The University’s move to prioritize online classes has not been a well-thought-out implementation of the program. Online classes have problems that aren’t as prominent with in-person classes. Certain programs going fully online has also created an inequity in learning experiences.
The learning experience in an online class is not as enriching as an in-person class. Even regularly engaged students find themselves struggling to get valuable information out of an online lecture without really intent notetaking. My minor is part of one of the programs that has had increasingly more and more courses only offered online. I find myself taking a lot of online classes for it, but I never learn much from them. I end up focusing on just getting the homework done and speeding up the lecture videos because a 50-minute online video feels harder to focus on than a 50-minute in person lecture.
Online classes lack the essential human component. The main engagement you have with other students in the class is the discussion board posts. Effectively, students pay upwards of at least $1,000 to read what ChatGPT thinks of the readings and reply to it. To add on to this, online classes charge an extra online service fee just for being online. This means that students are being forced to enroll in online classes for their program, which might’ve been in-person when they enrolled, and then paying extra per credit for it.
Deciding what programs deserve to be in-person or online is also tricky. For example, Surveying Engineering Technology is a program that is now entirely online. The website says it’s offered both online and in-person, but a search of all classes offered this semester under the ‘SVT’ course designator says the class is online except for a class labeled ‘SVT 102: Surveying Principles for Civil Engineers,’ which falls under a different program altogether. However, wouldn’t it make sense for a program oriented around surveying to be taught in-person so students can have real hands-on surveying experience? The programs offered online tend to be the ones with a low number of declared students, but prioritizing the educational experience based on the number of students involved creates an inequity. Students interested in labor and unions minoring in Labor Studies do not have the opportunity to take classes in person, but are not eligible for the lower-priced online program credits, if their major is offered in-person.
Online classes can not deliver the quality of education that many people want from their in-person class. Forcing students in certain programs to move their studies online is not fair and creates an imbalance, with students in already less-prioritized and funded programs receiving even lower-quality learning. Not only are they being given lower-quality education, but they’re being forced to pay more for it: $25 extra per credit, so roughly $75 extra per class. For a student taking a full online course load, that’s an extra $375 just for a standard 15-credit single semester course load. Online courses are a good option. I’ve taken some online courses that I’ve actually enjoyed and learned from. However, students being forced to take online classes is a bad move.
