For the past few years, I’ve heard plenty of criticism
regarding technology: It’s impersonal and unreliable, it
can’t replace human contact. Though the claims are true,
technology also boasts strong advantages, particularly for college
students.
Today, universities such as Stanford and all the campuses of the
University of Illinois offer online courses for master’s and
bachelor’s degrees. UCLA, on the other hand, does not.
Instead, many administrators view online classes as inferior and
unable to bridge the gap between teachers, course materials and
students.
There’s trouble with this logic because online classes
could help people. For students, they’re flexible and easy to
use. For universities, they cut down on campus congestion and,
potentially, university costs.
But many people, for a variety of reasons, resist the digital
leap. While it’s OK to express concern or reservation over
technology, it’s quite another thing to neglect it
entirely.
Since 1996, UCLA has offered online classes through the UCLA
Extension program. Currently, there are 110 of these courses.
Writing workshops, in particular, have found great praise; students
appreciate that they can write their pieces and then critique
classmates’ works, from the comfort of their own homes.
Then this past summer, the UCLA School of Theater, Film and
Television opened up online classes for summer sessions A and C.
But few UCLA students have taken these courses. In general,
UCLA’s undergraduate and graduate departments scarcely offer
online classes.
There are many reasons why this could be. For one, online
classes eliminate traditional modes of human interaction ““
face-to-face conversation, facial expressions, voice pitch and tone
and body language. Many believe these characteristics are necessary
for successful dialogue and intellectual expression.
Secondly, the online lecture and classroom environment is
modified, and some worry that online lectures may come across as
impersonal or boring. Finally, student-professor interaction is at
risk of being sacrificed to online, impersonal communication.
But the biggest fear seems to be that online class offerings
would invariably seem dispassionate, colorless and dry. But these
claims are simplistic and disregard clear benefits. The truth is
that online courses are incredibly versatile. They’re
convenient for busy people, particularly those with families,
full-time jobs or other commitments.
Also, online courses provide alternative forms of communication.
Shy students may actually enjoy the anonymity of the digital
format. Others might welcome sitting down, considering exactly what
to write, and then crafting their responses in the most thoughtful
way possible.
Surely, online classes have their flaws. But they also open
doors, especially for the much-suffering University of California
system. Today, the UC holds more than 208,000 students, and the
numbers are only growing. The system just isn’t big enough,
nor equipped enough, to satisfy all those students.
The state has tried to accommodate the growing number of
students in a variety of ways ““ from constructing UC Merced
to directing more college-bound students toward community and
junior colleges. But these efforts haven’t fixed the
problem.
Instead, the system grows less accessible as more and more
UC-eligible student applications are turned away. How ever will
California clean up this mess?
One possible solution is to utilize the Internet. Online
schools, such as the University of Phoenix, already allow students
to complete 100 percent of their educations online. I don’t
believe UCLA should go entirely digital like Phoenix, but ignoring
the Internet as a convenient resource is sticking one’s head
in the sand.
Adopting educational technology, admittedly, holds problems.
People are highly suspicious of it ““ and with good reason. In
the past, high-tech toys, tools and gadgets have often failed us,
deceived us with false expectations, broken down on us, or wasted
our time and money. Technology certainly isn’t perfect.
But since the tech boom of the mid-1990s, the Internet has
changed the very way we interact with one another. Now, people
don’t need to make phone calls ““ they can log in to AIM
or write an e-mail. They don’t need to go to the library
““ they can use a search engine. Many people even find
friends, or lovers, on Web sites such as Friendster, the Facebook
and MySpace.
Despite their convenience, these technologies abate older ways
of life. And some of us, like myself, feel nostalgic for
“old-fashioned” pastimes, like taking walks, meeting up
with friends (away from the computer), and writing letters.
It’s just not the same online.
Even so, technology is a remarkable tool.
A small, modest beginning would be best. Some classes will not
prove easily transferable to an online format, and others will be
totally unsuitable.
But for many people, online courses are too great an opportunity
to overlook. Like it or not, technology is the future. And if
utilized with sound judgement, we’ll be more inclined to like
it than not.
Fried is a second-year history student. E-mail her at
ifried@media.ucla.edu. Send general comments to
viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.