As the historic snowstorms of February 2010 blanketed D.C. with over 30 inches of snow, canceling classes for nearly a week, some professors turned to the Internet to continue classes.
Wimba, a new video chat feature available to AU professors, elicited mixed feelings from students and teachers.
Eleven teachers used Wimba to conduct online class, according to the Center for Teaching, Research & Learning, which introduced and monitors the use of Wimba. The real-time meeting software, which AU began using in November 2009, allows teachers and students to talk by means of webcams, instant messaging and file sharing.
Many teachers said they appreciated the ability to keep up with their syllabus as a result of the new virtual classroom software.
Lilian Baeza-Mendoza, who teaches a 300-level class in Spanish composition and conversation, noted the convenience of the online classroom.
“Students can participate and learn in class while working in their pajamas,” Baeza-Mendoza said.
Baeza-Mendoza also said that “valuable group discussions” were not nearly as effective online as in the traditional classroom setting.
An online seminar, or “webinar,” on using Wimba was held on Feb. 11, the day after the Feb. 10 blizzard. In response to the storm, 35 teachers signed up and attended with just two hours of notice.
“This is the type of participation we love to see,” Center for Teaching, Research & Learning Manager Jim McCabe said regarding the increased interest in Wimba.
Many students had positive experiences with their online classes as well.
“I liked that we didn’t miss an entire class period because of the weather conditions,” said Alexis Nadin, a senior in the School of Public Affairs and the School of International Service, of her Social Entrepreneurship class.
Nadin also said her block class, which usually lasts over two hours, was reduced to a 40-minute lecture via Wimba. Nadin gladly welcomed the condensed class time, she said.
Other students felt that online learning was ineffective in conveying the material and found it difficult to concentrate with the amount of distractions in the dorms.
“It was not nearly as good as a real classroom setting,” said Dan Kelly, a freshman in SIS. “There was far less discussion, and far more opportunity for distraction.”
Sydney Teglia, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, was also skeptical of the online learning.
“It was much more difficult to ask needed questions through the Wimba program,” Teglia said of her calculus class.
Discussion-based classes were far less successful than lecture-style classes, according to some students.
“The purpose of the course is to develop conversational skills, which was not facilitated well by the online class,” Corrine Abolafia, a freshman in CAS, said of her Spanish class.
Baeza-Mendoza and some other teachers would like to use Wimba again.
“I’m sure several professors are already thinking of ideas to try during our next storm,” said Baeza-Mendoza.
The Center for Teaching, Research & Learning expects high attendance for future Wimba webinars.
You can reach this writer at news@theeagleonline.com.
