Volume 124 Issue 37
kansan.com
Thursday, October 13, 2011
the student voice since 1904
Online courses have been trending across public universities, giving students alternative opportunities to obtain college degrees outside of the traditional setting. The report, titled "The Digital Revolution and Higher Education," surveyed 2,412 American adults and 1,055 university presidents about whether college students prefer online classes.
A 2011 report by the Pew Internet and American Life project questions the effectiveness of classes taught online.
The report stated that despite growing up in a digital world, "Young adults are as skeptical about online learning as are their older counterparts." Statistics from the 2011 report showed that 60 percent of the survey's respondents do not think that a class taught online offers the same educational value as the
EDUCATION
same class
taught offline.
K r i s t e n
Efurd, a soph-
more from
Abilene, agrees
with those
views.
JESSIE BLAKEBOROUGH jblakeborough@kansan.com
Study criticizes online classes
"I'd much r at he r physically
89 percent of public four-year colleges and 71 percent of for-profit colleges offer courses online, while 60 percent of private four-year colleges provide similar online offerings.
be there in the classroom," Efurd said. "I found it harder to motivate myself to actually do the work since all the deadlines were for the end of the semester."
"It was pretty easy but kind of pointless because you could just Google all of the answers," Sweenie said.
"I'd much rather physically be there in the classroom."
According to the 2011 report, 91 percent of two-year colleges.
Sarah Sweenie, a junior from Overland Park, takes online courses out of necessity. Sweenie took an online physics class over the summer through Butler County Community College because the University doesn't offer an online summer course.
To graduate on time, Sweenie plans to take several more online classes, but this time, she'll do so through the University.
The University created online summer courses in 2010. One of the reasons behind this addition to traditional on-campus classes was so any student could take classes during the summer without geographical limits.
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KRISTEN EFURD
A sophomore from Abilene
"Next semester I have to take 21 hours, and I think it will just be easier if one of those classes can be online." Sweenie said.
Efurd thinks
online classes are harder because of the lack of structure.
"If I were to take one where it had periodic deadlines, I think that would be much better," Efurd said.
— Edited by Jayson Jenks
facebook
RATHER RELATE IN REALITY
BRITTANY CLAMPITT bclampitt@kansan.com
They don't post on your wall for your birthday. They don't post their photos from fall break. They don't have their relationship status set.
They're the people without Facebook.
There's not many of them, but they do exist. On a college campus, not having a Facebook is an anomaly. But for some, the decision to not participate in this social networking site has been well-thought out.
"in real life," and they are wary about privacy issues.
Rationales for non-Facebook users may vary, but there seems to be reoccurring themes in their reasoning for not jumping on the Facebook bandwagon.
Natalie Pennington, a doctoral student from Springfield, Mo., studying communications, said many people who don't use Facebook avoid the site because they would rather communicate
"I think that people have a misconception of privacy online, and I think regardless anytime you use something online you're going to leave a footprint," Pennington said.
Brett Bricker, a doctoral student from Wichita also studying communications, has chosen not to use Facebook. His initial impression was that the site was a waste of time, but he also wanted to keep his privacy, especially when it comes to future employers.
"I'm not really too happy with, you know, the prospect of people knowing all the things I do in my personal life," Bricker said.
While those who don't participate in Facebook think the site's disadvantages outweigh the advantages, there are still ways Facebook can be used effectively.
Pennington said users who decrease their number of friends could benefit from Facebook. Fewer friends means less chance for distraction as well as a greater chance of social support with those friends with whom the user is actually close.
"You can read about a person online who you haven't talked to
in a really long time, and they're going through something you've gone through and you can sympathize with them.
phrased it, scrub their profiles, cleaning up histories and erasing compromising photos. On the other hand, it will also be easier for others to find those photos if they are not taken down.
Pennington said Facebook could do a better job telling people about the extent of a
"I'm not really too happy with, you know,the prospect of people knowing all the things I do in my personal life."
BRETT BRICKER Doctoral student from Wichita
about it," Pennington said
Similar to all new media, users will have mixed feelings about the most recent change to Facebook: timeline-form profiles. It will become much easier for users to, as Pennington
user's controls.
user's privacy options, but users are ultimately responsible for the content of their profiles. Timeline is perhaps the next step in increasing a
"I just hope everybody would give it a chance," Pennington said.
