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Distance ed courses

meeshmeesh
edited December 2006 in General
Have any of you taken distance ed courses? If so, what did you think of them? Were they hard to follow? Was it difficult to get help?
do you have any tips for people taking distance ed?

and if you haven't taken any but you have some heard some things about it, i wouldn't mind hearing some of your opinions too.

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edit:
alright, sorry i just found that this topic has already been posted.

but anyway, anyone taking econ 103 or cmpt 165 through distance ed next semester?

Comments

  • NukeChem
    edited November 2006
    If you know you do badly in unstructured environments you may not want to do the distance ed, because part of what reminds you an assignment is due, etc, is "face time" with your professor and fellow students.

    I did CMPT 110 summer of last year, and I did pretty well in it. It helped that I can think in computer code, and that the first assignment was due a month in. :)

    Addendum - If you can get Dr. Popowich for CMPT 165, do it. He's a great professor for the course and he tries to explain things properly in the lecture materials and powerpoint presentations. :)
  • Jessika
    edited November 2006
    It depends on what class you are doing. Some classes are intensive whether you have a lecture component or do it through distance ed. For example, english classes are easy to do through distance education because all you have to do is read some books and write some essays so if you can manage your time you are fine. But other classes like statistics are a lot more involved (online assingments due all the time) and if you don't understand the material, you have no easy accessible way to get help.

    What class are you thinking of?
  • imelting
    edited November 2006
    after plenty of recommendations i took germ 104 last semester for dis ed

    the whole course is simply, reading and interpreting basic german texts (so mad dictionary flipping during the exam and translate a document essentially)

    lots of ppl said its easy A, i struggled and squeaked out a B

    i was too lazy to follow anything and just kinda showed up for the exams with minimal preparation, any other course and i woulda prob failed doin that

    the course was not hard to follow, they give u a handbook with material every week and what chapters u should b doin

    the tutor marker was pretty accessible for help when needed, provided office hours, email communication and even personal #s for help

    only tip would be to try ur best to stay on the topics, its pretty hard tho, especially if u got course work from other classes with assignments papers etc, the distance ed stuf usually gets left behind

    time manage and try to keep up, u should be ok

    also try to find other ppl in the course, either through forums, some classes have their own lil online caucus thing, so try and meet some ppl and get together, definitely helps

    gl
  • meeshmeesh
    edited November 2006
    funny, i was actually thinking of taking GERM 104! i think i might take it actually...because i had an interest in it, but i wasn't sure whether it would be too difficult for someone with no knowledge of german at all.
  • imelting
    edited November 2006
    yea the course is really simple, no oral testing or anything, just submit 2 assignments online, and 1 midterm, 1 final

    translate and interpret articles, identify some grammar things, thats pretty much it
  • meeshmeesh
    edited November 2006
    oi vey, if the servers weren't down right now i'd go add that class...guess i'll have to wait...

    actually, what's your opinion on this? CMPT 165 or GERM 104?
  • NukeChem
    edited November 2006
    If you're at all interested in web design do CMPT 165. It sounds like you would take GERM 104 if you just want an easy A in a course that doesn't need a lot of work.
  • meeshmeesh
    edited November 2006
    mmm im interested in both...i'm really torn...haha, actually i think im going to take CMPT 165, because in the long run, i'm going to use it...i'll save GERM 104 for another semester.

    =)
  • imelting
    edited November 2006
    i took 165 last semester as well, but this was with lecture, that was pretty simple, but im not sure if the ciriculum is different for dif profs

    pretty intuitive stuf, basic html, css, python coding

    and u incorporate all three in the later assignments

    i got a solid A in this course, but i hav a bit of computer background, so i didnt find it diffiicult at all
  • meeshmeesh
    edited November 2006
    yeah i was browsing through the course website (for dist. ed. with Popowich). It seems pretty straight forward. I've been a self-taught graphic artist/web designer since i was in elem. school actually haha. and i'm taking CMPT 120 this semester so i have a basic background with Python coding.

    he seems to be asking for the basics in his assignments so...i think it would be a good choice to get some formal training...
  • crim_bum
    edited December 2006
    I'm taking Crim 402 - Biological Exp in Crime...for Dist. Ed. ...any comments on this course??!?!?
  • Mac83
    edited December 2006
    Make sure you don't slack off with the readings...do em as you go along if you wanna grab an easy B
  • hta
    edited December 2006
    distant ed courses are not fair for those without a computer...

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