 |
|
|
|||||
|
|
September 2, 2004 College Launches Distance Education Program Taking a class without leaving your home or office just became easier. North Dakota State University’s College of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Natural Resources launched its distance education program by offering four courses during the fall semester. Distance education means an instructor at NDSU can teach students anywhere through technology such as videoconferencing, Web sites, CDs, e-mail or Blackboard, an electronic course management system. “Distance education is intended to serve people regardless of where they’re located,” said David Saxowsky, an associate professor in the Agribusiness and Applied Economics Department who has been heavily involved in developing the college’s distance education program. Distance education courses would be ideal for people who perhaps completed a bachelor’s degree 10 to 15 years ago and have been working in an agricultural field, and they want to refresh or upgrade their skills, he said. Brenda Deckard, director of student services in the Plant Sciences Department, said distance education also is a wonderful opportunity for high school seniors who are interested in agriculture and a training tool for people in agriculture-related businesses. The courses available this fall are World Food Crops, Genetics, Economic Entomology and Editorial Processes. College officials are working on a few more courses for the spring semester, which starts in January, Saxowsky said. The technology the instructors use varies, depending on how the course is designed. Deckard and her husband, Ed, who teach World Food Crops, plan to use PowerPoint, Blackboard and CDs that will allow the students to interact with their instructors and each other as much as possible. “We really believe students need to be engaged in the learning process,” said Ed Deckard, a professor in the Plant Sciences Department. Mike Christoffers, an assistant professor in the Plant Sciences Department, uses videotapes of the on-campus version of the Genetics class for his distance education course. Students view the videotapes on the Web. He and his students communicate with e-mail. Denise Olson, an assistant professor in the Entomology Department, intends to use Blackboard for her Economic Entomology course. If students don’t have sufficient Internet access, they’ll receive a CD containing the course material. Ross Collins, an associate professor in the Communication Department who teaches Editorial Processes, said his class is entirely Web-based because the students work at their own pace and may not be available to meet electronically with him or classmates. The distance education concept developed out of NDSU’s efforts in the 1980s to help find other careers for farmers who were leaving farming, many for financial reasons, Saxowsky said. NDSU received federal funding and money from the North Dakota Rural Rehabilitation Corp., which went to former farmers as tuition scholarships to attend college. In the mid-1990s, farmers still were leaving the industry in large numbers, so NDSU pursued additional federal money. University officials planned once again to offer the former farmers scholarships, and although several potential participants inquired about the funding, few applied. When NDSU officials asked why, those contacted said they had obligations such as their families, ongoing business responsibilities and jobs, and they expected the courses to be available to them instead of them having to travel to a university. Thus, in the late 1990s, NDSU officials shifted their focus to distance education. But as the university’s enrollment began to grow rapidly, NDSU devoted its resources and energy to dealing with the additional students. Officials in the College of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Natural Resources have been able to turn their attention back to distance education only recently, Saxowsky said. This is a good time for the college to begin distance education, though, because the technology has improved significantly and NDSU’s research extension centers and several county extension offices, which are located throughout the state, can serve as learning centers, he said. Distance education also is the next logical step in NDSU’s mission as a land-grant university, according to Saxowsky. The courses generally follow the semester schedule. Economic Entomology is the only one of the four that hasn’t started. It begins Oct. 20. Registration for World Food Crops is closed but students still can sign up for the others. Tuition for each of the 3-credit courses is about $592. For more information about the college’s distance education opportunities, visit its distance education Web site, www.ag.ndsu.nodak.edu/colag/distance.htm, or the NDSU Distance and Continuing Education Web site, www.ndsu.nodak.edu/dce. ### Source:
David Saxowsky, (701) 231-7470, david.saxowsky@ndsu.nodak.edu |
Market Advisor: |
|
North Dakota State University |