Edited by Jayson Jenks
CAMPUS
Orientation assistants receive more than a job
DANA MEREDITH
dmeredith@kansan.com
Last summer, Eman Siddiqui went through new student orientation. Then she went through it again and again and again, 15 times in all.
Siddiqui, a senior from Karachi, Pakistan, worked for the University as an orientation assistant, one of 23 undergraduates helping freshmen, transfer students and their parents transition into life as a Jayahawk.
"What we really want is that when somebody comes to orientation, if they look up at the orientation assistants onstage, they are able to identify with somebody in the group," said Chris Stoppel, interim director of New Student Orientation. "It's not a position that you have to be the president of your organization to do. You just really have to have a passion for KU."
The Office of New Student Orientation (NSO) is looking for orientation assistants for next year. Students from all walks of campus life are encouraged to apply.
After reviewing applications, the NSO Office invites some applicants back for a group interview, then a speech interview and — for those who make it far enough — a final
interview. It's a process designed to evaluate how applicants interact with one another, how they communicate professionally and who they are as individuals, Stoppel said.
Orientation assistants jump in with three weeks of intensive training right after the school year ends. They get a crash course in everything within the University — from academic departments to campus organizations to student services.
After training ends, orientation sessions start. Orientation assistants work 40-hour work-weeks during the summer, guiding students and family members through orientation while preparing folders and other materials for the next session.
"When I was going through training, I learned about so many services that I didn't even know we had," Ramona Yoder, a sophomore from Newton, said.
It's a whirlwind of new information.
"Not only are they relating what they know about KU, but they're finding out even more what KU can do for them," Stopel said.
Stoppled said increased awareness about the University is one of the biggest perks of the job.
It's a structured job, but each
Orientation assistants end up becoming a tight-knit group, Yoder said, hanging out together on the weekends after spending most of the week together. Last summer, the orientation assistants went to a Royals game, the Country Club Plaza and the pool and held a lot of birthday parties.
week brings new experiences and new people - 700 to 800 of them.
"It's the same routine, but there are always different things coming at you," Yoder said. "Different questions, different people, different moods."
"Before, my social circle was just limited to other architecture students," she said. "Now, I know people from all years, all majors."
Siddiqui said getting to know the other orientation assistants was one of her favorite parts of the job.
There's a transfer student session every January before the semester starts, and the NSO Office is finding ways to keep orientation assistants busy throughout the school year.
"We're able to hire such a talented group of students that it seems like we should be using them more." Stoppel said.
The orientation assistant position doesn't end when the summer's over.
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CROSSWORD 4
Yoder said that she still hasn't decided about returning for another year, but was "80/20 — 80 percent chance I'll come back, 20 percent chance I won't."
Stoppel said many students like the position so much they reapply for a second or third year. But they don't automatically get to return, he said, because the NSO Office wants the students to make sure another option — such as an internship or studying abroad — wouldn't be more beneficial.
Rock Chalk Chow Downs
Siddliqui will be returning next year for a fifth year of school, but plans on spending her summer in an architecture-related internship. But she encouraged interested students to apply for the position.
CRYPTOQUIPS 4
OPINION 5
"If I had more time, I would do it again," she said. "If you're looking to get involved on campus, this just opens up so many doors for you."
CONTRIBUTED BY DAVID F. MCKINNEY/KU UNIVERSITY RELATIONS Orientation assistant Ernest Shepard helps a parent during orientation. New Student Orientation hopes to hire students who are passionate about the University.
are dinners held in August and September that give first-year students a chance to catch up with their orientation assistants. Orientation assistants also help lead discussion groups for PRE 101, the orientation seminar class. They also run a blog for first-time KU students, where they discuss school and transitioning.
SPORTS 10
SUDOKU 4
Edited by Stefanie Penn
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2011 The University Daily Kansan
Don't forget
Go see Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides from 8 to 10 p.m. in Woodruff Auditorium in the Kansas Union. Tickets are $2 for students.
Today's weather
Forecasts done by University students. For a more detailed forecast, see page 2A
HI: 72
LO: 45
Fall? What's fall?