allow for the great collaboration and interaction that online courses allow in distance learning.